*****watchable*****

Rating: 8/10 (23 February 2005)

:Bob Harris (played by Bill Murray) is an American film actor, far past his prime. He visits Tokyo to appear in commercials, and he meets Charlotte (Scarlett Johannson), the young wife of a visiting photographer. Bored and weary, Bob and Charlotte make ideal if improbable traveling companions. Scarlet is looking for "her place in life," and Bob is tolerating a mediocre stateside marriage. Both separately and together, they live the experience of the American in Tokyo. Bob and Charlotte suffer both confusion and hilarity due to the cultural and language differences between themselves and the Japanese. As the relationship between Bob and Charlotte deepens, they come to the realization that their visits to Japan, and one another, must soon end. Or must they?Americans abroad, almost innocents. Charlotte, fresh out of Yale with a degree in philosophy, is in Tokyo with her husband, a photographer whose work takes him away that week. Shes adrift, her soul on ice. Bob, mid-50s, a semi-retired movie star, is there to make $2 million doing a whiskey ad. At home are a wife and young children, but hes jaded and melancholy. Both are jet-lagged, and Tokyos culture and language push them further off kilter. When they meet in the hotel bar and spend their free time together for a few days, possibilities arise amidst the losses. Their friendship becomes an experience: does he have something to teach; can she reconnect him to life?Hes doing a commercial, parlaying his fifteen minutes of movie stardom. Shes just graduated from college, recently married, and tagged along with her husband, a photographer on assignment. Hes married with children, but hes never home. Shes supporting her husband, but has not idea what she wants to do with her own life. Both are searching for the meaning of their lives, looking at the situation from different points of view. A persons lifetime is filled with self examination. Why am I here? What am I doing? Is this as good as it gets? The plot of this movie is the plot of life. You have a beginning. You're in the middle, and your story hasn't ended yet (in some cases, it wont end even after your death.) Bob and Charlotte find each other fulfilling certain needs. Charlotte needs Bobs attention and humor, and Bob needs someone he can talk to (Bob "talks" with his wife, but they are not really talking.) Bob helps Charlotte by answering her questions regarding life and direction, while Charlotte helps Bob by reminding him how much he loves his children and his wife. The love between the two characters is not one of lust but rather one of emotional and psychological need. Plot less, pointless, and boring? Only if you want all your stories packaged nicely with pretty paper and pretty ribbons. To me, the movie is like the shabu shabu sushi restaurant. What you get out of it depends on how much you put into it. The meaning of our lives, the purpose, the dreams (both dashed and realized), and the expectations forced upon us by others. "Translation" means to explain in simple terms. How do you "translate" what life is? What is it supposed to be about? Different answers for different people at different times in their lives. "Lost In Translation" indeed and it has nothing to do with pronouncing hard Rs.