Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2004/02/24

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Subject: Re: [Leica] now Lost in Translation
From: Matthew Powell <mlpowell@sbcglobal.net>
Date: Tue, 24 Feb 2004 20:06:58 -0600
References: <LNBBLBNFHNEHGFKFMALGOEBKJPAB.timatherton@theedge.ca>

On Feb 24, 2004, at 7:37 PM, Tim Atherton wrote:
>> I hated it. Every character was shallow and vapid; every motive
>> was empty or greedy. And it wasn't even visually pretty. Cf.
>> "Girl with a Pearl Earring", which has the same actress.
>
> Isn't it amazing how all this works - I found the characters all very 
> human
> and the movie visually enthralling - whereas I found Girl with a Pearl
> Earing to be overly sentimental, overly romanticized somewhat shallow 
> eye
> candy....
>
> I totally wanted to go and photograph in Japan after seeing 
> Translation :-)

I feel better - finally someone else who couldn't stand LiT (John Hurt 
couldn't either, for that matter). I was looking forward to it, between 
the press hype and how much I enjoyed _The Virgin Suicides_, but it did 
absolutely nothing for me.

I was frustrated by the extent to which Coppola tipped the balance in 
favor of SJ/Murray - the actress, photographer, lounge singer were all 
portrayed badly for no other crime than not being hip enough. And the 
protagonists had no redeeming facets to their personalities - oh, the 
horrors of being a bored, privileged white person in a ritzy Tokyo 
hotel! Had Coppola been less transparent in the manipulation, and if 
she had given me a reason to identify with her characters, I think it 
would have worked. But if you dislike or don't care about Murray and 
Johannsen, it's a loss.

In a similar vein, look for Lynne Ramsay's _Morvern Callar_. Much 
better film (even less plot, more atmosphere), if you have the patience 
to sit through it (Samantha Morton's Morvern might as well be mute.)

> So it goes
> tim

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Replies: Reply from John Collier <jbcollier@shaw.ca> (Re: [Leica] now Lost in Translation)
In reply to: Message from Tim Atherton <timatherton@theedge.ca> (RE: [Leica] now Lost in Translation)