Lost In Translation

I have to admit this is an odd film, and perhaps, as Tim suggests, one that is a bit overrated. Reaction from those I've talked to about it range from overwhelmingly positive to positively underwhelmed.

My own response was quite favorable. I loved it, loved the touching relationship between the two lonely lead characters; but I can certainly understand why others might find it deadly dull. Which to me makes for a good film: One that generates differing emotions in different people; one that generates differing interpretations and sparks differing points of view.

John

"lost in translation" is what's known as an "art-house flick". to many in the u.s., "art-house flicks" are "boring" and "pretentious". this is a view generated by their liking of traditional hollywood narrative films, which offer straightforward stories and characters with clearly-defined goals. on the other hand, "art-house flicks" demand the active participation of viewers in order to fill in the gaps. this is why so many art-house movies are deliberately paced, quiet, and contemplative--because they want you to think rather than simply react to what you see.

tim, try watching the movie again as a comedy of misunderstandings rather than as a comedy of laughs. you'll see what the fuss is about. :)

Lost In Translation is not for everyone. It deals with a relationship that is at a level many might of us might not get. I was underwhelmed the first time I saw it and after a 2nd viewing, it certainly got so much better. Once you get to know each of the character's own motivations and loneliness, it is easy to understand why the click together so well. It is really hard to understand why such a film would make me feel good after watching it but it did. And speculation still grows about what exactly did Bill Murray whisper into Scarlet's ear at the end of the movie.

Murray is the underdog for the Oscar and I think he deserves it, even though he would probably not win. The Academy doesn't give much weight to comedic performances. Who knows, maybe this year will be the year for comics with Murray and Diane Keaton winning their categories.

In all fairlness, I do enjoy "art-house flicks," as it is called. My favorite last year was "Sex & Lucia," which I'd rate on a much higher scale than this film.

I did understand the humor, it just isn't the type of humor that does anything for me. However, I do feel this is a film that needs to grow on me, and one I may appreciate later on. I can't really say I was underwhelmed. Let's just say I was just. . .whelmed?

:)

This happens to be my first time on this website and first comment on any film at DVDTown. Mr. Puccio happens to be my English teacher, and when I asked him about this film after viewing it, he told me that it was "charming" and delightful." I would have to agree with him.

I've watched "Lost in Translation" at least three times this week, with different members of my family, and it seems that like all of you, they all had their own opinions and reactions to the performances and general plotline. My parents were never captivated by it; however, my cousins were all fascinated more than just with Japan???s culture, but Coppola???s ability to utilize the lonely emotions we all eventually feel in life. It was different, subtle, realistic and unique, thus deserving at least a nomination from the Academy, from my point of view. Still, for an amateur viewer, I can???t point out whether Coppola, Murray, or the film itself will take the gold later this month, but I can remind viewers that ???Lost In Translation??? should not be taken too seriously, but as a breath of fresh air from Hollywood???s recent larger-than-life productions.

I wonder why Johansson wasn't nominated for "Lost in Translation" nor "Girl with a Pearl Earring" by the Academy.
:D

I don't even value the reviewer's opinion because he actually wrote, "Who is Kevin Shields?" Get with it buddy.

Heck, yeah! Part of the team of Shields and Brooks, San Francisco mimes of the late sixties, early seventies, no? Or was that Shields and Brooke? Or Shields and Fontaine? Lunt and Fontaine?

John

John, so are miming in writing how to be a real jackass? Cause thats all Im getting.

If my gentle tease offended you, JPK4Life, can you understand in some small way how offensive your remark was about one of our reviewers? We are hoping with the Comments section at DVD Town that readers will contribute their input on the movie under discussion, not attack the reviewer of the movie for his opinions.

John

QUIET, BOTH OF YOU!!!!

I AM THE ONLY ONE ON DVDTOWN WORTHY OF POSTING AN OPINION!

YCH,
DICTATOR SUPREME OF THIS UNIVERSE AND ALL OTHER DIMENSIONS

YCH, it wasn't a good idea for you to jump in like that...

Funny thing about this whole "Kevin Shields" issue is I looked the guy up. I found nothing vaguely familiar or popular about the guy. I honestly don't know any of his music, nor does he sound interesting enough for me to care about. However, I guess it must be my duty to know every person on the planet in the entertainment industry!

heh,

I guess you're right, Eddie/Posters5...but I had to post something totally off the wall to make this page more humorous. It was getting hot ;)

YCH, I understand that you had good intentions, but there's no point in adding fuel to fire, especially if you weren't one of the original participants in a spat. Besides, JPK4Life seems to be one of those people who are itching for fights (like geeky_guy and jimmy435). It's best just to ignore them.

Kevin Shields is from a band called My Bloody Valentine. They rock, that was my only point. Enough said about it.

I finally watched the movie with my friend's family as a rental...and as expected, everyone else went to bed and I was the only one left finishing it.

The movie is slow at times, and I guess it was probably needed to drive home the feeling of loneliness, sadness and aimlessness that our lead characters were going through. It's a good thing I didn't buy the "comedy" hype at all. "Flat out hilarious", the box says. I don't think so. I never thought Bill Murray was the kind of LOL type of actor. To me, he's more of the pessimistic kind that plays to the tune of black-humor or irony.

Anyway, the movie gradually drew me in (a mix of well-written, well-acted characters, beautiful cinematography - and quirky Tokyo too) and by the end I thought it was a nice, thoughtful film; a film about the relationships we make, the compromise of our desires and obligations, and everything in between. It's hard to explain what the movie does, and even harder to classify.

A quick comment about Tim's review:

The 2nd paragraph about your struggles with the packaging was trivial and in my opinion, unnecessary in a DVD review, especially in a site like DVDTown where most reviews focus on the content.

In reply to John:

"Which to me makes for a good film: One that generates differing emotions in different people; one that generates differing interpretations and sparks differing points of view."

The same can be said about almost any movie.

YCH,

Why are you hating on Tim's review? Sometimes, writing about the experience of watching the movie adds flavor to a review. :)

Eddie

YCH,

I can understand how my brief and hasty generalization above might be open to misinterpretation. To elaborate, when I said that a good film generates differing emotions in different people and generates differing interpretations, I meant that good films may entertain us or make us think; and that great films do both. Unfortunately, most films are merely mediocre or less, and they often do neither.

Of course, as you say, any film can provoke some kind of response from viewers. But I was referring to responses beyond the shallow “Wow, wasn’t that cool!” or “That movie totally sucked” kind. A film like “Cold Creek Manor” is well produced and well acted, yet it’s entirely ordinary. Its entertainment value is open to question among experienced moviegoers and its intellectual content is close to zero. In other words, like the majority of films, which are common or run-of-the-mill, “Cold Creek Manor” provokes very little emotion and generates very few differing intellectual opinions.

On the other hand, “Lost in Translation” does provoke serious response because it’s not only an entertaining film, it’s a thoughtful one. That being said, I still don’t think it’s quite as remarkable as some other people believe, once the film having made its point, doing very little with it; nor do I think Bill Murray was stretching very far in his portrayal of the bored movie star, behaving much in the laid-back manner of most of his performances. But for me these differences of opinion are a part of what make “Lost in Translation” an above-average film.

John

Eddie,

Coz I hate Tim :p

Nah, I just thought his battle with the shrink wrap and packaging was...um...



John,

Got it :)

YCH really put in words what I was thinking about this movie
"...the movie gradually drew me in (a mix of well-written, well-acted characters, beautiful cinematography - and quirky Tokyo too) and by the end I thought it was a nice, thoughtful film; a film about the relationships we make, the compromise of our desires and obligations, and everything in between. It's hard to explain what the movie does, and even harder to classify." <--- that is so true!

For me, this movie was similar to "Swimming Pool" or "Wonder Boys", in that, the first time I watched it I really was not sure if I liked it or not but was totally intrigued by what I saw. After watching "Lost in Translation" for the third time and being able to connect with the character???s emotions and the subtleties that the film tries to get across, it became a classic for me. The strange thing is, that even though the film has a sober feel to it (definitely not a comedy) and the lead characters are borderline depressed, it had a comfortable feel to it. It is a movie that demands your full attention and if you don't immerse yourself in it you can easily blow it off as "boring" or "over rated".

I have to admit I have a real passions for films like this one, where atmosphere is an integral part of the story. I think it is an incredibly thoughtful film with brilliant acting. This film sucked me in and let me go gently when the time had come.

It was interesting to talk to my parents about this film because at first they said that they didn't enjoy it. But after talking about different moments in the film it turned out that they had, and in reality thought the acting and content of the film was excellent. It was simply too slow for them which had created a certain level of boredom.