I realise I have posted about the film 'Lost in Translation' extensively before, and it is slightly off-topic, being intercultural but nothing to do with information and communications technologies. Nonetheless, this article by Leilla Matsui (a freelance writer living in Japan who was involved in the film) is something I have to link to (thanks to Blogalization for alerting me to it), as she is so right, especially in saying:
" The subtle interplay of glance and gesture makes Coppola's film a tribute to great Japanese filmmakers like Yasujiro Ozu (often referred to as "the most Japanese filmmaker") whose meticulously crafted films about seemingly little things make 'Lost in Translation' more a Japanese film than a film about Japan -- a point her detractors here seemed to have overlooked. "
and also argues the film is quite the opposite of the usual racist films depicting Westerners in 'other' cultures:
"The locals who the film's protagonists encounter in everyday life are, ultimately, indifferent to the presence of these American visitors -- a refreshing and radical departure from the typical Eurocentric view which places Westerners at the centre of everyone else's universe. "
The film does not open in Japan until April/May, so few Japanese have seen it so far. I found some reviews on blogs from Japanese people who either live in North America/Europe or were visiting and saw the film. Here are some excerpts from what they say (my translation):
From the comments section of this blog
"It has quite a light touch [untranslatable Japanese word - assari - also means crisp, clean] and had a nice feeling about it. There was no sex or violence and the main actress was pretty cute. The storyline was more like an inconsequential travel journal and was even a bit sluggish. If it had been more 'crash bang wallop' I suppose it would have been a straightforward American movie. The depiction of Japan was nothing out of the ordinary - amusement arcades, pachinko parlours, red lantern bars etc - the sort of places foreigners like. But it is different from the usual films where Japan is the stage because the story is about two Americans. Not much dialogue for an American movie, I thought. Even though there wasn't much of a plot, I managed to stay awake. Perhaps because the main actress fitted the atmosphere of the film so well.
(Yozo Suzuki)
Looking at all the comments on the internet, people seem to be split between "it was boring" and "no this bit was great". People are also saying that you enjoy it because you're Japanese or you can't enjoy it because you're Japanese.
(t-hide)
I had big expectations because the reviews had been so good and it was winning prizes for its script but I was surprised to be so completely wrong in my expectations. There wasn't a single interesting incident and the story hardly develops at all. I suppose it was just another Hollywood movie, but half the film was in Japanese and there were no subtitles, so perhaps this gave it a fresh feeling to Americans.
(kiki)
I went to see it with a friend. It was great. I recommend it...but I think I enjoyed it because I was Japanese, surely people from other countries won't find it all interesting. Especially as there are no subtitles in English... and all sorts of insider-type insights...
(keita)
After being refused entry to the cinema with my friend Polly because her 6 month old baby was deemed in danger of corruption from a 15 certificate film, I went to see "Lost in Translation" with the hubby instead. This did not prevent me from falling in love with Bill Murray (again) and I was also pretty taken with the film.
I agree with the main review and most of the comments here on Chanpon.org, an online group I belong to of bicultural "Japan plus one other culture" people. It was good to see Mimi Ito's review as I wanted to get a Japanese person's perspective. As she says, Lost in Translation isn't really about Japan but I would say that the plot - unconsummated love accepted in a fatalistic way - is very Japanese.
To add to the comments on Chanpon and elsewhere that there were moments, the prostitute scene in particular, which stereotyped Japanese pronunciation and behaviour to the point of being insulting, I also thought that it was unlikely Japanese people would really blabber on in Japanese to a non-Japanese as portrayed several times in the film. In particular I would imagine the hospital receptionist would try his hardest to communicate in whatever English he could muster. The ad director might also have tried some English beyond "it's Suntory time" in directing Bill Murray, although he may have felt it would be beneath his dignity to lose face speaking bad English. You would have expected the translator to make a much better attempt at translating what the ad director said than she did, but perhaps she was not a professional interpreter. But then if any of this had happened, it wouldn't be "Lost in Translation" would it?
PS Here is a translation of the ad directing scene.
PPS Asian Media Watch have launched a campaign to stop Lost in Translation getting any Oscars. Weary sigh.
PPPS Just wanted to point out that the writer of the Guardian review (which made so many in the UK take on the idee recue that the film is racist), Kiku Day, is not actually Japanese. She lived in Japan for ten years and I would guess decided to change her first name to Kiku (chrysanthemum) on the strength of this. (Later correction - it turns out my guess was wrong - she tells me she is "a Danish national, but my mother is Japanese, my father American Caucasian, both changed their nationalities to Danish and Swedish. I am born in Harajuku, Tokyo, Japan. I lived there til the age of 6, and then moved to Denmark
where I spent the rest of my childhood, teenage years until I moved to Japan, where I lived for 10 years. I have since then lived in Switzerland, UK and now USA.")
I stick to my guns (although she beats me on 10 years to my 9 in Japan) that the film makes more fun of the lost, clueless, inept Americans than it does the Japanese, and in any case the film is not really 'about' Japan.
PPPPS Big long debate in the comments section of Joi Ito's blog here.