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Lost
in Translation
 Lost in Translation is a film that would seem to have all the
ingredients of an excellent romantic comedy. Scarlett Johansson is
one of the more attractive and intriguing young actresses to arrive
on the scene in years and Bill Murray is well, Bill Murray. Written and directed by Sofia
Coppola, it co-stars the talented Giovanni Ribisi and convincing
bimbo in training Anna
Faris.
Set against the back drop hubbub of modern day Tokyo with Murray as
a dead panning, sardonic ex Hollywood star, wise cracking and
drinking his way to the Asian commercial market and Johannson as the bored young wife of Ribisi’s
photog, stuck in underwear clad exile of a ritzy hotel as they bide their
time, battle insomnia, and wile away hours in the bar. A recipe, it would
seem, for a successful romantic comedy no? But while the film
delivers both the romantic and the comedy, slaves to the genre are sure
to be disappointed. The couple never is sexually intimate you see
and when the credits run we don't even get the feeling they will live happily ever after, or
indeed, will ever see each other again. However, perhaps specifically for these reasons, Lost in Translation is one of the
more
refreshing movies to come along in quite awhile.
Murray plays Bob Harris, a married fifty something with children back at home
who was thought to be somebody once and continues to cash in on that
fact even though his life has long since ceased to be of much interest to him. Harris seems to see a mild humor in his current
pathetic state as he is given the white glove treatment by the Japanese
but takes little joy in it and possibly regards it as the final piece
of
evidence of the sellout he has become. It isn’t that he seems overly
bitter or self loathing, just acutely aware that his life has
arrived, (perhaps due to his own laziness) at a place where he is
able to coast along, putting forth little effort for great economic but very
little emotional reward. He half heartedly deadpans his way through
the cultural immersion dutifully playing the part asked of him by
the Japanese handlers and drinking enough whiskey to get him through
the day. The nights however are long and he finds himself forever awake pondering his fate and flipping through channels where he
often encounters himself in dubbed over old movies (in one case conversing with
a chimp, an indication perhaps that even at the height of his
career, the writing was on the wall).
Scarlett Johansson plays Charlotte, a young, recently married
philosophy student from Yale who is overly cognizant of the fact
that she hasn’t found her way yet and is
spending the mean time following her self important photographer
husband on his assignments. Giovanni
Ribisi playing her lesser half however has little time for her, what
with his exciting jobs shooting over the hill rock bands and B movie
actresses so she finds herself mostly staring out over the skyline
from the hotel window and wandering
through the strange city alone. With her snoring husband beside her,
she also has trouble sleeping nights and finds herself heading down
to the bar to listen to bad lounge singing and try her hand at smoking
and drinking. She encounters Harris there of course and as they
exchange witticisms, they begin to sense the similarities in their
situations almost immediately despite being aware of the inevitable separation in the paths of their lives. They begin hanging out
together in the engulfing weirdness of a Japanese culture that doesn’t
seem to make much sense to either of them. The stage is set it would
seem for that feel good romance which most people who attend such
films expect.
Sofia doesn’t fall for it however for she is after a greater
prize. She is attempting to make a film that is real. And while it isn’t any
great revelation that real life can be frustrating, it is rare that a movie successfully imparts upon the audience those
very emotions as they come bearing down on the actors in the story.
Bob and Charlotte are in unsatisfying places in their lives and find respite in
each other’s company but meeting each other is not a fix all. They are each people with large holes to
fill if they are to move forward from the slice of life revealed by this
film and go on to lead the challenged and rewarding existences
that most
people hope for but few attain. And perhaps a portion of those holes could have
been filled by the continued company of the other. However Sofia seems to know
that strangers that share strange moments together in
strange places don’t necessarily translate well into happy couples
for ever after when forced to endure normal circumstances and some
are even smart enough to realize this at the time they go through
it. She also
seems aware that often in life many roads just aren’t taken and
even though it is fun to think in retrospect how much better things
might have been if they were, the moments leading up to that fork can be memorable on their own and
worthy of
attention. In the penultimate scene as Bob runs after Charlotte, just before heading back
to the US, hugs her tightly for the first and last
time and whispers something in her ear that the audience isn’t
allowed to hear but that causes tears to run down her face, it is as powerful a cinematic moment as any couple
riding off into the sunset has ever been. They met, they compared notes, they
benefited from each other’s company, and despite a distinct attraction and the temptation to take it to another
level (by both characters and director), they
resisted the urge for whatever reason and moved on. Will Bob and
Charlotte regret it? Hard to say. Will the romantic comedy seekers resent them
for it? Probably. This reviewer for one however is glad they didn't
succumb.
It is also worth mentioning that
there is plenty of comedy in the film, some of it of the highest
order. The clash between modern Japan and Murray's Harris provide
many a chuckle and, although he resists the urge to completely ham it up as
only he can in order to stay within character, there are plenty of
times when we get to laugh at his bemusement at the cultural
differences. And there's romance too as long as one isn't overly
stringent with their definitions.
Rating: 
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