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okomechan
Reviews
Lost in Translation (2003)
Humorous Coppola !!
Lost in Translation (2003) is about Bob, an aging movie star, and Charlotte, the wife of a photographer, who both feel loneliness in the bewildering environment of Tokyo and who gradually come to understand each other and be good friends at last.
The film is obviously personal for writer and director Sofia Coppola, who spent time in Tokyo several years ago working in photography and fashion. Her other works are Lick the Star (1998) and The Virgin Suicides (1999).
Some reviewers have criticized this movie for making fun of the Japanese inability to pronounce English words correctly, often confusing R and L sounds. Probably some of these critics feel that they are being made fun of by Coppola, but the director used what is obviously true for humorous effect. While I feel that Coppola is not mocking the Japanese, it would have better if she had Bob and Charlotte trying to understand Japanese and speak a bit of Japanese while in Japan. Other critics say Coppola makes fun of the tiny Japanese with scenes of Bob towering over a crowd of Japanese in elevator and using a shower that is too low, but Coppola only represents reality directly and humorously.
Regarding Japanese culture, Charlotte confusion about Ikebana and shrines is an expression of what Coppola felt when she first came to Japan. It is hardly surprising that foreigners find Japanese culture eluding because even Japanese do not understand everything about our own culture.
Suwingu gâruzu (2004)
I like Swing Girls.
Swing Girls (2004) was directed by Shinobu Yaguchi. Born in Kanagawa in 1967, Yaguchi other works include Adrenalin Live, A Secret Flower Garden and Water Boys. The latter has been his most successful movie to date, having been developed into a weekly television series. Water Boys shares many similarities with Swing Girls. First of all, the stage for each movie is high school and the main character in each is a boy (or girl) with no particular talent, skill or interests. He (she) discovers synchronized swimming (jazz music) and undergoes a transformation. Both movies are based on the theme of succeeding.
Set in present-day Japan, Swing Girls is the story of girls who meet and are deeply fascinated by jazz. The heroine is a very typical Japanese teenager. Her character is suggestive of the hidden problem of today children. She lacks any special interests or motivation and dislikes making any effort. But when she discovers jazz, she discovers something she can be absorbed in and begins to transform herself. At first, she is not able to even make a noise. But she and her friends practice and come to be able to play their instruments. They slowly come to be fond of jazz and take part in a music competition.
All the music was played by the actresses and actors themselves, which is perhaps the most outstanding aspect of Swing Girls. Their accents, on the other hand, sound to me like an imitation. But, as a whole, I like this movie.