Lost In Translation:

...somewhat lost on me

I went into the theater with great expectations because no magazine, newspaper, television reporter, hobo on a street corner said a bad word about this film or Bill Murray and this tale of "friendship".

Yes, why would it be surprising that the Masonry of Men who live in beer commercial fantasy land love a story of a wrinkled old guy having an almost romantic triste with a stunning red head who is barely legal?

This movie is an unconsummated romance novel.  A bored and neglected young wife gets to dabble a bit with a man who is locked into a loveless marriage and comes out clean.  Sure, the reviews want to pretend like this is about being high minded enough not to give into lust, brought to you by the Coppola dynasty, that this is Bill Murray's chance for redemption and play the part of the elder statesman on the level of Clint Eastwood.  Both being around for so long that they've now been petrified in Amber and turned into jewelry you see at art festivals. Film buffs have been waiting for this moment where he began to sag just enough to where it was acceptable to have a woman half his age on his arm and be applauded for it. 

Interspersed are some fun bits about the city of Tokyo.  I really didn't have an appreciation for how much we had westernized Japan after WWII until I saw the sky scrapers and kids running around in punk gear.  Generally, their pop culture runs about 30 years behind ours, yet they somehow add something to it that makes it even wilder than what we're coming up with at the time.   However, buried within the similarities, there is a language and cultural barrier that leaves the few foreigners clinging to each other like the last couple of Cheerios in a bowl of milk.  Within this tiny enclave, alliances are formed and this is why the story is ultimately believable and different.  Think of the movie Notting Hill when Julia Roberts arbitrarily falls in love with Hugh Grant.   She shows up one day and lands a kiss on him. There is no motivation or passion behind it.  There is no overriding question about what is going to happen. 

Yet, here in a foreign city that looks like the set of Blade Runner, it's like shore leave for two civilians that you figure are going home and heading for splitsville with their respective spouses.