Rating: 
Summary: Sofia Coppola and her cast get Lost in Translation
Review: Visualize Tokyo. Got it? Now add popular favorite Bill Murray, doing his "lovable shmoe" shtick. Toss in American Rhapsody's up-and-comer Scarlett Johansson, doing her standard "like, duh" face. Dip them both into emotional torpor in the sleek Park Hyatt, add local color, stir. Et voilà: Lost in Translation.
For Sofia Coppola, this must have been the easiest pitch in the world -- which is perhaps helpful when pitching to Daddy. The youngish director and heiress to American cinema did things her way a few years ago with her ambitious adaptation of Jeffrey Eugenides' novel The Virgin Suicides, crafting a truly poignant slab of Middle American art with A-list Hollywood talent. This time around, though, her effort feels as pedestrian and confused as its subjects. She hasn't delivered a turkey -- it's a cute little movie, if not as rich as her brother Roman's similarly themed CQ -- but when work this potentially satisfying remains flatly obvious, it's almost worse than being flat-out bad. We begin with a close-up of an ass, and it's tempting to suggest that the remainder of the film is simply a product thereof, but the project's kindly nature doesn't call for that kind of harshness. Rather, the tone is more distinctly bumming. The peach-panty-clad glutes belong to dewy depressed Charlotte (Johansson), who's loitering at the Hyatt in hopes that her busy photojournalist husband, John (Giovanni Ribisi), will take five to comfort her. No such luck, but Charlotte does find a surrogate friend in Bob Harris (Murray), an American movie star and cultural castaway who's in town for the noble task of plugging whiskey. Perhaps it cuts just a little too close to home when Charlotte bemoans: "I just don't know what I want to be. I tried being a writer, but I hate what I write. I tried to be a photographer, but I don't take good pictures." Well, that's OK, but if she's the director's mouthpiece, we've got a problem. This is further complicated by Lost in Translation's being another feature shot on 35mm film with an A-list cast. An amateur with a DV camera would be more welcome under these circumstances, or even the director herself just wandering with her friends across the street from her father's San Francisco offices into Chinatown. But a well-heeled princess with a professional crew struggling to prove her funky street cred ends up feeling lost indeed.
Rating: 
Summary: Ho-hum
Review: What's all the fuss about this movie? Definitely not Oscar material, in my opinion. Neither the acting nor the directing. I'm glad I only rented it.
Rating:
Summary: How did it win so many awards?
Review: This has to be one of the worst movies I've ever seen! I actually fell asleep during the movie. I rarely laughed, and found it very difficult to stay focused and want to care about the characters and the plot of the story.
Rating: 
Summary: Charming
Review: This is a really enjoyable, charming film, with great performaces from both lead actors.
I have never seen Bill Murray act so subdued before, and it was refreshing.
The story is slow, with not a huge amount happening, but don't let that put you off, because there is a lot of humour throughout, a lot of which is very subtle, and a lot of it is because of the Japanese / Anglo cultural differences. (This film does not in any way ridicule the Japanese). A charming, funny and well observed film which is really likeable.
Rating:
Summary: The stars are for the stars.
Review: If it hadn't been for Bill and Scarlett, I would have given this thing a big fat zero. These two stars did a brilliant job with lackluster material. Was almost worth watching to see them. Definitely not re-watchable or buyable. (The script was rife with racial slurs toward the Japanese culture which was very offensive.) What was Oscar thinking??????
Rating:
Summary: Wake me up when it's over!
Review: When the movie came out I wasn't interested in seeing it. When it came out in DVD I still wasn't interested but I had a 99 cent rental coupon so I decided to give in to the hype and rent it. Well, I should have listened to my inner voice. I kept waiting for it to get interesting and just kept shaking my head trying to figure out why everyone liked it so much. Weak plot, lackluster characters, mediocre acting. Frankly I just didn't get it. Rarely do I stop watching a movie midway through it but after I got to the part where they are singing karioke I couldn't take any more.
Rating:
Summary: Bill and Scarlett are compelling!
Review: Bill Murray is perfect and great fun to watch, but he is actually probably just being himself. Scarlet Johansson is intriguing, as always. And she has never looked so beautiful! If you like her and haven't seen Ghost World, then be sure to check that one out. She's great in it and it's a better movie than Lost in Translation too. In Lost in Translation much of the humor is dry and understated, perhaps even a little obscure. To me the most interesting thing about this film, besides the acting, is the scenery in Tokyo and seeing how some people live there. I don't recall many movies set in Tokyo - maybe it's too expensive to film there -- so that was pleasantly different. The story, however, is thin. And was all that cigarette smoking and booze guzzling necessary? I don't think so. I felt like I was watching a movie made in the 1950's. Maybe the producer got a lot of money from whiskey and cigarette companies... It's disheartening to me to see films made these days still displaying such things that everyone knows is harmful to people, especially when it is not necessary to the story. Bill and Scarlett are smart and interesting characters in this film, but are diminished by these actions. So overall, it's quite entertaining, but not great or profound or really special. After all, it was probably mostly just a practice exercise for Francis Ford Coppola's daughter Sofia, the writer / director. So just enjoy watching Bill and Scarlett and seeing Tokyo, and don't expect much more, then you will enjoy the movie and not be too disappointed by the lack of a real story.
Rating: 
Summary: 5 stars for the movie, 1 star for the DVD (3 stars total)
Review: In a nutshell, this is an excellent and subtle movie about two very different people who share a lot in common. I enjoyed this movie immensely when it first started hitting theaters, and find it just as enjoyable watching it at home. However, this DVD disappoints with its virtual lack of anything of substance when it comes to extras. The biggest downer is that there is no commentary at all, when a movie like this is a perfect platform for one. There is also very little in the way of deleted scenes, and while the video diary is nice, it doesn't add much. The full Japanese variety/talk show segment is hilarious, but subtitles would've helped those of us who don't understand Japanese. The DVD case doesn't even come with a simple chapter list insert, making this whole package feel "bare bones" by every definition of the word. A movie like this deserves more, and I just hope that there is a Special Edition planned; the version we should have received in the first place.
Rating:
Summary: Quiet Gem
Review: There's nothing dynamic or explosive about this movie, and that's the whole point. The two main characters are strongly drawn and compelling, and the Tokyo backdrop is sometimes comic, often lovely, and generally more like dreamscape as we drift along with the film's displaced romantic leads. If you like action-intense movies, don't see this. If you like gratuitous sex, don't see it. But if you want to watch a movie with meaningful dialogue and interaction that somehow manages not to seem contrived, you will probably enjoy Lost in Translation. Bill Murray's sad and wry performance definitely deserved an Oscar nomination, and if subtlety and nuance were more important in Hollywood, he might have won the award itself.
Rating: 
Summary: Like a good dream
Review: Each shot of this movie is beautiful. The music is great. The acting is great. When it's over, you feel warm and fuzzy. The DVD has a nice selection of extra features. I found the behind the scenes making of the movie particularly interesting. Rewatching the movie is like reliving a good dream. I've watched it about 10 times now and haven't gotten tired of it yet.
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