‘Masterpiece’ Oscar-winning film that left audiences bawling added to Netflix in the UK | Films | Entertainment

A “masterpiece” romantic-comedy drama that left viewers in tears is streaming in the UK. Lost in Translation (2003) tells the story of two strangers, faded film star Bob Harris (played by Bill Murray) and recent graduate Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), who meet in a bar in Tokyo. While visiting the Japanese capital, the two disillusioned travellers “find solace in each other’s company”, the Netflix description reads.

The film was written and directed by Sofia Coppola, who began writing it after spending time in Tokyo and falling in love with the city. Lost in Translation was critically acclaimed, with Coppola winning the Best Original Screenplay Oscar. It was also nominated for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor (Murray).

Fans have taken to IMDb to lavish the movie with praise. One called it Coppola’s “masterpiece”, writing that the film is a “wistful, beautifully observed meditation on loneliness, connection, and the strange spaces in between” that “captures the feeling of emotional dislocation-not just in a foreign land, but within one’s own life”.

Another described the romantic comedy/drama as “sad, funny, magical and irresistibly moving”. “I have seen it three times now, it improves each time,” they said.

“Lost in Translation is a brilliant film, but also a film you need to see more than once to appreciate it.”

“This film is brilliant. You literally can lose yourself in it. So well acted and with a great soundtrack. I could watch it again and again.”

Some modern assessments of the film have questioned the romantic framing of the narrative, given the 35-year age gap between the two leads (Johansson’s character is in her early 20s, and she was 17 when she made it – Murray was 52).

Addressing the subject in a later interview with Rolling Stone, Coppola said: “I did notice that watching it with my kids, because they’re teenagers and they were like, ‘What’s going on with that?’ But Bill is so lovable and charming.

“Part of the story is about how you can have romantic connections that aren’t sexual or physical. You can have crushes on people where it isn’t that kind of thing.

“Part of the idea was that you can have connections where you can’t be together for various reasons because you’re at different points in life.”

It also received accusations of failing to engage with Japanese culture and using the city merely as a backdrop for the Western leads. Though others have defended the movie as a portrayal of what it’s like to be an outsider in a foreign land.

Nevertheless, the film is still widely regarded as a modern classic. A Reddit user said the movie brought them to tears. Writing on the r/iwatchedanoldmovie subreddit, they said: “I thought it was a boring film because nothing really happened.

“But the end scene just struck me so hard and now I see the beauty of the whole movie. But I don’t know why I’m crying so much after this. I can’t explain it. Does anyone know what it is?”

Another user wrote: “Melancholy. It’s a bit of an existential film, with some profound feelings of loneliness. I personally did not relate to this film much, but I’ve very much felt that way after watching films like The Graduate.”

A third added: “Me too. I’m not lonely. I haven’t faced that part of life yet. But it struck me so hard, I’m still crying. (I watched it ten minutes ago). Melancholy is the perfect word. Thank you.”

A fourth said: “I pretty much cried at the end too. It’s been probably 20 years since I’ve seen it but I thought the whole film was very touching. Such a gem.”

The film has a 15 certificate and contains brief sexualised nudity, so viewer discretion is advised.

Lost in Translation is streaming again on Netflix in the UK now. It’s also available to stream, rent or buy on various other platforms.