Rating: 
Summary: How do you pay for a bad movie your daughter made?
Review: The answer - You use your name and force the critics to rave about the movie until everyone on the face of the earth rents it believing it just sounds too good to be true. This movie is a fine example of big money, bad direction. It had potential and it had its moments, but... I enjoy a good independent film. I also enjoy a good film delving into the human psyche and all its self-destructive flaws. This movie pretends to be all that and fails to make it. At best, this film is gratuitous and depressing. People who are absolutely gaa gaa over this movie have probably rendered similar reviews for HOUSEKEEPING and RUNAWAY TRAIN. Bill Murray is the perfect person to cast in this movie simply because his wit and mannerisms fool you into thinking you will finally get somewhere if you keep watching. But, in the end, you find out sadly you were wrong. Good thing I was only invited to watch it and didn't spend my own money. Future viewers who ignore this review: Good luck and take your meds.
Rating:
Summary: beyond lost- not worth translating
Review: This is the sort of movie that pretentious artsy people love to rave about. When asked to explain, they simply mimic the reviews, which seem to be about Sophia Coppola's 'astounding talent' more than anything else. To say the movie is slow paced is careless understatement. It is positively tedious. It is also a waste of a fine talent (Murray). Let's sum up what all the reviews allude to in such grandiose terms: two lonely people who have little else in common meet in Japan and moon over each other for a week, failing to even find happiness in each other's company. They then part, lonely and unfulfilled as before. The brief relationship (if it can be called such) they experienced will never continue because it is based on nothing. I've seen most of Bill Murray's movies. To hear reviews stating that he was 'never finer' is mind blowing. He appears to be in a catatonic state, and to suggest his facial expressions are moving or descriptive is to stretch the imagination. This is not a movie, but a slide show, and an exceedingly poor one to boot. Even the continuous and gratuitous shots of Johannson's see thru-undies are a waste of time. A lost child is not sexy. And if, perchance, the movie was supposed to be depressing or sad, it missed that mark as well. It simply comes across as abstract art, which anyone can mindlessly rave about without qualification, regardless of substance or lack thereof. This movie tries to be a foreign film, an art film, an indie film, and it fails miserably at each. I only hope Bill Murray is not so delusional as to believe this to be his Magnum Opus.
Rating: 
Summary: painfully beautiful
Review: Lost in Translation's title is perfectly just that-lost. In Sofia Coppola's movie about two strangers in a foreign land, the entire plot feels like a small part cut out of something larger; the storyline seems at some points directionless and by the end, the character's problems ultimately unresolved. But that's what makes this movie so good.
The film starts off with Bob Harris (Bill Murray), whose shining days as an American actor are now behind him, traveling to Japan to film commercials for whiskey. Hating himself for being reduced to a beverage spokesman, the job eats away at Bob as he wishes he were still making movies. Spending most of the time at the bar, in the hotel he's staying at, Bob tries to scrounge up any relief he can find through drinking. During a regular visit, Bob stumbles upon another seemingly lost soul like him, Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson). Charlotte, accompanying her photographer husband John, feels also out of place as John works through the week, leaving her to wander Japan alone. After the two meet, they quickly find solace in each other when they both realize just how commonly aimless they feel.
What makes this movie work is mainly because of how these two actors pull off such remarkable performances. Murray slips on the role of this aged character to the point where it blurs the lines of whether he's acting or just displaying himself. Murray acts out quick witted comments with his character, giving brief hints that there is so much more to Bob but that the middle-aged whiskey endorsing actor is just tired of it all and is barely balancing himself from falling into a mental breakdown.
Johansson does the same by adding such a normal, human quality to Charlotte. Some of the best moments in the film come from Johansson simply when she doesn't speak, as if her character were briefly pausing to try and prevent a stream of emotions and speculations from overwhelming her.
And that's how the comedic aspect of this movie works effectively. Coppola relies heavily on the notion of culture clash to get across most of the jokes, with abundant situations of misunderstandings between the two characters versus the rest of Japan. But it's the sense of weight that Bob and Charlotte carry on their shoulders that translates into the more humorous scenes of their adventuring in Tokyo. And that comedy sticks with the audience with deep tone of sadness clinging onto each joke, as both characters make it clear that after whatever fun they've experienced, it ultimately doesn't fill that hole in their lives.
It's this sense of human fragility that Coppola shows in the movie that makes it a hauntingly memorable piece. Even though she recently graduated from Yale, Charlotte feels even more directionless then ever before, resorting to cheap tapes about soul searching in trying to make sense of her life. In a critical moment, she finally starts to realize certain aspects of her life, as she admits over the phone and to herself, "I don't know who I married." In a similar scene, Bob catches a glimpse of his previous career on the television in his hotel room, revealing all the raw feelings and missed hopes solely in his eyes as he silently stares at the screen.
Some might argue about a weak ending because the character's problems aren't resolved at all and they're stuck in the same situation as before. Yet this is what strengthens the film. Because the characters don't solve all their problems no matter how much they want to, that just makes the film more of what it sets out to be. Even if we find brief peace in other people, like Bob and Charlotte do in one another, sometimes it's not enough.
As the title suggests, the film is about the process of people trying to translate to themselves what they want out of life: only to lose words and meanings here and there in their scattered interpretation. By connecting with each other, Bob and Charlotte start to scratch off the layers and get a grasp of what they truly want. And the age difference between the characters only makes it more poignant in showing that sometimes age and experiences can't solve all our troubles.
All these bits and pieces, meanings and emotions, form a solid basis in which Coppola revolves her film around. With a simple setting in a foreign country, Coppola doesn't make her characters sound like insensitive tourists but rather further brings out what Charlotte and Bob are going through.
There's so much of this deeply filled movie waiting to be defined by its superficially simplistic, but ultimately resonating scenes that it makes Lost in Translation one of the most subtly powerful movies to come along in a while and something certainly not to be missed.
Rating:
Summary: communication/connection
Review: This is a movie about how hard it is to ever really connect with people, beause communication is difficult if not impossible. Words are too unstable and there are too many other things going on. Both of the main characters feel lost; they try to communicate this to loved ones, but can't get through. Everyone is too busy and there's nothing really wrong, nothing one can talk about. They feel they have lost touch not only with their loved ones, but also with the world in general. Ms. Coppola knows what she is doing and executes her theme well. Tokyo, because it is such a fast-paced, confusing, foreign place, is the perfect spiritual location for these two lost people who somehow manage to connect. It is not through action or words; they never do anything momentous and only occasionally say anything out of the ordinary. Connection is a miracle; trying to analyze or explain it would ruin it. The final moment of the movie is one character whispering something to the other; even the audience is left out of their communication, their connection, and it is appropriate, even poignant. It's pretty impressive that someone can even make a movie about such a thing without ruining it.
Rating:
Summary: Boring
Review: I didn't care for this movie at all. Boring and without much of anything to keep my interest. The only thing I liked about it were the Tokyo scenes. Otherwise, I wish I'd saved my money.
Rating: 
Summary: Incredible accomplishment
Review: I know there are some that were scratching their heads over this film. Probably because it lacked a recognizable plot formula and a Hollywood ending. But this movie was independent from the start (despite Murray and Coppola's involvement)and its beauty and honesty stuck with me for days. I watched it twice in one sitting which I rarely do. Murray was incredible. An actor in his prime and a comic that is so subtle and human. He is a master at his art and has hit his stride, but what impressed me even more was Sofia Coppola's writing and direction. Her dialogue was spot on. For a young woman she is wise beyond her years. She pegged both main characters and it was so real at times that I forgot it was a movie. Sure the scenes were hit and miss in their portrayal of Tokyo life. But the subject matter is so overwhelming that one expects that result. I was mesmerized and inspired. The last scene was so emotional that I lost it. How many of us could relate to that scene and the build up that led to it. Amazing.
Rating:
Summary: Loved the Movie - HATED the DVD !!!! Shameless Advertising!
Review: First, let me say I loved the movie of Lost in Translation. Definitely a 5-star movie. BUT, I HATED the shameless advertising on the DVD. Much to my shock, after plunking down the money here to get the DVD, I put it in my machine and it automatically starts up with streams and streams of advertising for coming attractions,etc. Hitting the Menu or Jump buttons doesn't work! They've disabled it in this portion of the DVD! All you can do is do a forward scan... it still takes close to 10 minutes to get to the movie!!! Each time you play it! This is disgusting and shameless. No one wants to pay close to 20 bucks for a movie and have to sit through these mandatory commercials. I'll never buy a DVD from this producer again.
Rating:
Summary: Lost in the hype of a good movie
Review: Its a good movie which has been over hyped. Bill Murray is great as always. He is very funny but he isn't Caddyshack type funny. The music is really great. Not many movies end with a Jesus and Mary Chain song. I liked it and I think some other people will, but not everybody.
Rating:
Summary: Whisper-Quiet Beauty
Review: The film is a terrific and beautiful one and I can only agree with the more profound thinkers and eloquent writers here in expressing my admiration for Sofia Coppola, Bill Murray, and Scarlett Johanssen. The cinematography is captivating and the dialogue (at only 41 minutes of a two hour film) makes you listen because of its brevity and profundity. This film also has what I consider, truly, one of the most touching and sincere endings I can ever imagine in a film. It will make you smile in appreciation of the gift you have received in watching this movie. My ONLY complaint, though, is the DVD itself. I have seen this echoed elsewhere, but it is worth repeating. Firstly, the cover. One does not expect very large review captions on the cover of what this hunble reviewer would consider a work of art. Scroll to the top of page and observe the large white block running horizontally across the cover. By my estimation, nearly a quarter of the image is review block. Secondly, the cover photo has been, I think, altered. The same photo is on the cover of the movie's soundtrack, and it shows much darker and muted tones, more in line, I believe, with the color scheme found in the film. Thirdly, I was incredibly disappointed in the commercials at the beginning of the disk that cannot be skipped. You must fast forward through them. My only hope is that the DVD was created so poorly only so the Criterion Collection can release a definitive masterwork at a later date (think Rushmore and Royal Tenenbaums when thinking how high the art of the DVD can go). All said, I bought the DVD its first day of release and would do so again, knowing the quality of the DVD (only its packaging, not sound or video quality). A tremendous film in a lousy package. Criterion....I wait for you.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant, Hilarious Study of Human Isolation and Intimacy
Review: "Lost in Translation" is director Sofia Coppola's remarkable study of the isolation and intimacy that people experience in both emotional and geographical environments. The film takes place in contemporary Tokyo where retired B-Movie actor, Bob Harris (Bill Murray) has come to film a commercial for a Japanese whiskey company. Harris spends his days enduring the bizarre yet entirely believable process of shooting a commercial in a country whose language and culture are completely beyond his understanding. He spends his evenings alone in the bedroom, the gym, or the bar of his lavish hotel where practically every moment seems surreal for one reason or another. In the bar, he meets Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson) who has followed her photographer husband, John (Giovanni Ribisi) to Tokyo where he is working on an extended project. At first, Bob and Charlotte develop a casual friendship based on their mutual sense of loneliness, lack of fulfillment, and their response to the sheer oddity of their surroundings. But soon their friendship develops into a deeper sense of understanding and intimacy, and with this come new complications. Both of them are married to spouses who for one reason or another are inaccessible, Bob is much older than Charlotte, and while he has experienced financial success and built a family, she is still at a point in her life where she is young and unsure of where she is headed. Charlotte almost never sees her husband, and the few times that she does he is busy cavorting with his colleagues and clients. Bob receives regular phone calls from his wife, but they only discuss her remodeling plans for their home. In the hands of an unskilled filmmaker, this situation would be ripe for all kinds of clichéd and predictable behavior. Instead, Coppola shapes their story with impressive ease and with an extraordinary understanding of the human soul. There is a lot of subtle stuff going on between Charlotte and Bob, but we never get bored or confused as their relationship develops and then conflicts arise. Similarly, despite the fact both characters are lost in Tokyo with its intense, pop-culture energy, the film never condemns or makes fun of that place. Like their personal lives, Tokyo for Bob and Charlotte is simply a space that they inhabit but in which they also feel utterly lost. While "Lost in Translation" explores some very serious themes it remains a hilarious and low-key film from start to finish. I have to agree with critics or reviewers who state that this is the best role of Bill Murray's career. Johansson also delivers an extremely skilled and subtle performance. There are also many extraordinarily funny scenes in which Bob and Charlotte find themselves interacting with people or in situations that they don't understand. During many of these scenes the film pulls no punches when it comes to fully exposing some of the more bizarre and eccentric qualities of contemporary Japanese culture. Much to its credit, however the film does this in an upfront fashion without stooping to insults or stereotypes-it's simply too honest to do that. I highly recommend this film for its humor, its insight, and for the remarkable performances from Bill Murray, Scarlet Johansson, and the city of Tokyo. Coppola should be highly commended for her creative genius as a director and as a screenwriter.
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