Lost in Translation is a film directed and written by Sofia Coppola. The film came out in 2003 and was given the rating of 7 out of 10. The main plot of the story is about the character Bob, a film star who is visits Tokyo on a business trip and the other main character is Charlotte, a young woman visiting the same city with her photographer husband. We know from the beginning that they have a lot in common, but they are yet to meet.
Both characters are unhappily married individuals with lives on similar paths. The film begins with close ups of the two protagonists, emphasising the similarity in their lives. Lots of shots are of Bob and Charlotte alone, unable to sleep and clearly unhappy with their lives. When both of the characters suffer from insomnia, they take comfort in each other and try and experience things to do in Tokyo.
The film is a simple, linear narrative, which focuses on the characters actions and how they react to one another. The audience will probably not know what’s going to happen because I wasn’t sure, I was expecting a romantic link between the two protagonists despite the age difference, but I was wrong. The title is subjective to the story because the pair are literally lost in translation as they do not know Japanese.
The title however might have a different meaning. Could the title be talking about the characters being ‘Lost in Translation’ in their relationships? I guess we’ll never know. Throughout the film love is implied between Bob and Charlotte, I thought they would get together in the end. However, when the end comes to a climax where they kiss and then Bob whispers something to her and then leaves. The audience are left wondering what happens next and the film is left on a lingering cliffhanger. In my opinion this is my favourite type of ending.
The audience walks away and thinks about the film and what could happen. We never know what Bob says to her so as a viewer we can just imagine our own interpretation. The message in ‘Lost in translation’ is that you don’t always have to be alone. Loneliness can be resolved by an unlikely friendship. The director Sofia Coppola does an excellent job at keeping the audience guessing. I really enjoyed this film.
Rating – 4 stars
0 Comments