[merylsilverburg]

Originally posted by Panuru

She always seems worried to make her movies look like authorial non-commercial ones, especially the feeling I got is she tries to imitate the melancholic and nostalgic atmosphere of some French movies, but the spirit is not the same.

I agree with you in some ways...even though I have never seen her other films, for "Lost" I do feel she was trying to get the very calm, quiet tone that is similar to, like you said, French but also Japanese films too. I think she pulled it off somewhat well, but it also wasn't strong enough for me to get a deeper sense of it.

but most of all she shows life and feelings of her characters thru clichés: the way of representing Japan and its culture from a conventional Western perspective that has the same depth of a school trip video diary,

Yes! I felt that way too...especially regarding the way Sophia tries to show the differences between US and Japanese culture...and at some parts, it did really annoy me when the film kept constantly using the whole "R" and "L" situation for laughs. To me, I didn't find that funny...not because I am all "pro-Japan", but because this situation isn't a point that needs to be constantly talked about. With all the "Roger Moore", "Rat Pat", "rip my stocking"...it was just too much and became incredibly boring and a bit offending. And with Murray's character replying, "Because they need to amuse themselves because we're not there to do it for them" to Johanssen's, "Why do the Japanese switch the "R"s and "L"s?"...well, at that point it really got on my nerves.

When the movie ended I felt blank. Not moved nor particularly irritated. Nothing.

In the end, I felt a bit sad probably because of the background and scene shown at that moment. Personally, it's probably one of the most emotional/moving scenes out of the whole movie. I just enjoyed when Murray sees Johanssen and they meet in the midst of the crowd...they're focused on each other and not the millions of people around them. I just like it.

I agree with you on almost all of your points, so I don't have to say anything more. I would also like to add a few things though.

I think the movie is okay...there are a few parts I enjoyed, such as Murray speaking with the old woman at the hospital and other scenes, but I just don't feel the movie is covered completely and I was incredibly disappointed because I really wanted to like this film. It does seem quite artificial and not very moving, except at the last scene. I think Sophia was trying to portray the emotions through actions and the scenery, but she didn't do a really good job. An irony that happens in the film regards the two protagonists. Both Charlotte and Bob are potrayed to be "unique individuals" such as the fact they are both Americans, lonely, stranded, having a hard time adjusting, having problems in their lives, both "intellectuals", and so on. To bring out this "uniqueness", they are put in a world where everything is incredibly different. But, in the end...these two characters are quite typical and they wouldn't be "unique" or different if the setting were in the US. Instead, they'd blend right in! It's easy to show "individuals" when they are placed in a foreign country, but it's only because they are in a very different place. I know the whole point of this movie is to show that two people who are similar can find one another through lonliness and "fate", but I just don't like the fact that they are actually narrow-minded typical Americans. It's understandable to have a hard time adjusting to a new place, but they don't even try until they find someone similar to them. And it's all very superficial; first Bob wanted to get out of Japan ASAP, but then once he met Charlotte, it's all different and "better" all of a sudden. It was all mockery towards the Japanese, but then out of the blue, "I want to be more healthier...I want to eat more Japanese food". Um...okay...so you found company, someone to ease your lonliness and now you're adjusting to the "Japanese ways"? What the hell is that? It's a very typical behavior which really annoys me. The way Bob and Charlotte view Japan and the culture makes it seem as if the Japanese are very superficial and materialistic, which I won't deny because they are in some ways, but it's not all like that.

Hmm...I have more to say, but I can't get my thoughts focused together all of a sudden. As Panuru said, it's very cliched but I do like the direction of the film and the scenery/places shown...I really love the beginning where Murray was looking out at the buildings in the cab. It's very beautiful and reminds me of some Japanese film's openings. I also loved the arcade and shrine/temples...the arcade is very nice because there were great shots of some games over there, such as "GuitarFreaks" () and the "Taiko Drum" game (don't know the name). The shrines and temples were beautifully shot and the weather was perfect for those scenes.

Originally posted by gamer

i liked it , i thought some parts were funy, like the asian tv show lol that made me laff a lot

Ah, that "Michael" (or whatever his name was) show wasn't funny at all to me, probably because it's so similar to all the Asian guest shows/game shows which I've seen and really do not like. I don't like that type of humor which is very annoying and a little too upbeat, where the guest is made to be the "joke". Maybe I'm just uptight but there are other Asian shows which are not like this that I enjoy.