Whaaaat?

Rating: 3/10 (17 December 2004)

Firstly, a lot of people have been talking about empathising with the characters in this film.
Empathising with a vapid, boring, slightly arrogant ageing actor and a vapid, boring young woman? C'mon...these characters are complete non-entities. They have no goals in the film and their lives are never fleshed out the the extent that you could give a flying f*ck about either of them. At least one of them should have at least one defining feature/flaw...extreme jealousy? kindness? depression? shyness? Just SOMETHING to relate to in ONE OF THEM! Thats all I would have asked.
Also, there is not a single funny/interesting/exciting/insightful moment in this film. As a comedy it fails through lack of laughs, as for the 'japanese accent jokes'? What is this? The seventies? As a drama/romance it fails because...well not a single dramatic/romantic event occurs. The sexual tension between Murray and Johansson? Subtle to the point of non-existence (And besides the thought of Murray's wrinkly old arse bobbing up and down on top of Scarlett...I'm VERY glad they didn't get together here, i'll give Coppola that.) This is a dumb, vapid, horribly boring film trying to be gentle, warm and clever and failing completely. That said I didn't mind paying to see an extended shot of Scarlett Johansson's curvy butt! Hot damn! Or something.