Translation & Terminal: Two Reviews

Yesterday I watched Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation. Today I watched Steven Spielberg's The Terminal. And now I'm going to bore you with what I think about both films...

First up, Lost in Translation. I don't say this often, but this a movie that had me smiling from beginning to end. Yeah, opening a film with a shot of Scarlett Johansson's butt is always a good idea, but that's really not why I liked it. Actually, I don't really know why I liked it. It was just a beautiful, beautiful movie. There were some stereotypical missteps, but overall, it was just an excellent insight into the human condition. Not surprising from the director of The Virgin Suicides. And, it made me want to learn Japanese.

Interestingly enough, my mother told me that she hated it. Of course, as she speaks Japanese (and is Japanese), the "fish out of water" stuff was apparently lost on her.

Next up is uber-director Spielberg's The Terminal. Kind-hearted and well-intentioned, it wasn't overly bad... it just wasn't overly good, either. In fact, it was overly pointless. But I still (sort of) enjoyed it.

However, this, along with Ron Howard's The Da Vinci Code, marks two movies in a row that Tom Hanks was completely miscast in. I just never bought him as Mr. Navorski... probably because, well, it's Tom Hanks. Catherine Zeta-Jones would've been great in her role, but it was so painfully underdeveloped, I didn't really give a shit (can I say that? Shit? Of course I can... it's my blog). In fact, EVERY primary plot in the film was painfully underdeveloped. I mean, the movie waited until forever to reveal the point behind Navorski's visit to the United States and just sort of skipped around dealing with the subplots of Navorki's three friends. So... I guess that means I didn't really give a whole lot of shits.

Of course, I have to give the movie props for the January 3rd reference... heh.

Anyway, Lost in Translation is a must-see, so rent it if you haven't already. The Terminal? Well... save that for a rainy day when you're bored and have the time.