Great photography, poor plot

Rating: 5/10 (20 June 2004)

I loved the scenery of Tokyo. It was dazzling and shot with the most artistic tastes. The lights were beautiful and the capture of local life was inspiring. It really made me want to return to Tokyo for another visit.
The storyline and pace of this movie just beat me down. I've seen snails that moved faster than this storyline. During the first half of the movie I kept waiting for something to happen. During the second half I kept wondering what I'd missed. It's like I wasn't "in" on an inside joke.
There were several merits about the movie: The director did a great job of communicating the loneliness an American can feel in Tokyo (or any foreign country). They left no question that the two main characters couldn't sleep at night (jet lag will do that to you). And there was definitely a feeling of the love that could have been.
But in all, I'd been better off spending my viewing time on something else. If I could do it again, I wouldn't.