Rating: 
Summary: Nothing lost in this movie
Review: Hotels...even in your home country, they can be the loneliest place on the planet. You are on your own island, away from everything. That's where Bob Harris is...only he's in a country he doesn't really understand, away from a family that may or may not really love him. Charlotte is in the same hotel, with her husband, but he is constantly working. Bob and Charlotte meet a few times before really becomming friends, discussing family and life. Scarlett Johannsen is perfect in this movie, and Bill Murray is simply amazing.The DVD doesn't have many special features, but what it lacks in quantity, it more than makes up in quality. The making-of documentary is a joy to watch, and you get to see how emotional Sofia gets when she is talking about Bill Murray. I highly recommend this DVD.
Rating: 
Summary: A mind is a terrible thing to waste
Review: As said before here, my wife and I also sat through this film waiting for it to get started.... and then the credits rolled! It was a very predictable movie. I don't understand where all the media hype (nor Golden Globe awards) came from. I can't fault the acting, but the film was only a bit of eye candy - the strangest part showing how different Japanese culture is from American culture. (It convincined me that I don't think I could bear to live in a Japanese city. Maybe the countryside, definitely not the city!) Good effort by everyone - it just didn't gel for me. I prefer movies with a plot (and a progressive plot at that), than a "slice out of somebody's week" genre.
Rating: 
Summary: Dull, slow, disappointing
Review: It seems from these reviews, people either loved it or hated it. I wouldn't say I hated it, but once was more than enough and I'm glad I didn't buy it. This movie never got started, nothing ever happened, the two leads were only mildly interesting, they did nothing interesting or entertaining, and then the movie ended. Maybe I just didn't get it, but this movie made "The Hours" look like "The Terminator." Really! I mean, NOTHING, happened. I was really ready to like this with the good reviews and all, but it was so dull and boring. About an hour into, I kept waiting for something to happen. Finally, about an hour and twenty minutes into it, I had resolved myself that I had wasted the rental money, or maybe there would be some incredible ending that would make it worthwhile. No such luck. I understood the whole "soulmate" theme, but there was nothing believable about them really being soulmates, these "deep" exchanges about life were totally bland and devoid of anything novel, and I think a lot was supposed to be going on in their minds, but that doesn't really work in film without some kind of action or dialog. To be honest, I would rather sit through the much longer "Beloved" again. As boring and dull as "Beloved" was, I thought maybe I'd get more out of it with multiple viewings. There is nothing awful or offensive about it, it was just nothing to like or dislike. The mood, tone, and the way the film was shot I really liked, there just wasn't enough plot, dialog, or character development to supplement the visuals and moods created.
Rating: 
Summary: Lost in a City, Lost in Life
Review: "Lost in Translation" is an unconventional romantic comedy about two out-of-kilter Americans who find refuge from a dizzying culture in a friendship with romantic undercurrents. Veteran actor Bob Harris (Bill Murray) arrives in Tokyo to shoot a commercial for Suntori whiskey, a job for which he will be paid handsomely - even though he soon realizes that no amount is enough to compensate for his surreal experience with a culture he can't hope to understand. Meanwhile, Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson) is left day after day by her ditzy photographer husband who is in Tokyo for a shoot (unrelated to Bob's.) Both Bob and Charlotte are thrown off balance by a city that not only never sleeps but also never lets them sleep. When they meet in the hotel's bar in the middle of the night, a friendship begins that will take them through some of the strangest aspects of Japanese culture and into a relationship that neither characters wants to relinquish. As much cultural commentary as it is a buddy movie, this film defies true categorization because it shifts unpredictably from one absurd moment to the next, and then anchors itself firmly in honest, quiet scenes that contrast beautifully with the neon glare of the city. While the eventual meeting of the two protagonists is predictable - there wouldn't be a film without it - nothing else about this film is. Even the ending goes against convention. Sofia Cuppola uses a light hand, and she has miraculously excised the ham from Bill Murray. The chemistry between Murray and Johansson is as phenomenal as it is unassuming. The editing is first-rate, and the visuals are stunning. The one drawback for those used to more conventional movies is the pacing, which is more art house than Hollywood. If you have ever been to Japan, you MUST see this film. It perfectly captures the surrealism of Tokyo for the visiting American, that brilliant kaleidoscope that never quite seems to make sense when your days have turned into nights, and you wake up every morning at three a.m. From the television shows to the pachinko parlors to the shabu-shabu menus, everything is dead-on hilarious. You'll have to watch this film more than once to catch all the jabs since many are in the background. But what if you know nothing about Japan? You'll like this film anyway for its gentle humor and excellent performances. "Lost in Translation" is a truly intelligent comedy that will continue to grow on you even days after its viewing.
Rating:
Summary: Like an exquisite minimalist painting
Review: "Lost in Translation" may be the most sophisticated American movie of 2003. It may also be the best. It is the kind of movie whose hierarchy in cinema history will be decided years from now. One thing that it is not is 'mainstream'. Some viewers will be spellbound by it. Others will come away wondering why they wasted their time. Part of the 'problem' is that the story is like a minimalist painting - the viewer must fill in much of the details. A famous Hollywood star, Bob Harris [Bill Murray], travels to Tokyo to do some commercials for a Japanese whiskey manufacturer. All those time zones he has traveled through give him insomnia. Already ensconced at Bob's posh hotel is a young woman, Charlotte [Scarlett Johansson], who has traveled there with her husband [Giovanni Ribisi], a famous photographer. The husband must travel around Japan on assignment, leaving Charlotte on her own in Tokyo. Bob and Charlotte meet and have an affair which is far more spiritual than physical. When Bob's time in Japan is up, they both move on. There is no raging sexual affair here. There is no moaning about how 'bad' Bob and Charlotte's spouses are. [Bob's wife is back in California.] Both will return to the lives they have been living, albeit positively changed. To me, "Lost in Translation" is about those people we meet who profoundly change our lives, no matter how brief the encounter may be.
Rating:
Summary: DVD For Sale
Review: Watching this movie is like getting on your roof at 9pm and waiting for the sunrise. You might have all the patience in the world and it's still a bad idea. Scarlett's performance is like a long, slow Calvin Klein commercial, and Bill Murray - and I am a big fan - simply chose the wrong script. That's assuming there was a script because that would imply that something, anything, developed in this movie. It didn't. The movie ended as it began - with everyone in my family room wondering what the movie would be about. When the credit's ran, there was a long silence in my house, people sipped their wine, avoided eye contact, until finally someone couldn't hold it anymore and snorted a laugh out their nose, which started the only noteworthy moment of emotion during the evening. I've been laughing with Bill Murray for years - I've just never laughed at him before. I guess if you went to art school this might be an interesting example of an understated love story intertwined in the human condition or something, but if you work and do laundry and drive kids to school like me, it's just a waste of two hours, which in my world is huge. My wife paid $14 for this movie and I will gladly take 14 cents for it. Any takers? Sorry, Bill :)
Rating:
Summary: Disconnection & Reconnection...
Review: Lost in Translation unfolds a brilliant story in regards to disconnection and connection in an unfamiliar milieu. Bob Harris (Bill Murray), an American film celebrity suffering from a mid-life crisis, is is shooting a Whiskey commercial in Tokyo, Japan with people he barely can understand even with a translator. Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), a recent Yale graduate in philosophy, is isolated by her husband John (Giovanni Ribisi) as he is constantly away on photo shoots. In her seclusion she begins to question her life and her place in the world as she is detached from people she can communicate with. Bob's and Charlotte's crisis is accentuated by jet-lag and insomnia which draws them to the hotel bar where their paths intersect and lead to a week long beginning for both of them to reconnect with life and their existence. Sophia Coppola proves that she understands the human psyche and social interaction as she creates an authentic humane atmosphere that is enhanced by a terrific cinematography and a virtuoso performance by the cast as human existence is analyzed.
Rating:
Summary: Truly lost in translation
Review: I kept waiting for the movie to get started - and then the credits were rolling. Yawn. It was so slow, dull and hard to connect with. Definitely not "Love In the Afternoon" but equally hard to digest the love angle - sorry- but maybe photographing Murray in reduced light as they did Cooper would have helped.
The most interesting parts were scenes of Tokoyo. Bill Murray I love, but some how his connection with his young costar as a love interest were lost in translation - maybe they were hinting at some female version of an Edipus complex . I'm just so confused. Murray certainly seemed more in line to be her dad.
The hype done by the media was great though - got me to buy the DVD - and now its going on to be sold as used - once.
Rating:
Summary: The Tightest
Review: This is top three in my book between Shawshank Redemption and True Romance. This movie is either you love it or you hate it. I loved it because it showed how you need to cherish things for how they are and remember things. Im not going to get into a philosophical rant, but this shows a relationship that doesnt need sex, and still is a strong and caring relationship with unconditional feelings (the only thing I could get from when Bill Murry is with the older chick). It also has to do with what I feel how things dont last forever. Regardless, this is an awesome movie, if you understand and love to search for meaning. If you like a straight to the point story, you wont like it. But you have to see it for yourself, dont listen to what everyone says, because people taint others thoughts and it messes up the experience. So just disregard everything I said and go rent/buy the movie!
Rating:
Summary: a real sleeper
Review: This disc is great for those who need sleep and are afraid of sleeping pills.you'll be in snooze world before you can say, where's the remote.What a waste of talent.Murray and Johansson deserved better than this coma of a script!
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