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LOST IN TRANSLATION
by Peter Sobczynski

September 12, 2003

(out of 4 stars)

FILM CREDITS: Cast: Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Anna Faris and Giovanni Ribisi. Directed by: Sofia Coppola. Screenplay by: Sofia Coppola. Distributor: Focus Features. Run time: 102 min. Rating: R

I’m not entirely sure when it happened but somewhere along the line, Bill Murray went from being a terribly amusing star of goofball comedies to becoming one of the most gifted American actors working today. Granted, his career beginnings hardly suggested a genius in the making; while I bow to no man in my admiration for things like "Stripes" and "Caddyshack", they weren’t exactly heavy lifting and his early attempts to go beyond comedy (his very sincere attempt at "The Razor’s Edge" and the truly odd finale of "Scrooged") failed simply because he was trying too hard to stretch and the exertion showed. By the time of the 1993 one-two punch of "Groundhog Day" and the sadly underrated "Mad Dog and Glory", though, he had learned to relax enough so that he could pull off roles that contained both comedic and serious aspects-culminating in his unforgettable turn in the modern masterpiece "Rushmore". (The fact that he was denied a Supporting Actor nomination for his work in that film is one of the biggest injustices in the history of the Oscars.) Nowadays, he divides his time between doing the occasional knockabout comedy like "Osmosis Jones" or "The Man Who Knew Too Little" and taking part in more off-beat fare like "The Royal Tenenbaums". Frankly, he seems more at home these days with the latter-he is the rare actor who has used his success to allow himself to experiment rather than get stuck in a rut doing the same old thing for zero returns, aside from in the bank balance.

In other words, like Bob Harris, the actor that he plays in the wonderful new film "Lost in Translation". Bob is an enormous commercial success but he is clearly at a crossroads in his personal life-he is bored with his work and a couple of briefly overheard phone calls illustrate how estranged he is from his wife and family. Instead of confronting his problems, Bob has chosen to take the easy way out and, as the film opens, he is landing in Tokyo, where he is to be paid millions of dollars to do a whisky ad. However, the change in venue does him little good-he towers absurdly over everyone else, the language is incomprehensible and he is gripped with a mighty case of jet lag. As a result, he spends his days trying to get through the commercial shoot (where most of the time seems to be spent translating directions from Japanese into English and back) and his nights in the hotel bar drowning his sorrows.

In the same hotel is Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), a young women going through an identity crisis not unlike Bob’s. Recently married to a hot photographer (Giovanni Ribisi), Charlotte is beginning to have doubts about both herself and the marriage. With no career of her own, she spends her time in Tokyo wandering around by herself while her husband is off shooting local rock bands and wondering who this person she married really is. Also stricken with jet lag, she goes down to the bar one night and strikes up a conversation with Bob. Recognizing that each is on the others wavelength, they begin to spend their free time together-which increases when Charlotte’s husband leaves town on an emergency assignment.

From the description above, you might assume that "Lost in Translation" turns into one of those increasingly creepy movies in which a comely young lass is romanced by a guy almost old enough to be her grandfather (or as we in the industry like to refer to them as, "a Michael Douglas movie"). You would be wrong because "Lost in Translation" has a lot more on its mind than that. This is a film where the key relationship is based less on hormones and more on the strange elation that occurs when you meet someone who completely understands and sympathizes with what you are going through. Obviously, this is the kind of person that we hope we wind up marrying but that is not always the case, which lends a sad edge to the proceedings.

"Lost in Translation" was written and directed by Sofia Coppola, the follow-up to her 2000 debut "The Virgin Suicides". That earlier film showed that Coppola, best known at the time for her last name and her vilified performance in "Godfather III" (where, to be fair, she was a victim of weak writing as much as anything else), had a keen visual eye, a gift for creating mood and seemed to have a promising career ahead of her. As much as I loved that "The Virgin Suicides", "Lost in Translation" is even better and it confirms that she is indeed a major filmmaker to be reckoned with. As in her previous effort, Coppola (and cinematographer Lance Acord) creates a distinct visual style and attitude from the opening frames-she perfectly captures the wide-eyed incredulity that anyone endures when entering an utterly alien environment for the first time as well-especially when the time change has left them twisted and confused. (The opening shots of Murray regarding the city on his approach suggest what a live-action version of the dream film "Waking Life" might have been like.)

Even at times when the film seems destined to fall into cliché situations, Coppola finds a fresh angle to take. During one of their nocturnal adventures, Bob and Charlotte hit a karaoke bar and while a normal film might have played the scene as comedy (especially with Murray, he of the Lounge Singer sketches from "SNL" involved) but thanks to a subtle approach, as well as canny song choices, the scene has a surprisingly strong emotional impact (especially when it concludes with the two standing alone in a hallway for a silent smoke.) Another wonderful scene takes place in a sushi bar the morning after Charlotte has discovered that Bob, in a moment of weakness, has slept with the hotel’s hideous lounge singer. She is upset and slightly jealous (the former is obvious, the latter unspoken) and he is ashamed and embarrassed about the entire thing. This scene could have also been played for comedy or as a big tear-jerking moment but Coppola stages it as realistically as possibly and the results are truly striking.

Of course, Coppola is aided immeasurably by the wonderful performances of the two. I believe that I waxed Murray’s car enough in the opening paragraph-all I will say about his work here is that it is the equal of his performance in "Rushmore". However, his work is more than matched by that of Scarlett Johansson, who was the sole saving grace of "The Horse Whisperer" and who later turned heads in supporting roles in "Ghost World", "The Man Who Wasn’t There" and "Eight-Legged Freaks". (Well, at least I liked that last title.) An extraordinarily gifted young actress despite her youth (in this film, she is actually playing older than she really is), Johansson has the range and ability to perfectly capture all the conflicting emotions of Charlotte while still making her enormously appealing to both Bob and to the audience watching as their relationship heads towards its inevitable (yet strangely uplifting) conclusion.

"Lost in Translation" has been earning rave reviews from critics and while it is entirely deserving of them-it is one of the very best films of the year- the enormous praise may, in a weird way, work against the film. Viewers may walk in expecting some profound, life-changing experience in which people come to terms with things-those going in with that attitude may find themselves slightly disappointed. "Lost in Translation" is like a beautiful short story- low-key, smart, direct and, in its own distinct way, close to perfection.

-- PETER SOBCZYNSKI

Copyright © 2003 Peter Sobczynski
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While the views expressed by Peter Sobczynski do not necessarily reflect the views of Criticdoctor.com, the Critic Doctor will occasionally examine Mr. Sobczynski's film reviews to bring forth an honest examination of those views expressed.