Rating: 
Summary: An exquisite little jewel of a film from Sofia Coppola
Review: After watching "Lost in Translation" the thought that most stuck out in my mind was that this was Sofia Coppola's film. A lot of the talk about the film before the Oscars was about Bill Murray's performance, especially after he won the Golden Globe, but I did not think it was his best work. I would still insist that it was "Groundhog Day" where he displayed the greatest range and had his most heartfelt moments (i.e., the last night with Rita). As for Scarlett Johansson, "Lost in Translation" was not even her best performance of 2003. That would be her role as Griet in "Girl with a Pearl Earring." This is not to say that the performances by Murray and Johansson in this film are not excellent, but simply that both have done better. However, I do not think you can say the same for Coppola, since "Lost in Translation" is the second major film she has written and directed, the first being 1999's "The Virgin Suicide." The key difference is that this time Coppola is doing an original story and not an adaptation. The story is about two lost souls who meet in a Tokyo hotel and spend the night together, but not in the convention meaning of the phrase. Murray is Bob Harris, a movie star who has come to Japan to make a series of commercials for Suntory whiskey for big bucks, and while this keeps him far away from his wife and kids his phone calls home suggest his marriage is as much an obligation as this gig. Johansson is Charlotte, who has been dragged by her photographer husband, John (Giovanni Ribisi) on an assignment and is left to entertain herself while he is running around taking photographs of some minor Hollywood starlet (Anna Faris), and perhaps doing more. Our expectation is that Bob and Charlotte are going to end up in bed together, but Copolla is playing with our expectations. After all, two people can cling to each other through psychological intimacy as well as the physical. These two people are also in the middle of a neon colored alien environment with the late night Tokyo of karaoke bars and pachinko parlors. The dark hotel bar becomes a sort of womb that these two characters have reentered and are going to emerge from at the end of the film changed in some way that Coppola, in a masterstroke, decides not to share with the audience. Bob and Charlotte have their own lessons learned from this experience and Coppola leaves it to the audience you draw their own conclusions. "Lost in Translation" is a meditation, and for those who have not been married or who have never been a stranger in a strange land the realities of this fictional tale may well be lost. One of the reasons it stand out so prominently compared to the other films nominated for Best Picture Oscars in 2003 is that it is an intimate film while the others were either spectacles ("The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" and "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World") or larger than life stories ("Mystic River" and "Seabiscuit"). But even an intimate mediation can be a jewel of a film.
Rating: 
Summary: Nothingness
Review: 1. It's not a bad movie. If it were not for the hype, there maybe fewer people who hate it. Quite some people would find it interesting/different - a little off the Hollywood mainstream.
2. Being different does not necessarily mean being great... We are all so often and so easily confused by the two, admitted or not.
3. People get tired of Hollywood mainstream - the usually show-off stuff (action, plot driven, nudity, dramatization, etc); when we come across something that lack all of it, more or less nothingness... then we tend to believe there must be something special... We can believe or imagine somethingness from nothingness which dress itself in the artsy clothes at the most...
4. It's nice to have family in show business. There are so many independent films there which are equally and fairly interesting, different, or maybe more so if given the similar resource as in this one. However, never has such an ordinary movie received such extraordinary acclaims
Rating: 
Summary: What a great movie
Review: This film seems to have polarised viewers all over the world. You either love it or hate it. I loved it, but I also loved the action move The Transporter as well. Bill Murray was great and what a performance by 18 year old Scarlett Johansson!!! Everyone I have spoken to rates the "surprise" ending as the best in a romance movie for a long time.
Rating:
Summary: Worth seeing
Review: I really liked this film, but I could see how people might not. Those complaining about a "lack of plot" are too tied to Hollywood films where everything is handed to them and no thinking is involved. Basically, this film is a slice of life, and moves in the way real life might. I thought the camera work gave it a realistic feel, and what surprised me the most was this: it was pretty much void of cliche. Okay, one might say the middle aged man depressed about his marriage and the young girl who doesn't know what to do with herself could have fallen into cliche with a lesser filmmaker (such as Spielberg, for example) but what sets this film apart is the way in which it is handled. This is just about 2 people connecting through loneliness, and it's left at that. Before seeing the film, I thought Bill Murray and Scarlet were an official 'couple' who meet and fall in love, etc. But how surprised I was to find they were both married, and yet their 'affair' isn't a roll in the sack, like in a Hollywood film, but in their simple connection. On that note- I don't think it should have been nominated for an Oscar, or even the screenplay receiving one- but the cinematography is unique and interesting, and it's a film worth exploring. I'm eager to see more of Sofia's works in the future.
Rating:
Summary: Lonely Days, Lonely Nights
Review: Bill Murray is Bob Harris, a once popular American actor who now, in his middle-age, has found more acceptance and money from the people of Japan than from his own country. He arrives at a prestigious hotel in Tokyo and is given a royal treatment by his greeters and hosts. He is by himself in the land of the rising sun, his wife and kids having stayed behing in the US while he travels across the globe to do some liquor commercials. This Tokyo excursion will take about a week, and the monetary reward will be quite handsome. Contrast this with Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), who is at the same hotel tagging along with her photographer husband, John (Giovanni Ribisi), as he does a multiple-day photo shoot. John is at work most of the time, and so Charlotte is by herself at the hotel, her attempts to keep from being bored proving fruitless. Both Bob and Charlotte are married people, but they are also very lonely people, and that is what "Lost In Translation" is all about. Bob and Charlotte catch glimpses of one another at different places in the hotel, and finally decide to converse in earnest at the hotel bar. The entire plot of the film is about these two people getting to know each other. The story revolves around them. In fact, the story *is* them. Bob, in his early-fifties, is old enough to be Charlotte's dad, but that doesn't matter here. It's not about age. It's about the place, and the points that each of these people are at in their lives. Bob loves his children very much, but we do not sense he feels the same for his wife. We hear her on the phone when she calls him, and the same weary sentiment seems to flow from her voice. They are becoming a couple in name only. Then there's Charlotte & John. Both are young, and both are self-possessed. John is into his photography to the point of neglecting Charlotte. But we get the idea that even if gave her more attention, Charlotte might not really warm up to him. She has issues of her own. If Bob is going through a mid-life crisis, then Charlotte seems to be going through a young-life crisis. "Lost In Translation" is about being alone. Loneliness doesn't always mean that someone is physically separated from loved ones or from people in general. One can be alone in the middle of a crowded room. Such is the case with Bob & Charlotte. They're in Japan for a week. They don't really speak the language. Bob's wife is in the US, and Charlotte's husband is always at a photo shoot. The two lost souls find each other at the hotel, spend time with one another, and even sleep in the same bed together. But we know that while this is providing a small comfort for the time being, it is not a lasting solution to their problems. And we also understand that both Bob and Charlotte -- even if Bob's wife were in Tokyo with him, and John was by Charlotte's side all the time -- would still be lonely. Their life struggles lie deeper than what one person can provide, especially the persons they have chosen to settle down with. This is probably Bill Murray's most understated performance, and it works brilliantly. He lets you in on Bob's emotions without betraying too much sentimentality. He conveys so much with just a smile, a frown, his body language, or simply the look in his eyes. He should get an Oscar nomination for this. Scarlett Johansson, who left me unimpressed in the movie "Ghost World" a few years ago, is excellent in her role here. She portrays Charlotte as a deep, troubled, yet intelligent young woman and, like her co-star, does it without overstating it. She spends much of her screen time walking around a hotel room in her pink panties, and does it so simply and matter-of-factly that it becomes both vulnerable and sexy at the same time. Johansson is definitely an actress to watch for in the coming years. Sofia Coppola has succeeded in creating a sliver of time & place with "Lost In Translation". It creates two of the most realistic characters to ever grace the cinema. You forget this is a movie, and start to really care for these people as though they really exist. And you get the feeling that this is a single, solitary moment that will be over with and then fondly remembered by the characters for a long time to come. This sweeps over you before the film is even over, much like when you are in the middle of a special occurence or event in your own life, and you stop and think about the fact that at one point - very soon - it will cease to be the present, and will instead become only a nostalgic memory. And there you have "Lost In Translation"
Rating: 
Summary: How about 0 stars?
Review: This movie, in my opinion, is a pathetic excuse for a film. I literally was forcing myself to watch it, thinking something would surprise me at the end, but I realized I wasted my time. I actually do not understand how any human being could actually write a story about this. The plot is basically based on nothing. Well, how two strangers meet each other in Tokyo and they are bored together. Great. Where's the twist? Where's the actual plot? There is none. They just drag themselves around bars and parties being bored out of their minds. One thing I really do NOT understand, is why the majority went crazy over this movie and believed it to be a masterpice. I personally, do not find it interesting to watch a middle aged man being followed by a camera in Tokyo, and him being bored the whole time. Where is the satisfaction? Overall, I wouldn't advise anyone to rent this, let alone buy this. A total waste of time.
Rating:
Summary: Best movie of the year
Review: i loved this movie so much, very touching. Amazing
Rating:
Summary: If not for Johansson, this movie wouldn't be worth seeing
Review: Scarlett Johansson is definitely the cutest girl in the world, which is what saved this movie. The plot was sort of strange, it's one of those "artsy" movies, but to me, any movie with Johansson in it is worth seeing.
Rating: 
Summary: A nice moment -- extended edition
Review: This movie captures a particular mood extremely well. It just does it for a very VERY long time. It seemed more appropriate as a subject for a short film ... but people don't watch short films by themselves, so few people make them.
Rating:
Summary: Subtle Beauty
Review: Lost in Translation, Sofia Coppola's latest work, is without question one of the finer films of the year. The stylistic transition from her last feature, The Virgin Suicides, to Lost in Translation is not exactly obvious, but nonetheless shows Coppola directing a more mature-natured picture than she previously has. Lost in Translation's subtleties are its greatest achievements, while the actor's performances are the impressive allies to a compelling story of love, life, chemistry, and respect. If at least one Oscar is not garnered from this combination of elements, I will find myself sadly disappointed. The movie begins with Bob Harris (Bill Murray) arriving in Tokyo, Japan to shoot a commercial for a Japanese-brand whisky. Upon arriving in the country, it's immediately obvious that he is not completely up for this task. He arrives at a beautiful hotel where he is lavishly welcomed by the hotel's staff before retreating to his room to alienate himself from the experience. Charlotte, played by Scarlett Johansson, is also at the hotel. She is staying with her photographer husband while his is in the country for work. The next evening, Charlotte sees Bob having a less than fulfilling time in the hotel's lounge and sends him a drink. Later that evening, they meet again in the lounge when both are unable to sleep. An instant bond is established and the two slowly begin to realize that they are the best suited company for one another. Eventually Bob and Charlotte go out together on the town. In the midst of being in a completely different culture, where more than the language is a barrier, the two find themselves meeting on a much deeper level than they had originally planned. The fact that the age difference is obvious to the audience makes some of the subsequent scenes more intense. You're left to question if the two are going to take the relationship to a sexual level. You're left to question if the two are truly falling in love. You're left to question if the age really has any bearing on the chemistry that they feel together. Therein lays the true beauty of this film. Although it would be extremely easy to have these two romantically fall in love, they're simply two people that meet on an emotional level. For lack of better words, they just understand each other. For the next couple of days they utilize their time to the fullest by enjoying their time together. They don't want the time to end, but realize that in just a few short days everything in their lives will go back to normal. During the last evening of the trip, a fire alarm is sounded in the hotel forcing everyone outside until all is clear. At this point, Bob sees Charlotte and approaches her. The moment is uncomfortable because, through no intention of his own, Charlotte becomes aware of the fact that Bob has unexpectedly had another woman in his room the night before. Unable to deny the fact that she has become emotionally attached, Charlotte asks Bob when he is going home. He replies, "In the morning." At this point, it's in the open and the two realize just exactly how much fun they've had together over the course of their visit to Japan. This is a friendship that could very easily be taken to the next level, but somehow the two are smart enough to understand that this is something that just needs remain where it's at. After leaving the hotel to catch his plane home, Bob sees Charlotte walking down the streets of Tokyo and implores the driver to pull over so he can say what he wanted to say earlier. Unfortunately, and fortunately, we are unable to hear what he tells Charlotte. We're only left to speculate what it is. I'm sure most people agree that it can only be one or two things. It's such a beautiful scene, though. It's one of the true highlights of cinema in the past several years. Everything about Lost in Translation is in the right place. As I stated before, it's the subtleties that make it so great. Whether it's the witty humor of Murray, the innocence of Johansson, the brief appearances of the small handful of cast members, or the beautiful imagery of Tokyo, nothing has been overdone. Finally, as I left the theatre, I realized just exactly how much my emotions had been played with. However, it wasn't until the second time I saw this film that I fully understood why. On some level I guess I had wanted things to turn out differently, but maturity of the writing actually made this movie ten times more enjoyable than it would have been had it ended the way I wanted it to the first time.
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