I just saw it this weekend and thought it was fantastic. Definitely Bill Murrary's best picture. The movie was so moving. I just loved the metaphor of being lost in a foreign country and being lost in life. It was so wonderful.

How can you not love any movie that features music by My Bloody Valentine?

Mary Carmen | October 5, 2003 8:04 PM

Ana, please feel free to jump in and post about anything during non-discussion time. This place gets totally dead when we're not doing a book, and I never have enough time to keep it updated. :)

Ah, movies. When school's in session, I never get to do anything fun. It's a three-day weekend, but I needed all three days to plan (and catch up on eating all the meals I missed during the week).

marydell | October 6, 2003 9:52 AM

I went to see "Lost in Translation" Saturday afternoon. Absolutely wonderful. Murray, Johansson, and Sofia Coppola did wonderful work. It worked and touched on so many levels.

Having experienced the alienation of being in a foreign country (Taiwan), I felt so much for the two leads. I like the fact that Coppola chose not to do subtitles for the Japanese language dialogue, it pulled the audience into the isolation.

I think this may be the movie that gets Bill Murrray the Oscar nomination.

I am looking forward to seeing this again in the future.

-doc

Keith | October 6, 2003 3:15 PM

i think sofia coppola did an extraordinary job at both writing and directing. everything was well thought out. the plot and the acting were enrapturing. i couldn't help but to keep identifying with both characters. i think that secretly, i wanted to be a little bit of both (i caught myself smiling throughout the whole film).

on a second note, ...what impression did you receive from japan, both tokyo and outside of tokyo. ...and w/e happened to the singer, did she disappear?

ana | October 6, 2003 4:29 PM

www.lost-in-translation.com
all about it

ana | October 6, 2003 4:30 PM

I saw the film yesterday (good timing, Ana), and the few hours I spent disconnected from the world in its world of disconnection were well-spent. The film was weak narratively, but I think the narrative wasn't really the point, so it worked well as a mood piece. My favorite shots were those of Scarlet Johannson staring out at the city through huge windows; I used to do that all the time in Chicago, and I miss that.

Bill Murray was pretty fantastic, especially the way he merged his sensibilities, but I can't quite understand why there's Oscar talk now. Maybe it's because he's been shafted so many times before and they'll just give it to him for this film. That's not to say he doesn't deserve it, necessary, but I think he's been better and has showed more range elsewhere.

Andy | October 6, 2003 8:48 PM

Lost in translation was a very interesting movie. I've been thinking a lot lately about how important it is to have good friends in your life. Finding good relationships can be very difficult- and that is the problem the characters in this movie face. Both of them are feeling isolated from other people, both in their marriages and the people around them. After discovering one friend, though, their lives turn around.

What was it about that friendship that was so important? Did they really see something about each other that was actually meaningful, or was it merely chance that led them together? How important was the romance aspect of the relationship- I thought the fact that they didn't sleep together to be most refreshing part of the movie.

Definitely the best movie I've seen since the days of American Beauty and Fight club. Raised a lot questions for me, though. The fact that I don't know the answers doesn't bother me at all.

Ian | October 7, 2003 12:25 AM

Yeah, Bloody Valentine and Peaches! A little too much indy cred if you ask me, but that's another discussion. I agree about Bill Murray ... his best since Rushmore.

I'm still fascinated with the way LIT explored the gray area in relationships, and didn't get distracted during its exploration of Tokyo. Wow.

large | October 7, 2003 9:03 AM

I am new to this page but saw this and had to throw my two cents in. I don't usually go to movies or watch TV - I really prefer to read so I am out of the mainstream that way - but I saw this movie and thought that only people who love to read would really enjoy it. I thought it was a moving and fairly realistic portrayal of a love affair that cannot be (having lived through something painfully similar). It almost made me cry again. And the sense of being somewhere foreign and feeling completely alienated also really touched me (having lived through something like THAT too). I'd highly recommend it.

amanda | October 7, 2003 10:46 AM

awesome.

It captured my sense of wonder, alienation, and amazement at Tokyo. Brilliant movie.

praktike | October 30, 2003 5:57 PM

After they slept together, merely literaly, I thought the relationship would be platonic. I was so excited... at last a movie with no sexual subtext or pretext or... It was terrible to see that spoiled by a kiss at the end.

ben | November 4, 2003 8:56 PM

A truly amazing movie. I loved it!

Chris Winn | November 14, 2003 11:36 AM