Lost in Translation (2003) - 8.5/10

Although the title of the movie is Lost in Translation and set in Japan it consistently showing us the cultural differences between Japan and the US, this movie is really not about meaning getting lost in translation between two languages or cultures. That is more the subject of the movie's comedic elements. Instead this is a movie about the meaning of life as perceived by certain characters where-in it gets lost in translation or the very act of living it (consider how translation could mean the act of forwarding, that of forwarding one's own life). True, that such a meaning of the title (or specifically the word translation) is not necessarily the defined meaning, but then any kind of artistic effort is in some ways about redefining meanings. And before I get lost in the translation of my thoughts to this page I will get back to the task at hand.

The story follows Bob (Bill Murray) and Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson) as they spend some time in Japan. They are both lost in translation in the sense that I described before. They really have no idea where they are going, why they are doing what they are doing (if they are doing anything at all) and how they are going to get out of this situation that they find themselves in. Bob's suggestion that they should leave the hotel, then the city and then the country seems like a good one. But since the problem is within, it is not really going to be a fruitful solution in the long run. In a way, we can see that both of them have indeed taken this trip to Japan as a sort of changing-the-scenery but that hasn't done anything for them. In fact, now in these foreign locales they are more lost than ever. That is until fate lends them a hand by making the two of them meet.

Their meetings, and their relationship as they talk through their respective issues (and what those issues exactly are is not necessary to be discussed here, it is more rewarding for them to be discovered in the movie and it should be said that they are not particularly anything Earth-shattering - something along the lines of growing up for Charlotte, mid-life crisis for Bob and marriage issues for both) is interesting both as an observation of a budding relationship between two lonely lost souls, and also as the hint of a romantic possibility. Add to the suggestion of experience versus fresh-thought, and watching accomplished versus budding actor and the film really grows to be much more. That is one of the things for me that I believe in time this is going to be one of those films that people will watch as a cornerstone for both Murray's and Johansson's respective careers, and that thought is so very interesting. That means of course that they have really put in wonderful performances here: searching, haunting, mature are some of the words that come to mind.

Tokyo, some Kyoto, and modern Japanese culture stand as a backdrop to this and it is interesting in the sense that it works at the level of putting us on unfamiliar ground as well so that we ourselves are doing a little bit of that searching all the time. This is a brilliant thing about this movie, because especially the opening shots with Bob Harris in the car waking up in a foreign city and the unusual (and might I say beautiful) first shot of Johansson's back puts us immediately on foreign ground and we are interested if a little anxious of what is to come.

That Sofia Coppola (daughter of the great Francis Ford Coppola) is able to find this second layer is her greatest achievement. She uses a camera that frequently goes in and out of focus as the characters look at things around them and captures interesting images of modern Japan (a game arcade and the players there including one who dances in rhythm with the game, a karaoke party, etc) add to the feeling and all of this is underscored by a wonderful soundtrack.

She does other things well too in a conventional sense, keeps the camera on Bill Murray giving him the opportunity to use it to complete effect (watch him especially in the closing moments of the movie, and you'll see why this is one of his best performances; his restraint in the movie's comic scenes adds to that). Johansson on the other hand is given a slightly different treatment and that helps her grow (blossom?) into her role. She allows for this movie to be much more than a comedy (which it could easily have been, and it is very funny) or worse a romantic comedy (that their relationship pushes into romance is not surprising, but the way that it is handled is critical to the success of the movie). The setting of the tone and mood throughout the story with slightly pale colours (always giving the feeling of jet-lag/insomnia) is particularly striking, as is the almost taste-able Santory whiskey. This is an achievement not only of Coppola's but the cinematography and art direction.

Ultimately, the meeting of Bob and Charlotte gives them an opportunity to consider their life as it is (and more importantly to talk about it). This in effect results in their internal conversation reaching fruition (although this is not shown explicitly but becomes clear in the closing shots where Bob whispers something to Charlotte - we are not a party to this conversation and that is a good thing).

I give the movie 8.5. The biggest shortcoming is that the editing could have been tighter, some of the observations of Japanese-isms could have been curtailed. Consider the ending which starts of with the Bob's ride through Tokyo and is a montage of shots of the city but goes on for too long (I would have liked to see it end as they went up a flyover/bridge - both on a cinematic and musical note, but it continues for at least another 20-30 seconds) and that underscores for me the limitation of this movie.