Lost
in Translation: Communication beyond Words
Feelings
of alienation and loneliness bring two unlikely characters together in Sofia
Coppola’s film Lost in Translation.
Bob, played by Bill Murray, and Charlotte, played by Scarlett Johansson, meet
while visiting Tokyo. Both characters feel lost and detached from their alien
environment and their lives. As the title suggests, language and communication
bring about issues and conflicts in the film. Much of what is said during the
movie is either not in English or mumbled and inaudible to the audience. The
title itself translates in Spanish, Chinese, and Hebrew as “Lost in Tokyo.” In
Portuguese, it translates as “Love Is a Strange Place.” In Polish, it translates
as “In Between Worlds” (“Lost in Translation Trivia”). These differences in
titles alter one’s interpretation of the movie and show how even the title is
lost in translation, illustrating one of the many difficulties of language. While
communication is a conflict and barrier throughout, the movie communicates
through a lack of dialogue.
Skeptical of her life’s path, Charlotte is bored, restless, and unable to communicate her problems, fears, and insecurities. Charlotte explains simply why she is in Tokyo, “My husband’s a photographer, so he’s here working. I wasn't doing anything, so I came along” (Lost in Translation). Her ability to leave everything behind and travel halfway across the world shows her free-willed nature, but Charlotte hints at her sense of lack of purpose. When asked what she does, she replies that she is unsure. This feeling of being lost and without direction is a common theme throughout the film. Charlotte laughs at her attempts to listen to a self-help CD, she cannot fully understand the art of Ikebana, and she goes to a Buddhist temple but has no cathartic experience. Crying, she calls her friend Lauren who offers no help. On the phone, Charlotte vents many of her problems and frustrations, including “I don’t know who I married” (Lost in Translation). Lauren asks Charlotte if she can hold on a second and when Lauren returns, she says, “I’m sorry, what were you saying?” proving she wasn't paying attention. Charlotte cannot even communicate with her best friend, but she hides her dis-ease well. The scene after her crying on the phone is one of her putting on makeup and redecorating the hotel room. When her husband leaves for a few days, she fakes a smile until he leaves the room then immediately returns to a face of melancholy.
Bob experiences the majority of the language barriers and conflicts in the film. He is a famous actor and the entire reason he’s in Tokyo is to do an advertisement for Suntory whiskey. He is not proud of the fact that he is doing the commercial and does not tell many people it is the reason for his visit. He is filming a commercial for a product he does not drink or even like, but he is getting paid two million dollars to do it. Bob does not seem to be effective to their target market, but because he is famous, they want him anyway. Many communication conflicts arise between Bob, who speaks only English, the director, who speaks only Japanese, and the translator, who speaks very little of either. With the audience also unable to understand the director’s Japanese, Bill Murray acts with facial expressions and mannerisms. Later, a masseuse goes up to Bob’s room and demands him to “Lip my stockings!” (Lost in Translation). Bob has no idea what she is saying, causing the scene to be both confusing and humorous. In the gym of the hotel, Bob almost gets seriously injured on the elliptical machine because he cannot read the buttons. Conflicts with this language barrier get absurdly funny when at the hospital, Bob tells the nurse, “Will you put that back in the garage for me?” who obviously has no clue what was said, just like Bob and Charlotte don’t know what he said (Lost in Translation). The difficulty communicating continues with his relationship with his wife. Communication between Bob and his wife consists of memos and faxes. She sends him a Fed-Ex with dark red carpet swatches asking him which one he likes best, including that she likes the burgundy one. He sighs to himself that they are all burgundy. When they do talk on the phone, the audience only hears mumbles from the wife except the barely audible “goodbye, Bob” before he gets to say “I love you” (Lost in Translation). Like her husband and Lauren to Charlotte, Bob’s wife only fuels his feelings of estrangement and loneliness. In the opening scene of the movie, Bob is seen in a taxi, perplexed, alone, and blinded by the Tokyo lights. This scene is juxtaposed with a scene later in the movie when Charlotte contently watches Bob sleep in the backseat of a taxi. This juxtaposition shows the transformation of character from alienation and detachment to contentment and completeness.
In the final scene of the movie, inaudible to the audience, Bob says something into Charlotte’s ear before they both smile, kiss, and part. Something was said, but the audience will never know what it was. In a movie about communication and interpretation, this is the perfect ending. Bob says exactly what he needs to say and it is exactly what Charlotte needs to hear. This scene shows their progression and ability to return to their lives. Earlier in the film, Bob tells Charlotte, “The more you know who you are and what you want, the less you let things upset you” (Lost in Translation). Both characters are upset in the beginning of the film because they don’t know who they are or who they want to be, but by the end, they find contentment and satisfaction.
Skeptical of her life’s path, Charlotte is bored, restless, and unable to communicate her problems, fears, and insecurities. Charlotte explains simply why she is in Tokyo, “My husband’s a photographer, so he’s here working. I wasn't doing anything, so I came along” (Lost in Translation). Her ability to leave everything behind and travel halfway across the world shows her free-willed nature, but Charlotte hints at her sense of lack of purpose. When asked what she does, she replies that she is unsure. This feeling of being lost and without direction is a common theme throughout the film. Charlotte laughs at her attempts to listen to a self-help CD, she cannot fully understand the art of Ikebana, and she goes to a Buddhist temple but has no cathartic experience. Crying, she calls her friend Lauren who offers no help. On the phone, Charlotte vents many of her problems and frustrations, including “I don’t know who I married” (Lost in Translation). Lauren asks Charlotte if she can hold on a second and when Lauren returns, she says, “I’m sorry, what were you saying?” proving she wasn't paying attention. Charlotte cannot even communicate with her best friend, but she hides her dis-ease well. The scene after her crying on the phone is one of her putting on makeup and redecorating the hotel room. When her husband leaves for a few days, she fakes a smile until he leaves the room then immediately returns to a face of melancholy.
Bob experiences the majority of the language barriers and conflicts in the film. He is a famous actor and the entire reason he’s in Tokyo is to do an advertisement for Suntory whiskey. He is not proud of the fact that he is doing the commercial and does not tell many people it is the reason for his visit. He is filming a commercial for a product he does not drink or even like, but he is getting paid two million dollars to do it. Bob does not seem to be effective to their target market, but because he is famous, they want him anyway. Many communication conflicts arise between Bob, who speaks only English, the director, who speaks only Japanese, and the translator, who speaks very little of either. With the audience also unable to understand the director’s Japanese, Bill Murray acts with facial expressions and mannerisms. Later, a masseuse goes up to Bob’s room and demands him to “Lip my stockings!” (Lost in Translation). Bob has no idea what she is saying, causing the scene to be both confusing and humorous. In the gym of the hotel, Bob almost gets seriously injured on the elliptical machine because he cannot read the buttons. Conflicts with this language barrier get absurdly funny when at the hospital, Bob tells the nurse, “Will you put that back in the garage for me?” who obviously has no clue what was said, just like Bob and Charlotte don’t know what he said (Lost in Translation). The difficulty communicating continues with his relationship with his wife. Communication between Bob and his wife consists of memos and faxes. She sends him a Fed-Ex with dark red carpet swatches asking him which one he likes best, including that she likes the burgundy one. He sighs to himself that they are all burgundy. When they do talk on the phone, the audience only hears mumbles from the wife except the barely audible “goodbye, Bob” before he gets to say “I love you” (Lost in Translation). Like her husband and Lauren to Charlotte, Bob’s wife only fuels his feelings of estrangement and loneliness. In the opening scene of the movie, Bob is seen in a taxi, perplexed, alone, and blinded by the Tokyo lights. This scene is juxtaposed with a scene later in the movie when Charlotte contently watches Bob sleep in the backseat of a taxi. This juxtaposition shows the transformation of character from alienation and detachment to contentment and completeness.
In the final scene of the movie, inaudible to the audience, Bob says something into Charlotte’s ear before they both smile, kiss, and part. Something was said, but the audience will never know what it was. In a movie about communication and interpretation, this is the perfect ending. Bob says exactly what he needs to say and it is exactly what Charlotte needs to hear. This scene shows their progression and ability to return to their lives. Earlier in the film, Bob tells Charlotte, “The more you know who you are and what you want, the less you let things upset you” (Lost in Translation). Both characters are upset in the beginning of the film because they don’t know who they are or who they want to be, but by the end, they find contentment and satisfaction.
Works
Cited
Lost in Translation. Dir. Sofia Coppola. Perf. Bill Murray and
Scarlett Johansson. DVD. Focus
Features, 2003.
"Lost in Translation Trivia." IMDb. IMDb.com. 16 Dec. 2013
<http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0335266/>.
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