Episode 24: Lost in Translation

Justin:

Whenever I find myself in the minority and not liking a movie that is close to universally adored, I tend to go to the reviews and check out the things that critics said at the time. As is often the case, I learn a little bit, feel a little bit, and either end up more confident about my assessment (because their arguments make no sense to me) or remain in wonder about what it is that I missed. 

One reviewer wrote that LOST IN TRANSLATION is “a film for any lost soul, anyone trying to figure where their life is headed, and if they’re happy about it.” And while I can appreciate that idea (trust me - if anyone is at a crossroads in their life right now, it’s yours truly) the characters that Sofia Coppola used to push that idea just didn’t do the trick for me.

Let’s start with Bob. He’s an aging world-famous actor, making $2 million to hawk some whiskey in Japan for a week or so. This is classic mid-life crisis time, of course, but instead of the sports car purchase, he’s abandoning his family for a little bit. There’s plenty of valid reasons for him to feel the way he does: he’s past his prime, he’d rather be doing plays or movies, he’s wondering if his career has hit a definitive endpoint. And I can sympathize with that, sure. But as a vehicle for “any lost soul” as that critic suggested? I don’t think so.

Then there’s Charlotte. She’s in her early 20s because they say she’s a recent college graduate, but ScarJo being 17 at the time of shooting definitely makes her feel younger. She is already married for some reason, her husband an excitable photographer good enough at his job to get a gig shooting a rock band in a country across the world. She tagged along for… reasons… and is seemingly bothered that he actually has to work at his job while away… for his job? Now, I’m not trying to discount her feelings of depression or anxiety, as I can certainly relate to feelings of insecurity and uncertainty about the future ahead. In fact, I would go so far as to say I imagine an overwhelming majority of recent college grads have the exact same unease about what’s in front of them. I guess I just don’t know why a young woman recently removed from her educational responsibilities can’t enjoy a little sightseeing or learn about meditation from some monks before she transitions into the depths that is your early 20s.

I’m certain I’m sounding calloused at this point, but for me, when you add all of that up, plus the possibly construed as creepy May-December romance moments, I was left feeling extremely cold as the film neared its final moments. And then it all wraps up with Bob whispering in Charlotte’s ear, the two kissing for the first time, and them parting ways; for good or not, we’ll never know. To sum all this up, let me try to put it in a way that critic I mentioned earlier might get it: as a lost soul, I was trying to figure out where this movie was headed… and in the end, I wasn’t happy about it.

Pete:

LOST IN TRANSLATION’s minimalist approach to virtually every aspect of its production makes it a movie worth studying. There’s the shortened 75 page screenplay that allowed one of our greatest actors to improvise his way to a career best performance. Then you have the choice to shoot using as much natural light as possible, which helped keep the shoot brief (as necessary with a small budget), and gave the movie an air of naturalism. Or the minimal amounts of dialogue which allowed her camera to take over this story of isolation and loneliness, and tell it visually. The point is, this seemingly simple approach to filmmaking is anything but. It’s a very purposeful, thought-out aesthetic, and one that Coppola has continued to tinker with throughout her career. Hers is a distinctly cinematic style with the courage to forgo what we know and what is typical in American film, and challenge us with a movie that is aware of our expectations, and willing to subvert them at every turn. And yet, because she’s able to ground our expectations in a beautifully human story about connection, she’s able to combine these ideas and unearth a great truth.

We’ve been conditioned to think Bob and Charlotte are going to fall in love and run away together. Or at least sleep together. Yet Coppola only teases these ideas. You can see it in Bob and Charlotte’s final few moments together. The way they don’t know what to say to one another in the hotel and how that, and not anything they’ve said to each other, tells us how deeply meaningful their relationship has been. Despite the understated beauty in that, we aren’t quite satisfied as an audience. We were teased with this emotionally satisfying goodbye, and the characters couldn’t figure out how to say their feelings. And so, we’re then given Bob who just happens to see Charlotte on his way to the airport as she’s walking down the street in a city of over 9M people. Fate has given him a second chance to nail this goodbye and he isn’t gonna pass that up. And so he gets out of the car, walks over to her, and as the music swells, and we’re about to FINALLY get the huge emotional payoff we’ve been promised…whispers something into her ear? And then kisses her, they say goodbye, and they’re both presumably off to the rest of their lives. It’s another tease. Except..it isn’t. There’s nothing lost in translation here. Both characters know exactly what those words were, what they meant, and, most importantly, seem content with what we’ve just seen. Coppola both gives us what we want, and yet withholds the satisfaction that should come along with it. But that’s often how it goes. With marriages. With careers. With…lives. Maybe one day we’ll find ourselves peddling whisky halfway across the world for $2M, maybe not. Sometimes we get what we want, and sometimes we don’t, but those opportunities for connection along the way shouldn’t be ignored.