Lost in Translation (film)

Lost in Translation
Theatrical release poster
Directed bySofia Coppola
Written bySofia Coppola
Produced by
  • Ross Katz
  • Sofia Coppola
Starring
CinematographyLance Acord
Edited bySarah Flack
Music by
  • Kevin Shields
  • Brian Reitzell
  • Roger Joseph Manning Jr.
Production
companies
  • American Zoetrope
  • Elemental Films
Distributed by
  • Focus Features (International)
  • Tohokushinsha Film (Japan)
Release dates
  • August 29, 2003 (2003-08-29) (Telluride Film Festival)
  • October 3, 2003 (2003-10-03) (United States)
  • April 17, 2004 (2004-04-17) (Japan)[1]
Running time
102 minutes[2]
Countries
LanguageEnglish[2]
Budget$4 million
Box office$118.7 million

Lost in Translation is a 2003 romantic comedy-drama film[note 1] written and directed by Sofia Coppola. Bill Murray stars as Bob Harris, a fading American movie star who is having a midlife crisis when he travels to Tokyo to promote Suntory whisky. He befriends another disillusioned American, Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), a recent college graduate and married for two years. Giovanni Ribisi, Anna Faris, and Fumihiro Hayashi are also featured. The film explores themes of alienation and disconnection against a backdrop of cultural displacement in Japan. It does not use mainstream narrative conventions and is atypical in its depiction of romance.[4]

Coppola started writing the film after spending time in Tokyo and becoming fond of the city. She began forming a story about two characters experiencing a "romantic melancholy"[5] in the Park Hyatt Tokyo, where she stayed while promoting her first feature film, the 1999 drama The Virgin Suicides. Coppola envisioned Murray playing the role of Bob from the beginning and tried to recruit him for months. While Murray eventually agreed to play the part, he did not sign a contract. Coppola spent a quarter of the film's $4 million budget without knowing if he would arrive.

Principal photography began on September 29, 2002, and lasted 27 days. Coppola kept a flexible schedule during filming with a small crew and minimal equipment. The screenplay was short and Coppola allowed significant improvisation during filming. The director of photography, Lance Acord, used available light where possible, and many Japanese places of business and public areas were used as locations. After 10 weeks of editing, Coppola sold distribution rights for the United States and Canada to Focus Features, and the company promoted the film through word of mouth.

Lost in Translation premiered on August 29, 2003, at the Telluride Film Festival, and was distributed to American theatres on September 12, 2003. It grossed $118 million worldwide and received acclaim for its writing, directing and performances, though its depiction of Japan and Japanese people was criticized.[6] At the 76th Academy Awards, Lost in Translation won Coppola Best Original Screenplay, and the film was nominated for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor (Murray). Other accolades won include three Golden Globe Awards and three British Academy Film Awards. It is often named one of the greatest films of the 2000s and 21st century.[a]

  1. ^ "Interpreter's notes". The Japan Times. April 14, 2004. Archived from the original on January 8, 2019. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "Lost in Translation". British Board of Film Classification. Retrieved August 13, 2023. Note: Select the "Cinema" and "Industry details" tabs.
  3. ^ a b "Lost in Translation (2003)". American Film Institute. Archived from the original on July 5, 2020. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference haslem was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference olsen was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ King 2010, p. 132.
  7. ^ "The 21st Century's 100 greatest films". BBC. August 19, 2016. Archived from the original on June 11, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  8. ^ Bradshaw, Peter; Clarke, Cath; Pulver, Andrew; Shoard, Catherine (September 13, 2019). "The 100 best films of the 21st century". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved July 27, 2025.
  9. ^ "The 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century". The New York Times. June 26, 2025.
  10. ^ "Readers Choose Their Top Movies of the 21st Century". The New York Times. July 2, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  11. ^ "100 Best Movies of the 21st Century". Rolling Stone. July 1, 2025.
  12. ^ "The 50 Best Movies of the 2000s". Paste. November 3, 2009. Archived from the original on May 13, 2020. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  13. ^ "The 50 Best Movies of the Decade (2000-2009)". Paste Magazine. November 3, 2009. Retrieved December 14, 2011.
  14. ^ "10 Best Movies of the Decade!". Entertainment Weekly. December 3, 2009. Archived from the original on June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  15. ^ Staff (March 5, 2024). "The 21 greatest movies of the 21st century". faroutmagazine.co.uk. Retrieved July 27, 2025.
  16. ^ "Lost in Translation (2003)". www.wga.org. Retrieved July 29, 2025.


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