Lost in Translation (2003)

A faded movie star and a neglected young woman form an unlikely bond after crossing paths in Tokyo.

Director:

Sofia Coppola

Writer:

Sofia Coppola

Stars:

Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Giovanni Ribisi

Won 1 Oscar. Another 97 wins & 127 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Scarlett Johansson	...	Charlotte
Bill Murray	...	Bob Harris
Akiko Takeshita	...	Ms. Kawasaki
Kazuyoshi Minamimagoe	...	Press Agent
Kazuko Shibata	...	Press Agent
Take	...	Press Agent
Ryuichiro Baba	...	Concierge
Akira Yamaguchi	...	Bellboy
Catherine Lambert	...	Jazz Singer
François du Bois	...	Sausalito Piano (as Francois du Bois)
Tim Leffman	...	Sausalito Guitar
Gregory Pekar	...	American Businessman #1
Richard Allen	...	American Businessman #2
Giovanni Ribisi	...	John
Diamond Yukai	...	Commercial Director (as Yutaka Tadokoro)

Storyline

Middle-aged American movie star Bob Harris is in Tokyo to film a personal endorsement Suntory whiskey ad solely for the Japanese market. He is past his movie star prime, but his name and image still have enough cachet for him to have gotten this lucrative $2 million job. He has an unsatisfying home life where his wife Lydia follows him wherever he goes - in the form of messages and faxes - for him to deal with the minutiae of their everyday lives, while she stays at home to look after their kids. Staying at the same upscale hotel is fellow American, twenty-something recent Yale Philosophy graduate Charlotte, her husband John, an entertainment still photographer, who is on assignment in Japan. As such, she is largely left to her own devices in the city, especially when his job takes him out of Tokyo. Both Bob and Charlotte are feeling lost by their current situations, which are not helped by the cultural barriers they feel in Tokyo, those cultural barriers extending far beyond just not...

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Plot Keywords:

older man younger woman relationship | loneliness | unlikely friendship | female frontal nudity | aimlessness | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes you have to go halfway around the world to come full circle

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some sexual content

Details

Official Sites:

Distributor's web site with synopsis and media

Country:

USA Japan

Language:

English Japanese German French

Release Date:

3 October 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

Perdidos en Tokio

Filming Locations:

Omote-Sando, Tokyo, Japan

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$925,087, 14 September 2003, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$44,585,453

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$119,723,856

Company Credits

Production Co:

Focus Features, Tohokushinsha Film Corporation (TFC), American Zoetrope

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Included among the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die", edited by Steven Schneider.

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Goofs

In the scene where Charlotte arrives at Shibuya Crossing, the camera shot from her point of view suggests she is crossing away from Shibuya Station, viewing the dinosaur on the jumbo-tron across the street. In the shots where we actually see her crossing the street, however, she is instead walking towards the station.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Ms. Kawasaki: Welcome to Tokyo.
Bob: Thank you very much.
Ms. Kawasaki: My name is Kawasaki. Nice to meet you.
Bob: I've heard of you. Thank you.

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Crazy Credits

Thanks to Mom and Dad, Roman, Spike, Steph, Kun, Zoe and Xan, Robert and Stacey, Staff of Park Hyatt Tokyo....

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Connections

Referenced in Dog with a Blog: Lost in Stanslation (2014)

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Soundtracks

Tomei Tengu BGM
Written and Performed by Takeo Watanabe
Courtesy of Sankyo Shinsha Inc.

User Reviews

Filmed in Tokyo, with Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson, one of the better movies I've seen in a while.

For anyone who wants a synopsis of this movie, the critics Ebert and Berardinelli have excellent, complete reviews of 'Lost in Translation', and they both give it their highest ratings.

My wife and I saw it tonight on DVD, with DTS 5.1 sound and both think it is a remarkable movie. I like Bill Murray in just about everything, and this will go down as one of his strongest performances, as Bob, the actor in Japan for a week doing whisky commercials. Scarlett Johansson plays Charlotte, the young wife virtually abandoned in the city to do her own thing as her photographer husband (Ribisi) goes to various locations for shoots.

What I liked most was the realistic feel. Being in a strange city, with unusual customs and a language you have no hope of understanding. Meeting someone who because of circumstances (age, marital status) will only ever be a friend. Being able to talk freely. Reflecting on where we've been and where we might be going. Many of the negative comments about this movie relate to an impression that it is 'boring.' I'll put on my 'maturity hat' and state that anyone who thinks 'Lost In Translation' is boring simply was not able, at least while they watched it, appreciate the inner beauty of this movie.

The scene that made the whole story come together for me was when they were in one of their hotel rooms (doesn't matter which), overhead shot, they were in bed talking, fully clothed, he is on his back staring at the ceiling, she is on her side, eyes probably closed, the tips of her feet barely touching the side of his leg, and he moves his hand and puts it on her feet. Then the scene fades to black. It is the kind of tender, non-sexual touch that tells us how close they have become, and that theirs is a relationship of mutual trust and admiration, not one of lust.

People like Bob and Charlotte really exist, and they really do meet up in very similar situations. After a week, they must go their separate ways, he to his family and activities of his kids, she to wait for her husband and figure out how to get out of the rut. We sense that he does not love her the way she needs, and we wonder what will happen.