Lost in Translation

Starring:Scarlett Johansson, Bill Murray, Akiko Takeshita, Kazuyoshi Minamimagoe, Kazuko Shibata, Take, Ryuichiro Baba, Akira Yamaguchi (II), Catherine Lambert (II), FranÃ§ois du Bois, Tim Leffman, Gregory Pekar, Richard Allen (XV), Giovanni Ribisi, Diamond Yukai, Jun Maki, Nao Asuka, Tetsuro Naka, Kanako Nakazato, Fumihiro Hayashi
Director: Sofia Coppola
Studio: Universal Studios
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Product Description
Bob Harris (Bill Murray) and Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson) are two Americans in Tokyo. Bob is a movie star in town to shoot a whiskey commercial, while Charlotte is a young woman tagging along with her workaholic photographer husband (Giovanni Ribisi). Unable to sleep, Bob and Charlotte cross paths one night in the luxury hotel bar. This chance meeting soon becomes a surprising friendship. Charlotte and Bob venture through Tokyo, having often hilarious encounters with its citizens, and ultimately discover a new belief in life's possibilities.Shot entirely on location in Japan, Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation is a valentine to the nature of close friendships and to the city of Tokyo. Ms. Coppola's film, for her original screenplay, contemplates the unexpected connections we make that might not last - yet stay with us forever.

System Requirements:

Running Time 102 Min

Format: DVD MOVIE
Amazon.com
Like a good dream, Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation envelops you with an aura of fantastic light, moody sound, head-turning love, and a feeling of dÃ©jÃ vu, even though you've probably never been to this neon-fused version of Tokyo. Certainly Bob Harris has not. The 50-ish actor has signed on for big money shooting whiskey ads instead of doing something good for his career or his long-distance family. Jetlagged, helplessly lost with his Japanese-speaking director, and out of sync with the metropolis, Harris (Bill Murray, never better) befriends the married but lovelorn 25-year-old Charlotte (played with heaps of poise by 18-year-old Scarlett Johansson). Even before her photographer husband all but abandons her, she is adrift like Harris but in a total entrapment of youth. How Charlotte and Bill discover they are soul mates will be cherished for years to come. Written and directed by Coppola (The Virgin Suicides), the film is far more atmospheric than plot-driven: we whiz through Tokyo parties, karaoke bars, and odd nightlife, always ending up in the impossibly posh hotel where the two are staying. The wisps of bittersweet loneliness of Bill and Charlotte are handled smartly and romantically, but unlike modern studio films, this isn't a May-November fling film. Surely and steadily, the film ends on a much-talked-about grace note, which may burn some, yet awards film lovers who "always had Paris" with another cinematic destination of the heart. --Doug Thomas

Average customer rating:

Lost and confused
Sad & pathetic lives
Can't wait to get this movie in hi def !
I loved it

Lost in Translation [HD DVD]
Starring: Bill Murray , Scarlett Johansson , Giovanni Ribisi , Anna Faris , and Fumihiro Hayashi
Director: Sofia Coppola
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: HD DVD

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ASIN: B000O179FE
Release Date: 2007-05-29

Description

Bob Harris (Bill Murray) and Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson) are two Americans in Tokyo. Bob is a movie star in town to shoot a whiskey commercial, while Charlotte is a young woman tagging along with her workaholic photographer husband (Giovanni Ribisi). Unable to sleep, Bob and Charlotte cross paths one night in the luxury hotel bar. This chance meeting soon becomes a surprising friendship. Charlotte and Bob venture through Tokyo, having often hilarious encounters with its citizens, and ultimately discover a new belief in life's possibilities. Shot entirely on location in Japan, Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation is a valentine to the nature of close friendships and to the city of Tokyo. Ms. Coppola's film, from her original screenplay, contemplates the unexpected connections we make that might not last - yet stay with us forever

Customer Reviews:

Lost and confused.......2007-06-05

Loneliness is one of the most basic human emotions; when experiencing it, some people will reach out to others who understand that feeling. That sentiment seems to be at the heart of "Lost in Translation," a film that straddles the line between odd love story and a look at loneliness and isolation.

Bob Harris (Bill Murray) is a middle-aged actor with a faded career. Currently he's alone in Japan, filming a commercial, and feels lonely and alienated despite the luxurious surroundings and royal treatment. He catches glimpses of a pretty young blonde, Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), who intrigues him.

She is equally bored and lonely, and at loose ends since her husband is away working. The two finally meet over drinks, and begin to bond and explore the city of Tokyo. Bob is in a downtempo midlife crisis, while Charlotte is unsure what to do with her life. And they both learn that they have things to teach one another...

A small warning: "Lost in Translation" has very little plot. And yes, it can be pretentious at times, sometimes politically incorrect. Fortunately, Sofia Coppola's second full-length film has qualities to make up for its improvised plot, with the beautiful cinematography, good direction and outstanding acting by its two main leads. It's a movie that requires patience and slow unfolding.

Loneliness is the theme of this movie. Particularly, it's the loneliness of the soul -- Charlotte and Bob are surrounded by people, yet they feel alone. Hanging out together alleviates their loneliness for a little while, even though their problems won't go away. As a result, some parts of it can feel hollow. But at the same time, it gives the film a more realistic feeling -- often people in such situations DON'T deal with it.

In keeping with the theme, Coppola keeps the movie slow and pensive, with plenty of beautiful cinematography and exquisite shots of Tokyo. The entire film has a slightly shadowy, glowing look. And the quiet dialogue has a witty, acerbic edge, such as when dizzy blonde Kelly announces "I'm under Evelyn Waugh," only to have Charlotte inform her that, "Evelyn Waugh was a man."

Bill Murray rules this film, with his understated expressions and world-weary attitude. It's surprising that someone could act so blase, and yet be strangely charming. Scarlett Johansson proves that she is no longer just another child star, with a solid performance that stacks up well beside veteran Murray's.

Strange, slow and pensive, this is a film that takes some getting used to; it may even take multiple viewings to fully "get." Just soak it in, and see how you like it.

Sad & pathetic lives.......2007-06-01

Who wants to see a story of two people with absolutely no purpose?

Not me. Not again.

Can't wait to get this movie in hi def !.......2007-05-27

Great Movie!! Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson at their best!

some people write 1 star reviews because
it was not made by "their" director,
or because "their" movie is not in HD format ,
and i feel that , THAT is no reason
to give this movie 1 star.

I'm giving the movie what it deserves.
5 stars

I loved it.......2007-04-23

This movie is very slow, but if you have an attention span I think you will love it too. This is a fantastic film that I'm sure will look amazing in HD.

Average customer rating:

batcall
Awful
Gosh I liked Bill Murray so much more when he didnt know he was profound
A beautiful movie.
The best kind of love

Lost in Translation
Starring: Scarlett Johansson , Bill Murray , Akiko Takeshita , Kazuyoshi Minamimagoe , and Kazuko Shibata
Director: Sofia Coppola
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00011RPB0
Release Date: 2004-02-03

Product Description

Bob Harris (Bill Murray) and Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson) are two Americans in Tokyo. Bob is a movie star in town to shoot a whiskey commercial, while Charlotte is a young woman tagging along with her workaholic photographer husband (Giovanni Ribisi). Unable to sleep, Bob and Charlotte cross paths one night in the luxury hotel bar. This chance meeting soon becomes a surprising friendship. Charlotte and Bob venture through Tokyo, having often hilarious encounters with its citizens, and ultimately discover a new belief in life's possibilities. Shot entirely on location in Japan, Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation is a valentine to the nature of close friendships and to the city of Tokyo. Ms. Coppola's film, for her original screenplay, contemplates the unexpected connections we make that might not last - yet stay with us forever.

System Requirements:

Running Time 102 Min

Format: DVD MOVIE

Amazon.com

Like a good dream, Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation envelops you with an aura of fantastic light, moody sound, head-turning love, and a feeling of déjà vu, even though you've probably never been to this neon-fused version of Tokyo. Certainly Bob Harris has not. The 50-ish actor has signed on for big money shooting whiskey ads instead of doing something good for his career or his long-distance family. Jetlagged, helplessly lost with his Japanese-speaking director, and out of sync with the metropolis, Harris (Bill Murray, never better) befriends the married but lovelorn 25-year-old Charlotte (played with heaps of poise by 18-year-old Scarlett Johansson). Even before her photographer husband all but abandons her, she is adrift like Harris but in a total entrapment of youth. How Charlotte and Bill discover they are soul mates will be cherished for years to come. Written and directed by Coppola (The Virgin Suicides), the film is far more atmospheric than plot-driven: we whiz through Tokyo parties, karaoke bars, and odd nightlife, always ending up in the impossibly posh hotel where the two are staying. The wisps of bittersweet loneliness of Bill and Charlotte are handled smartly and romantically, but unlike modern studio films, this isn't a May-November fling film. Surely and steadily, the film ends on a much-talked-about grace note, which may burn some, yet awards film lovers who "always had Paris" with another cinematic destination of the heart. --Doug Thomas

Customer Reviews:

batcall.......2007-06-28

I watched because I thought Scarlett was going to be the new Marilyn Monroe. Bill Murray is very funny though.

Awful.......2007-06-17

This is one of the worst movies I've ever seen, and it's disappointing that people made such a big deal over it. Isolation, I get it.
But, seriously...what is the point, and the awkward script leaves so much to be desired. I wonder if Sophia would be allowed to make movies if she had a different last name? Is she just trying to be weird, and find some weird niche? Yes, her dad was ground breaking, so I guess those are big shoes to fill...but, then maybe you just should'nt try.
The movie is boring, with little dialogue, and you don't really care what happens with the character. The setting is boring, and the movie overall is weak.

Gosh I liked Bill Murray so much more when he didnt know he was profound.......2007-06-16

Wes Anderson and Sofia Coppola and Jarmusch all did him no favors. They are three of the most insincere, style over substance filmmakers around. And they all love clothes. And they all took a great baseball fan and turned him into an Oscar baiting self-serious ego wannabe genius walrus.

A beautiful movie........2007-06-11

I hope this is the cinema of the future -- no dogma involved. It puts you right there with the actors. Warning, though: as with the films of the Lars Von Trier, DON'T READ THE REVIEWS -- they give away too much of what takes place, elminating the intended surprises. Just watch and be absorbed by what takes place -- as we do in life.

The best kind of love.......2007-05-01

This is a movie that took time to grow on me. It doesn't move quickly, but it is full of depth and that shines through with every viewing. With vivid often surrealistic imagery and sharp witty dialog the film manages to entertain you while telling the real story.
I find most love stories to be trite, formulaic, and self-indulgent. This is far from that. What kind of love do our protagonists feel? They never sleep together, although they both wanted too. Bob even cheats on his wife with another woman but still doesn't sleep with Charlotte who he has fallen in love with.
That part of the story gives their love purity and validity. They marketed the movie as a story of friendship, but that is a lie. They love each other in a very real way, but they can't express it.
Both are married, the elder in a marriage of 25 years with children, the younger a newlywed trying to maintain a strained marriage. It is that unrequited love that makes it so beautiful. They love each other and are spending time with each other but they don't have each other.
Most of the time unrequited love is one way. A man is obssessed with a woman who doesn't return his feelings or maybe maybe even dislikes the man. This love is a far more tragic love. A love that stays in one place, one moment.
Watching the film you wish they could stay in Japan. We all have moments in our lives like that. A month, week, day, or hour that we wish we could freeze ourselves in. Outside that moment means nothing, no worries of the moments past or future. Just you and that moment trapped in happiness. Maybe thats heaven.

"Let's never come here again because it will never be as much fun"

Average customer rating:

batcall
Awful
Gosh I liked Bill Murray so much more when he didnt know he was profound
A beautiful movie.
The best kind of love

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ASIN: B00005JMJ4
Release Date: 2004-02-03

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

batcall.......2007-06-28

I watched because I thought Scarlett was going to be the new Marilyn Monroe. Bill Murray is very funny though.

Awful.......2007-06-17

Gosh I liked Bill Murray so much more when he didnt know he was profound.......2007-06-16

A beautiful movie........2007-06-11

The best kind of love.......2007-05-01

Average customer rating:

batcall
Awful
Gosh I liked Bill Murray so much more when he didnt know he was profound
A beautiful movie.
The best kind of love

Lost in Translation
Starring: Scarlett Johansson , Bill Murray , Akiko Takeshita , Kazuyoshi Minamimagoe , and Kazuko Shibata
Director: Sofia Coppola
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

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( L ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (Widescreen Edition)
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ASIN: B0000YWKHC

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

batcall.......2007-06-28

I watched because I thought Scarlett was going to be the new Marilyn Monroe. Bill Murray is very funny though.

Awful.......2007-06-17

Gosh I liked Bill Murray so much more when he didnt know he was profound.......2007-06-16

A beautiful movie........2007-06-11

The best kind of love.......2007-05-01

Average customer rating:

Broken Flowers/Lost in Translation
Starring: Scarlett Johansson , Bill Murray , Akiko Takeshita , Kazuyoshi Minamimagoe , and Kazuko Shibata
Director: Sofia Coppola , and Jim Jarmusch
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000ECX0SS
Release Date: 2006-04-25

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind/Lost in Translation

Average customer rating:

Eternally lost

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind/Lost in Translation
Starring: Universal 2pak
Manufacturer: Universal Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Customer Reviews:

Eternally lost.......2005-12-22

Attractive boy meets attractive girl. Boy and girl fall in love. Boy and girl encounter obstacles. Boy and girl overcome obstacles, kiss in the rain, and live happily ever after in a chic apartment.

That's the formula of most romance movies. But those conventions were shattered in the hit movies "Lost in Translation" and "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind." These movies share little in common, except an in-depth exploration about love.

In "Lost in Translation," aging star Bob Harris (Bill Murray) is in Tokyo to film some TV commercials. He's bored with his life, has a stagnant marriage, and is weary of his job. As he hangs out at the hotel, he encounters Charlotte (Scarlett Johannson), an intelligent young woman who is accompanying her new husband on his photography job.

Joined by their feelings of ennui, and their alienation in a country not their own, Charlotte and Bob explore Tokyo and get to know each other. And as they commiserate on their loneliness, they must face the fact that their time together will soon end.

And in "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," timid Joel (Jim Carrey) encounters his ex-girlfriend Clementine (Kate Winslet) at her job... except she says she doesn't know him, and is with another man (Elijah Wood). Joel discovers that Clementine went under a new memory-erasing technique, which has completely removed Joel from her brain.

Devastated, Joel decides to get back at her: He'll have her erased by the same process. The Lacuna Inc. people arrive at his apartment, and begin erasing her from his mind -- but as he relives his memories with the exuberant, wacky Clem, Joel begins to realize how precious their love was, and how he doesn't want to lose it....

These two movies are unconventional romances -- one for being about two lonely people who bond in an unfamiliar country, and whose love never results in bed-bopping. And the other is unique for its painful realism -- Clem and Joel are not compatible, but they do love each other. Everyone knows a couple like this.

The direction and cinemateography for both films is absolutely exquisite, whether full of Tokyo's effervescent beauty, or the quiet peace of two people lying on an icy river, looking at the stars. The one stumbling block? The rather cliched portrayal of Japan in "Lost in Translation."

And fortunately, the actors do equally well. Bill Murray portrayed a quiet, weary man with understated humor, while Scarlett Johansson gave an excellent performance as a smart, bored young lady. Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet both broke out of their typecasting -- he as a timid, shy man, and she as a blue-haired, exuberant free spirit.

Bittersweet love is in the middle of both of these beautiful movies, and make "Lost in Translation" and "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" intriguing films.

Charlie Rose with Silvan Shalom; Scarlett Johansson (December 12, 2003)

Average customer rating:

Charlie Rose with Silvan Shalom; Scarlett Johansson (December 12, 2003)

Manufacturer: Charlie Rose, Inc.
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Description

The foreign minister of Israel, Silvan Shalom, discusses his visit to the Middle East and recent meeting with Secretary of State Colin Powell. He talks about new Israeli policies, including the construction of a fence, that have been devised to protect the Israeli people from Palestinian terrorism. During the last three years, the Israelis have been victim to 19,00 terrorist attacks. Then, an interview with actress Scarlett Johansson about her films Girl with a Pearl Earring and Lost in Translation.

Charlie Rose with Sofia Coppola; Michael Caine, Haley Joel Osment & Robert Duvall (September 18, 2003)

Average customer rating:

Charlie Rose with Sofia Coppola; Michael Caine, Haley Joel Osment & Robert Duvall (September 18, 2003)

Manufacturer: Charlie Rose, Inc.
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Description

First, director Sofia Coppola speaks about her film, Lost in Translation, which stars Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson. The film documents an unlikely relationship between a young girl and an older man who find themselves displaced by a stay in Tokyo. Also, actors Michael Caine, Robert Duvall, and Haley Joel Osment discuss their performances in the new film, Secondhand Lions.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind / Lost in Translation Value Pack

Average customer rating:

Eternally lost

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind / Lost in Translation Value Pack
Starring: Jim Carrey , Kate Winslet , Gerry Robert Byrne , Elijah Wood , and Thomas Jay Ryan
Director: Michel Gondry , and Sofia Coppola
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000788048
Release Date: 2005-04-26

Customer Reviews:

Eternally lost.......2005-12-01

Average customer rating:

THESE TWO FILMS DESERVE EACH OTHER...

Intolerable Cruelty/Lost in Translation
Starring: George Clooney , Catherine Zeta-Jones , Geoffrey Rush , Cedric the Entertainer , and Edward Herrmann
Director: Ethan Coen , Joel Coen , and Sofia Coppola
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00020HB7I
Release Date: 2004-06-29

Customer Reviews:

THESE TWO FILMS DESERVE EACH OTHER..........2004-09-12

I confess to being a big fan of the Coen brothers, which is why I was surprised at my response to "Intolerable Cruelty". With a cast to die for, it has all the makings of a terrific film. Unfortunately, that is about as far as it gets, as the cast cannot undo what has been done by a screenplay that is seriously flawed, due to its inability to decide what type of film it should be. Unfortunately, it looks as if the director could not make up his mind either, producing a film that is neither fish nor fowl.

At first, I thought that it would be a screwball type of comedy, with George Clooney in the role that would have gone to Cary Grant in the golden age of filmmaking. Then, it seems to take another direction altogether, as if it were supposed to be a romantic comedy with a dark side or simply satire gone awry. Who knows? The Coen brothers surely don't. The film lacks a total surety of identity that kills it, despite the stellar cast. It is a flop, pure and simple.

The plot line is a fairly basic one. It is about a slick, greedy and grasping, unscrupulous matrimonial attorney (George Clooney), the kind that gives all lawyers a bad name, and a greedy and grasping gold digging beauty (Catherine Zeta-Jones), who gives all beautiful women a bad name. Their paths cross, and the chase is on. Unfortunately, the viewer does not give a rat's behind about either one of them. There is nothing that would ingratiate them to the viewer, due to the two dimensional, leaden screenplay to nowhere in which laughs are few and far between.

If you are a die hard Coen brothers fan, as I am, do yourself a favor and, rather than buy this film, rent it first. You will thank me for this advice, once you have seen this film.

"Lost in Translation" is a film that both my daughter and I were interested in seeing, given the acclaim that Bill Murray's performance had drawn. Moreover, the film itself had drawn critical acclaim. So, when my daughter was home from college one weekend, we decided to hunker down and watch it together. When we both fell asleep while watching it, we decided that we were just tired. So, we decided to give it another go around the next evening. Well, it was not much better the second time around, though we managed to avoid falling asleep, yet again.

Quite frankly, if Sophia Coppola, the writer and director of this film, were not the daughter of legendary director Francis Ford Coppola, I am convinced that this film would have quickly vanished without a trace. In fact, I doubt that it would even have been made. When her acting career fizzled, after making her less than memorable acting debut in her father's film "Godfather III", Sophia Coppola apparently turned her hand to directing and was let loose upon an unsuspecting public.

While this film has good production values, it simply meanders along in a loosey-goosey sort of way. If focuses upon two individuals, Americans who find themselves in Tokyo, alienated from their surroundings and, seemingly, from life in general. One of these individuals is Bob Harris, a film actor on a career downslide, who now finds himself shilling whiskey in Japan for mega bucks, while his movie career is at an impasse. The other is a beautiful twenty-five year old woman, a Yale Graduate with a degree in philosophy, who is in Japan with her husband, a photographer who is working on a shooting assignment.

Bob Harris, played with wry bemusement by Bill Murray, is a man who is alienated from his family and, quite frankly, just plain lonely. His is a stark universe, as he seems to have a myopic view on life, seeing little beyond his luxury hotel's bar, where he like to go and drink. Charlotte, played with surprising maturity and flair by eighteen year old Scarlett Johansson, feels bereft and set adrift, as she struggles to keep herself occupied while her husband is ostensibly working. It is these two souls whose worlds collide, coloring their perspectives on life when an unlikely bond forms between them.

The film, which takes place in Tokyo, Japan, appears to mock the Japanese. Its stereotypic portrayal of the Japanese people, generally as buffoons, is reprehensible and a cheap joke. Sophia Coppola apparently thinks that the way Japanese people speak English is funny, as it is a running, unfunny joke through out the film. Since the film takes place in Japan, perhaps it might have been funnier to see Bob (or Charlotte) attempt to speak Japanese, rather than turn Bob into the quintessential ugly American.

The film meanders along lacking a definitive narrative and any real profundity of thought. While there is definition about the characters' exterior selves, the film never delves into their inner selves in defining their present state of affairs. There are no big or traditional cinematic moments. Unfortunately, there are no small ones either, as there is really no introspection by either of the two protagonists. This is a film that viewers will either love or hate. I fall into the latter category. "Lost in Translation" is simply lost on me.

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