048 Lost in Translation

Retro Grade Podcast

On this week’s episode of Retro Grade Podcast, we go back 19 years ago to talk about Sofia Coppola’s Lost In Translation. This will be the first time that either of us have seen the film. Not knowing what to expect, we talk about Coppola’s first feature, The Virgin Suicides, and try to see what that film did well and whether Coppola can follow it up.

We spend a large amount of time talking about the story, about the themes on loneliness and isolation, and about the unorthodox relationship between Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson. Are they lovers? Friends? Is it sexual or platonic? Is the large age gap and issue that the film addresses, or are we meant to see past it? We go into the Japanese representation in the film, and whether that holds up. Having done a little research before watching the film, there was some controversy about the Japanese characters present in the film and whether they were given the same treatment as the main characters, or if Coppola may have resorted to age old Japanese stereotypes in order to convey the isolation Bill and Scarlett feel.

After the story, we focus on the film’s aesthetics, appreciating the beautiful cinematography that highlights the beauty in the Japanese metropolitan area, as well as the iconic soundtrack that may be some of the best needle drops in cinema history. We talk about how Sofia made us see the world through Scarlett’s point of view, a feminine point of view, and how this may have subverted classic Hollywood conventions when filming female characters. And lastly, we talk about the film subverting genre conventions, how it manages to be something more than most movies, somehow balancing comedic and romantic elements with drama, but never straying too far.

So grab a hot cup of chocolate, get cozy with your favorite blanket, and enjoy this week’s episode of Retro Grade Podcast!
Music is from Triune Digital and audio clips pulled from movies we will be reviewing in other episodes.

Artwork by @jannelle_o