Brief Encounter

Rating: 7/10 (8 May 2007)

'Lost in Translation' is almost like a modern version of 'Brief Encounter': two lonely people meet, and fail to have sex. And if the absence of (implied) sex made David lean's film unusual, then 'Lost in Translation' is even more of an oddity, in today's hyper-sexualised world (and especially in the hyper-hyper sexualised world of the movies). But there are some differences: train travel has been replaced by plane travel (although distance from home is a key part of both films), there's a lower key feel (no romantic music) and, most crucially, the element of tragedy is missing. In 'Brief Encounter', the sense was that the two protagonists really should have had a wild affair; in Lost in Translation', by contrast, although they could have had an affair, there's no sense that their lives would actually have been enhanced by doing so: they're world-weary rather than repressed, even at Scarlett Johansson's tender age. And for me, this took the sting out of the story: it was hard to invest anything emotional in the plot, because the plot's self-evident point was that it wasn't going to go anywhere. The connection of the protagonists wasn't even very deep. Perhaps it felt just too like real, every-day modern life to me (except for the wealth and beauty of its characters). I spend a lot of time travelling, some of it lonely, making brief but essentially insignificant connections. I don't expect anyone to make a film about me!
Beyond that, the movie takes a few liberties in inaccurately merging the sense of alienation that comes from being abroad with the very different sense of alienation that comes from staying in a five-star hotel; but that's forgivable, and I like the indirect way that the movie depicts their experiences. Bill Murray deadpans his way through the story skillfully but neither of the two lead characters appears to possess any notable qualities, beyond being alone and in Japan. And while I actually liked this film; I failed to discover its stand out qualities also.