Lost in Translation (2004, DVD)

As an individual with a great love of movies; some say too great a love but that's besides the point, I make it a point to see as many different films as possible. I stress the word different because each year a lot of various films come out, and while some people are content to praise the crap out of the originality in a film about a mans struggle to find the woman he loves, or the deep emotional resonance of a film that force feeds the emotion of a young boy trying to do a good thing for 3 people in the hope that they will reciprocate with 3 more, still it remains true that these films are the traditional, and so when a film comes out that is genuinely different then I want to experience that. Good, bad, or even somewhere in the middle my enjoyment of these films does not stop me from seeing them once, just so that I can experience something a little different. (Of course, those of the belief that a hackneyed crapfest like Cold Mountain is completely unique generally hate them.)

Sofia Coppola's (The Virgin Suicides) Lost In Translation is one such film. It's a film which defies description purely because the normal rules of story telling do not apply to this film. There's no conventional beginning, middle, and end narrative, but rather there's a narrative which starts where it ends, ends where it starts, and kind of has the same stuff in the middle; if you get my meaning.

It tells a semi story about 2 very depressed individuals. Bob Harris is a down and out film star, married to a clingy overbearing wife, and with children he rarely sees. He's in Japan working on an ad campaign for a particular brand of whiskey, but his heart is not even in this job.

Staying in the same Hotel is Charlotte; a young woman who has recently married a workaholic who has come to Japan in order to get in some photography. She spends most of her time alone in her hotel room, can't even be bothered to change her underwear, instead choosing to sit and brood.

The story really gets interesting as they meet in the bar and find solace in each other. However this is not any love story where the 2 will embark on a forbidden love and choose between their happiness or their family. It's not a thriller where she gets kidnapped, and he has to save her. There's certainly no Alien invasion to come along and make things interesting. No, instead they simply hang around with each other, watching TV, singing Karaoke, and drinking in the bar. This is all they do; for the entire running time of the film, so if you are one of those people expecting romance, action or dazzling effects, then look elsewhere, because this is certainly not the place for you.

On the other hand, if you like the sound of a film that completely neglects any semblance of a traditional plot and uses the time it's saved to really get to know it's characters, then this is most certainly the film for you.

You see Lost In Translation contains something I seriously love to see, but unfortunately rarely get the chance to these days. That thing is called subtlety!

See as Bob and Charlotte interact you will learn various things about them, but only if you actually pay attention. For instance as you observe the effects that depression has had on them, you come to realize that the 2 are both suffering from chronic insomnia, but unlike most movies where showing chronic insomnia involves constant cuts to a character shuffling around in their beds every night, Lost In Translation simply offers one
scene where the 2 are unable to sleep and decide to watch TV, then after that you are forced to take note of the tired looks on their faces to realize that this is not a one off occurrence.

The best part is in their actual feelings for each other. You see unlike the mainstream love stories, that fill your mind with all sorts of sugary goodness (see Down With Love as the worst example in recent memory) Coppola has been smart enough to use Lost In Translation to display a different, and in my opinion infinitely more important aspect of love. You know, the little thing called feelings. Bob and Charlotte are never in love in the traditional Hollywood style of sex and romance, both are married and so never take their relationship beyond that of hanging out, but it's clear that the 2 of them have developed real deep feelings for each other. What with the fact that Bob actually smiles when around her, but has a terminally empty look whenever the 2 are separated. Charlotte of course manages to change her underwear after meeting him, most people don't seem to notice that, I guess the lovely pink panties blinded them, but in the latter half of the film she is clearly seen in a pair of blue panties, and, shock horror, boxer shorts!!!

As far as capturing all of this subtlety, both leads display a remarkable talent for underplaying emotions. Bill Murrey (Ghost Busters) does the best, managing to introduce his usual range of dry wit, but by simply telling all of these jokes in a monotone drawl, he actually manages to portray the absolute blandness of Bob's life.

Scarlett Johansson (Eight Legged Freaks) manages to easily hold her own in the role of Charlotte, using the skills at portraying the feeling that everything, everywhere, ever, is mundane, and basically showing the audience what it would be like if Rebecca, Johansson's character in Ghost World, were ever to grow up and get married.

Sadly, as much as I did enjoy this film, I can't quite bring myself to recommend it to everyone. I enjoyed it, in fact I really enjoyed it, it's just that for most people this will be one of those films that you can classify under interesting, as opposed to entertaining. The fact is, that despite some brilliant moments of humour, such as Bob taking a shower and discovering that the shower doesn't reach his neckline, and other such satrical touches that prove to pigeon hole the Japanese race into a group of short, funny talking, kinky sex loving Karaoke singers, (So basically a party in one!) it's not enough. The trouble is that while these potentially offensive jokes were kind of funny, they wont be enough to hold the average Joe's attention. Even most fans of Indy flicks like this will likely walk away unable to recall a film per say, but rather a collection of seemingly unrelated scenes. Despite that problem though, I still say that any film to genuinely capture human emotions, beyond the sugar coated Hollywood interpretation, deserves to gain the highest honours.




I know, I know, some people always knew I would love this flick, just so that I can show off my vast intellect, at least I think I have this vast intellect, just save it for the comments section OK!!!