Film review: Coppola back with poignant, funny 'Lost in Translation' starring Murray, Johansson

By Jack Schneider
On-line Forty-Niner

In 1999, director and screenwriter Sofia Coppola captivated audiences in independent movie theaters with her dreamy and dramatic adaptation of Jeffrey Eugenides' novel, "The Virgin Suicides."

Four years later, Coppola returns to the big screen, capturing more than just fans and goers of indie cinema with her poignant story and direction of "Lost in Translation," starring Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson.

Bob Harris (Murray) is a middle-aged celebrity who is in Tokyo promoting a line of Scotch to Japanese billboards. He is burned out with promotions, has trouble sleeping in his hotel room and wishes to escape the confusing atmosphere of Japan.

Meanwhile, Charlotte (Johansson) is living at the same hotel as the 20-something-year-old wife of John, a band photographer played by Giovanni Ribisi. Charlotte is in a state where nothing seems to excite her, and feels as if she has no relation to a normal, happy life.

At the hotel bar, Charlotte and Bob engage in conversation and the two end up clicking on various levels.

"Lost in Translation" has more than just melancholy statements expressing the sorrows life. Murray's performance as Bob Harris is unlike anything audiences have seen on film.

He constantly has a damper smile on his face, but remains charming in his character.

Johansson's performance is similarly brilliant, evoking a radiantly melancholy character with jaded facial expressions.

Murray and Johansson come off as friends rather than as lovers. The relationship between the two is so ambiguous it keeps the audience guessing all throughout the film.

The film does a superb job of paralleling the misunderstandings of everyday life with the troubles of trying to figure out the Japanese culture. It's almost as if Japan is used as an allegory, showing that life is foreign to Bob and Charlotte.

Coppola's direction and script added a human touch to the movie. While the hilarious moments shined in the movie, the comedy scenes could have been spaced evenly throughout the film to make "Lost in Translation" a more even dramedy.