Watching this film made me feel jet-lagged.

Rating: 9/10 (1 September 2008)

Lost in Translation is perhaps one of the most emotionally stunting movies I've ever had the pleasure of watching. It leaves you feeling strange. Not happy, not sad, nor ambivalent. Sofia Coppola somehow manages to take the viewer on a journey through the lives of two very different people who meet in a Tokyo hotel, and turn into a beautiful, disjointed urban fairytale; she leaves it to the viewer to fill in the gaps. Both Bill Murray and Scarlet Johannson play their roles flawlessly. You could almost believe you were watching someone else's memories or dream, as the characters are interesting, believable and nigh-on tangible, but very little is ever divulged about either character. There are many aspects of this movie that are very well accomplished. The cinematography is at times breathtaking, showing you the Tokyo skyline at night and the busy, ebbing tide of people on the Shibuya streets. It almost seems like Sofia Coppola at times, took a few clues from Japanese director Takeshi Kitano with regards to her emphasis on extended landscape shots. There are long, focused scenes portraying various aspects of Japanese landscape and culture; a Shinto wedding, a Buddhist temple and a rush-hour train ride are but some examples. Though none of these scenes have any real significance in the movie, they do resonate and help consolidate the mood of the film. The music plays its part very well in contributing to this almost indiscernible mood. There are moments in the film where the music adds an almost haunting ambiance and mood to a scene, and there are other moments where you almost begin to feel as disjointed and culture-shocked as the two protagonists when certain compositions make you feel like you're spending a sleepless night with music pouring in, subdued, from the room next door while you're recovering from jet lag. The movie does a good job in portraying Americans and Japanese people as being hopelessly juxtaposed on a cultural and on occasion, linguistic level, often to comic effect. It's interesting to watch a film which doesn't so much judge as it does observe the cultural and linguistic differences between America and Japan. The most interesting parts of the film are where you see the protagonists attempt to overcome their initial culture-shock and jet-lag, and try to interact with various aspects of urban Japanese society..
Lost in Translation is quite simply, a beautiful movie.