***Official LOST IN TRANSLATION Discussion Thread (1 Viewer)

[Ted Lee]

the few plot "developments" such as Bill Murray´s character sleeping with the lounge singer seem to completely come out of left field and have little or nothing to do with the character as the movie has portrayed him to that point.

it has everything to do with the character, the story, and their relationship.

in summary: murray's character is a slut. so...why didn't he just sleep with her? because he *cared* too much about the relationship. he knew that having sex would ruin it. but, he didn't give a hoot about the lounge singer, so he went for it.

 

[ZacharyTait]

Spoiler to those in other time Zones

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Congratulations to Bill Murray on his win for Best Actor in a Comedy at the Golden Globes and to Sofia Coppola for her double win in Best Screenplay and Best Picture Comedy.

 

[Ted Lee]

i dunno...i don't think i viewed this as a comedy, but whatever.

as long the movie gets the recognition!

 

[Richard Kim]

There were some laugh out loud moments in the film, so I don't really mind it being labeled a comedy.

 

[Bryant Trew]

Same here for me - I saw it as a drama first.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Sorry for what follows, and don't expect any kind of ordering in the quoting. My local theater brought it back following the Oscar nom. To me surprise and delight it was a packed house, and a respectful crowd.
Onward:

The one-night stand that Murray’s character has with the lounge singer only makes sense if you accept that he is releasing the built-up sexual feelings that he has for Charlotte; otherwise he is just another sleazy husband, taking an opportunity to cheat on his wife (whom he clearly loves).

Not so. I don't think that Harris was releasing built-up sexual feelings for Charlotte so much as indulging his need to share an intimate relationship with another person, even a false façade like a one-night stand with a lounge singer. The look of self-disgust on his face when he wakes up and realizes what he's done clearly shows that he's not another sleazy husband. It was moment of weakness, and he finds no satisfaction from it, though it does crystallize his feelings about alot of things. Charlotte's anger with Harris isn't out of jealosy. He was the first meaningful person in her life in a long time, perhaps ever. By fucking a so-so lounge singer after a night at the bar, he let her down as a person. She expected more from him and he let her down. Him telling her how much the lunch sucked later on was like an apology for failing, and her knowing that he knew and was sorry for failing broke the ice.

 

[Dome Vongvises]

Ah well, I'm drunk as hell right now, so I guess it's best to articulate the way I feel about the film.

I guess the movie was a love story, but the core of it was bascially what the film's title says, "Lost in Translation.".

It was all about communication, or the lack thereof.

It was very easy to identify what Murray was dealing with. It's like being a stranger in a strange land. I was born and raised in eastern Kentucky for the first nine years of my life. My father was able to sustain a medical practice and find success. However, it was never my parents' intent to raise me in America, so I moved to Thailand. Needless to say, I find the Thailand's customs and way of living strange to my own or what I believed to be the way of living.

I guess that's the way Bill Murray's character feels. But it extends beyond that. And the cultural "shock" was only superficial aspect of it. I guess there's a whole "communication" aspect part of relationship that's a subtext to the film. That's the way I see Scarlett Johanssen anyways (sp?), beyond the nice ass exposition shot at the beginning.

Think of it as kindred spirits, or people who understand one another because they're strangers in a strange land. You can see it in any relationship. The idea of communication. It doesn't matter of it's in a foreign land or if its just down the street at a bar. The idea of communicating with one another and kindred spirits is always important.

But that's just my interaction with the film. It was easy to indentify with. But sadly, I'm only a Phillistine, and I've had one too many bourbon and Cokes and draft Guinness. I stiill have a lot of films to watch to understand the subtleties of film.

Maybe come time after the Superbowl I'll be able to articulate my feelings.

 

[pradike]

I guess I have to apologize to my wife about all those terrible things I said to her about "Legends of the Fall" being the worst movie of all time, a boring, "chick-flick", etc.

Last night, we rented and loaded "Lost in Translation" into the DVD player with great anticipation of seeing a new Oscar-nominated production that features (one of my favorites) Bill Murray. I like to see the movie first before I consider adding it to my DVD collection - missed it in the theaters.

Clearly Bill Murray is the star, and plays a different role than I've seen before. He clearly has expanded his abilities in this role.

That said, THIS MOVIE SHOULD ONLY BE VIEWED AS AN ANESTHETIC BY PEOPLE READY TO GO INTO MAJOR SURGERY, WISHING TO FIND A HORSE TRANQUILIZER, OR IF SLEEPING PILLS DON'T WORK.

It now subplants "LEGENDS" as the most boring movie of all time. We both nearly fell asleep twice to the halfway point, but kep saying "I'm sure things will pick up soon". THEY NEVER DID.

While Seinfeld managed to make something form nothing on TV, DESPITE BILL MURRAY's PERSONAL FINE PERFORMANCE, this movie is aweful and moves along at the pace of grass growing and has no pulse by the end.


DON'T RENT THIS, BUY THIS, OR GET NEAR THIS MOVIE, UNLESS YOU TRULY HAVE THE DESPERATE NEED TO GO INTO A DEEP SLEEP.

:frowning:

 

[Lew Crippen]

Don’t hold back pradike—tell us how you really feel.

But it would benefit us all, if you could refrain from shouting and substitute your use of caps with some reasoned dialogue.

I’m not nearly as big a fan of the film as most in this thread, but I certainly was not bored. And I thought that some scenes such as their nighttime sojourn into Tokyo were quite energetic.

 

[pradike]

Ok...I can see how some might like the one "nightlife" scene with the dancers....but even that couldn't jump start most people's pacemaker...

The movie is a low-budget "artistic" movie, and shows it. I have a pretty wide range of movie likes, and have seen hundreds of them that border on "I really paid for that?", but my wife and I regreted the $3.79 to event rent this movie. Didn't even get that value out of it - a sleeping pill would have been cheaper.

 

[Vickie_M]

I guess I hadn't been paying attention, I didn't realize it was out on DVD already. It's still playing in the theaters here in Chicago. I have to go buy it. It's a sweet, wonderful little movie, and I'm very happy that it's gotten the attention it has. When I first saw it last fall (I've seen it twice in the theater), I never would have imagined it would be nominated for Oscars, and I'm glad it did.

It wasn't my favorite movie of the year (it comes after ROTK and Big Fish) but it's in my Top 10. I'm thrilled for Sofia. It deserves every bit of the love that's been showered on it by the critics, Guilds and Academy.

Obviously, it's not boring to many, many people. Like most movies, it's not for everybody. The movie is not "aweful" in any way. It just has a different rhythm than most people expect, and sometimes people are taken by surprise. That surprise can turn into wonder at what they just saw, or they can get bored, confused and angry and take it out on the movie. It's inevitable.

Many of the best movies released are low-budget "artistic" movies. I live for them.

(Btw, Adam and Dome, great posts above)

 

[Fred Bang]

Just wanted to say that no movie has made me feel that way in a very long time. The perfect ending actually left me in strange, love-sick state of deep sorrow even though it was the only plausible realistic ending.

I think it's the most intimate moment I've ever seen in a movie (and they're surrounded by a large crowd). Some friend of mine suggested that the conversation might have a phone number exchange (since they both live in LA), but I prefer pretending its only "good bye" and that this impossible relation ends there.

Nobody talked about the great scene in the elevator (actually both of them: the first encounter, and the one right after the false alarm). Perfectly played!

Scarlett Johansson has made the most adorable character of the decade. You just want to jump in the screen and hug her!

 

[Kevin-Han]

Does anyone know what brand/model of headphones Scarlett Johansson's character listens with ?

 

[Peter Kim]

You've piqued my curiousity, Kevin. Could you estimate at what point in the film do the headphones appear?

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

I'd imagine early on when she's listening to the self-help tape about the universal soul or whatever.

 

[Peter Kim]

I think they are the Sony MDR-D22SL Eggo headphones.

Can be found at Audio Cubes

A little brother to the otaku favorites of the audiophiles, the MDR-D66SL Eggos.

 

[Kevin-Han]

Thanks for the feedback.

I believe there a few scenes in which she is seen wearing them - listening to the self-help disc, sitting in the tub in the hotel, riding the train and peering out the window.

I am not sure that they are Sony MDR-D22SL Eggo's.
I thought they may be Audio-Technica's since this brand (however does not specifically state headphones) is listed in the Company/Product listing at the end of the film credit's - but I am unable to identify the model that looks similar.

 

[Peter Kim]

Kevin, I think you're right...I saw her wearing these on the train and they were shown much more prominently - definitely not the eggos.

Funny thing...prior to reading your comment, although the brand was fuzzy, I thought the shape of the name appeared to be Audio-Technica.

 

[Quentin]

Harris atleast has successful relationships with his children (indeed his seperation from them is a major part of his own loneliness) but the fact that the relationship with his wife is more about carpet samples than personal impracticalities shows that he isn't sharing the type of relationship that he would desire.

I agree with most of your well spoken post, Adam; but, I must disagree on this point. He does NOT have successful relationships with his kids. He missed one of their birthdays completely, and they barely noticed. He never speaks to them on the phone, and I think it is clear that he is jealous of his wife's intimacy with them.

In fact, I think you have Bill's character pegged wrong about his marriage as well. I think he loves his wife and his kids; but, the passion is gone. FROM EVERYTHING! He has lost his way and is unable to get passionate about anything. He sleeps with the lounge singer, hoping that the sex will prove passionate since he has discovered an emotional connection with Charlotte that he is passionate about. He thinks he's "back", but clearly is not. His relationship with Charlotte is special.

One can only hope that whatever he says to her at the end helps her AND him...and that he finds passionate feelings about his family again.

 

[ToddP]

Just saw this movie tonight. Wow. I loved it. The introspective and depressed nature of the characters just feels so real. The film is so sad, so quirky, and so believable. Both actors truly made me feel what they were feeling. They made me understand what they were going through, and I could even see myself in their shoes.

Sophia Coppola's direction was fantastic, and I can definitely understand all of the critical fanfare she has received. I would be very surprised if she did not receive further recognition from the Academy through either a Best Director or a screenplay award. (screenplay being my choice)

As far as the exchange at the end, I'm pretty sure that the first words that Bob says are 'I love you', and then I believe that he goes on to tell her that everything is going to be ok and that she will find what she needs.