The Bottom Line
Pros
- Bittersweet mix of comedy and drama
- Outstanding acting, screenwriting, and direction
- Interesting location (Tokyo), well-integrated into story
Cons
- May be too low-key for some viewers
- Not a feel-good movie
- Lead characters not completely likable (could be a pro)
Description
- DVD containing movie "Lost in Translation" (2003)
- Movie nominated for 4 Oscars: Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay
- Film stars Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson
- Movie written and directed by Sofia Coppola
- DVD contains "A Conversation With Bill Murray and Sofia Coppola"
- DVD provides a behind-the-scenes documentary: "Lost" on Location
- DVD contains five extended and deleted scenes
- Excellent picture and sound quality
- Feature run time: 1 hour 42 minutes
- DVD release date: February 3, 2004
Guide Review - "Lost in Translation" DVD Review
I loved the bittersweet mix of comedy and drama in "Lost in Translation," along with the evocative Tokyo location shooting, which set a mood that drew me into the story. Bill Murray gives a great and nuanced performance—I think the best of his impressive career. Opposite Murray, Scarlett Johansson is perfectly cast as the film’s leading lady. Also, writer-director Sofia Coppola proves herself here to be an auteur filmmaker totally in control of her medium. I’m not surprised "Lost in Translation" has received four Academy Award nominations: Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay.
The story is about two lonely Americans visiting Tokyo—Bob Harris (Murray), a middle-aged actor making whiskey commercials, and Charlotte (Johansson), the young wife of a photographer who's always off working. The plot in "Lost in Translation" is so slight and delicate it threatens to float away, but this is exactly the quality that drew me in. To my mind, the characters are what made the film so poignant. The performances by Murray and Johansson are subtle and naturalistic, and perhaps it was mostly because of the acting that I had the feeling of eavesdropping on people’s lives. The film conveyed what it means for two people who are adrift to find each other, even if only for a little while. But whatever the cause, it was the feeling of realness in "Lost in Translation" that made it a brilliant movie.
