I don't understand all the hype :-(

Rating: Null/10 (5 March 2004)

I don't understand.
(*** MILD SPOILERS? ***)
About one third of the movie, starting at the beginning, is devoted to showing us how this poor little, sensitive wife in Tokyo has been left hanging around by her insensitive, uncaring husband who is running around in a job assignment, and how lonely and unhappy she feels. Circular camera movements around a person sitting contemplatively and sadly looking out a window. Soft focus. Violin music (well, not really, but sort of).
At the same time it also shows us how this actor, on a short uninteresting assignment also in Tokyo, has his relationship with his wife in a process of degradation and is also lonely in the city.
Stereotypes and more stereotypes---heavy-handed, no finesse. And then bring in all the dumb stereotypes involving the Japanese, objectively doing nothing but ridiculing them. (To be honest, not only the Japanese are made to look ridiculous---some Americans as well.) Where is the sensitivity? In showing later a brief (and actually quite nice and touching) relationship between the two? The whole thing feels somewhat schizoid to me.
It is true that, hidden somewhere in there, there is a nice story. But that's not more than another third of the movie. And the remaining third is chaff.
A skilled hand could have made a very nice movie around the main ideas of the story. But "Lost in Translation" is not definitely it.
Oscar nominations? I don't understand.