<*dv_2*> Japan seems a country of contrast. On one hand they value honour, tradition and respect and have a rich and varied culture stretching back thousands of years. On the other hand they invented karaoke, have pioneered the selling of used underwear on the internet and having taking to deifying long past there sell by date celebrities (Victoria Beckham that means you).
Bob Harris (Bill Murray) is one such faded celebrity out to gain a fast Yen by appearing in a series of whiskey adverts. He is middle-aged, jet-lagged and seemingly out of sorts in this alien culture and whilst attempting to drink himself to sleep in the hotel bar he meets fellow lost soul Charlotte (Johansson) a newly married graduate at a crossroads and looking to find answers to life's big questions.
With nothing better to do in their spare time they kick around Tokyo and form and unlikely partnership as they realise beneath the surface they have quite a lot in common (lack of direction, marriage problems, loneliness). Over a few days an odd relationship is formed, one where come bedtime you are not sure if Charlotte wants to be tucked in or shagged silly. The phrase "Come to Daddy" is in/appropriate for so many reasons.
In terms of plot development it is a very subtle piece. Murray and Johansson traipse about Tokyo taking in the sites and sounds all the while growing closer to each other as Coppola directs a rather arty version of "Wish You Were Here" with attractive views of Tokyo by night, panoramic cityscapes and 18 holes under Mount Fuji. It is undoubtedly interesting to look at and makes you wonder whether the film wasn't sponsored by the Japanese tourist board. Plans to set a sequel in Birmingham are surprisingly struggling to find sponsors.
The star of the show is Murray who is always imminently watch able and who between the wisecracks conveys the character's loneliness and isolation with surprising restraint. The downsides of celebrity may not have been to much of a stretch to play but there is a tenderness in this role that is often missing from the normal manic performances.
<*dv_1*> The classic fish out of water scenario is used to full effect as cultural and language differences render Murray clueless to the world arround him. A Japanese director's exaltations to hold his glass of whiskey "with more intensity" are greeted with bemusement. People cue in the hotel lobby to bow and shake his hand as he passes by. He appears on a show with a host who is a Japanese Graham Norton, multiplied by 100.
Some of the stereotypes are not that P.C. but who gives a shit. They are funny. Throughout the film these odd characters indicate the japanese to be a race one futo-maki short of a sushi bar.
Picking tips from her old man, Coppola creates a stylish, subtle film which does well in generating the slightly off-kilter sensations of a stranger in a strange land. Although at times a little art school by numbers the film is energised by the chemistry generated between Murray and Johansson (whose mature performace belies her age) and which brings an organic weight to the wispy story in a seemingly freeze dried world of soulless hotel rooms and neon lights.
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