September 26, 2003 - 2:41 AM

Happily Lost in Lost in Translation

Tonight I saw Lost in Translation, the Sofia Coppola (hey, she was a handmaiden/bodyguard in The Phantom Menace, too, I think) directed movie starring Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson. Very, very nice. Soft, strange, familiar, hilarious, sad. A quiet slice of love folded within a mischievously conspiratorial friendship. It's the kind of movie that makes you want, that makes you yearn, but for what, well, you can't quite put it into words.

The movie is also my number two reason why Japan rules. Little old Japanese women kick butt.

The direction was refreshing, especially after all the "hollywood" movies I've seen this summer. Coppola let the characters, the story, the city of Tokyo itself, unfold in a way that reminded me very much of some of the Studio Ghibli/Miyazaki films. Very lyrical and lingering, never rushed. There were many times where there'd be an interaction between two characters, and I'd expect the typical Hollywood thing of witty or punchy or hip dialogue to punctuate the scene, but Coppola would surprise me by having just enough silence, and then an edit to a new scene. After watching this, I'm eager to see Sofia's directorial debut The Virgin Suicides.

Scarlett was luminous. I loved the way she played Charlotte with such strength, maturity, and self-possession, yet also imbued her with underlying currents of vulnerability and self-doubt that would be flowing through someone her age.

Bill was fantastic as well, playing many sides of the acting coin. It's strange, but within the past few weeks, I've seen Ghostbusters and Groundhog Day, and I'd never really noticed that even back in those movies, he did some really good, serious acting.

Oh, and as Nick and I were walking around the Galleria before the movie started, I saw Michelle Trachtenberg, the actress who played Buffy's sister Dawn on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, walking up to the movie theater. It was strange because, even though she was a good 40 yards from me and my eyesight's pretty poor, I immediately recognized her. She's a pretty tall squirt. Slender too. (that's my nice way of saying she's twiggy like a stick) No, I didn't say anything to her...I mean, what would I say?

"Hey, you're Michelle Trachtenberg, aren't you? From Buffy? Yeah, cool...loved the show, although I didn't really like your character...too whiny. But I thought you were cute in Harriet the Spy! Is that a can of mace?"

And I just looked at her entry on IMDB.com to check that I had her last name right, and it seems that she just graduated from the Notre Dame Prep school that's, like, 3 miles from my apartment.

Not that I'm going to surveil it or anything. Now, pardon me while I go find my binoculars.

*sigh* Maybe I need a girlfriend.

Now Listening To : Evanescence-whatever the name of their cd is. Linda Perry threw it away when I was working with her, so I picked it up.
Random Thought : This cd is like Meatloaf meets Linkin Park with female vocals. Almost every song follows that formula. Meh.

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