--- title: "Lost in Translation: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/lost-in-translation/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/lost-in-translation" critics_score: 87 critics_reviews: 9 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Lost in Translation (2003): what the critics said Critics' score 87 from 9 reviews: 9 positive, 0 mixed, 0 negative. The consensus is strongly positive, with praise centred on Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson’s restrained performances and Sofia Coppola’s handling of loneliness, humour and tentative intimacy. Most critics find Murray’s weary warmth particularly affecting, while Johansson earns praise for making her character’s unhappiness felt without overstatement. The reviews repeatedly credit Coppola with allowing the connection to develop through shared feelings and small observations, and with making Tokyo’s disorientating surroundings an important part of the film’s melancholy and comedy. The differences are chiefly in the degree of enthusiasm rather than any fundamental disagreement about the film’s merits. Even the more measured responses admire the performances and the balance of sadness and humour; substantial reservations are scarce in these accounts. Eye for Film offers a specific caveat, finding the portrayal of Japanese characters and culture somewhat condescending, while still describing the film as touching and surprisingly funny. ## Radio Times — Adam Smith Rating 5/5. The critic praises Bill Murray's delicately restrained and masterful performance as world-weary actor Bob Harris and Scarlett Johansson's equally good turn as the unhappily married younger woman. Coppola underpins the bittersweet soul-searching with humour and produces a sad, funny, magical and almost irresistibly moving experience using the Tokyo backdrop. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-5pqha9/lost-in-translation/) ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert Rating 4/4. 12 September 2003. The critic praises the film as sweet, sad, sardonic and funny, highlighting the connection between two lost souls in Tokyo who share personal feelings rather than rushing into a physical relationship. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/lost-in-translation-2003) ## Empire — Rob Fraser Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). The critic calls it a triumph that restores faith in cinema, praising its eloquent handling of themes like alienation and connection alongside comedy and romance. They single out the delicate beauty of the growing romance, especially the electric karaoke lounge moment between Murray and Johansson. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/lost-translation-review/) ## Evening Standard — Neil Norman Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 10 April 2012. The critic describes it as a marvellous, exquisite movie and one of the films of the year, lauding Coppola's assured direction and command of film grammar from slim material. They single out Murray's layered, best screen performance as the wearily bewildered actor alongside Johansson's luminous, understated turn. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/sleepless-in-tokyo-7437451.html) ## Screen Daily Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 1 September 2003. Sofia Coppola proves she is a chip off the old block with an enormously accomplished, highly affecting story of loneliness and human connection possessing originality, style and generosity. It singles out the extraordinary Tokyo setting as the third star of the film along with two superior performances from Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/lost-in-translation/4014771.article) ## Variety Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 31 August 2003. The review describes the film as generating an out-of-body feeling with perceptiveness and maturity, coaxing an evocative sense of unarticulated sentiments through its two central performances and wry observation of contemporary Japan. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2003/film/reviews/lost-in-translation-6-1200539681/) ## The New Yorker — David Denby Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 8 September 2003. The critic notes Coppola's observational style and praises Murray's quiet, wary, subtly acid yet warm performance as a movie star adrift in Tokyo, highlighting the film's focus on melancholy and unarticulated desire. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2003/09/15/heartbreak-hotels) ## Time Out — NB Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 3 May 2011. Sofia Coppola's film is a deft, manifold delight, a comedy of dislocation framing a love story bound up in existential melancholy. It singles out Bill Murray's infinitely modulated performance as underpinning the film, with Scarlett Johansson also impressing. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/lost-in-translation) ## Slant Magazine — Ed Gonzalez 19 August 2003. Coppola's follow-up to The Virgin Suicides finds two lost souls connecting amid Tokyo's alienating yet seductive landscape. The director captures the humor and melancholy of cultural dislocation without contempt, celebrating personal growth through subtle visual and tonal mastery. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/lost-in-translation/) ## The AV Club — Nathan Rabin 9 September 2003. The film is an audacious dramatic comedy suffused with bittersweet melancholy, driven by Murray and Johansson's electric chemistry and Coppola's strong mastery of tone. Gorgeously shot, it establishes Coppola as a major filmmaker while reconfirming the leads' depth and power. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/lost-in-translation-1798198878) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw 9 January 2004. The critic calls it an insouciant triumph and a funky little Brief Encounter for the new century, praising Coppola for conjuring a terrifically funny, heartbreakingly sad and swooningly romantic movie from almost nowhere with lightness of touch and intelligent direction. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2004/jan/09/lost-in-translation-review) ## The New York Times — Elvis Mitchell Rating Critic’s Pick. 12 September 2003. The review calls the film a touching comic melodrama that connects with classic yearning stories and celebrates dislocated people discovering life amid sleep deprivation, singling out Bill Murray's performance. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/12/movies/film-review-an-american-in-japan-making-a-connection.html) ## The Times — James Christopher 8 January 2004. The critic praises the beguiling Japanese brief encounter as more culturally honest than The Last Samurai, highlighting Murray’s funny, flaky performance as a has-been star and Johansson’s potent, languid portrayal of anguished loneliness in a modern limbo. [Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/north-america-travel/us-travel/california/lost-in-translation-review-3q3htpwrtzx) ## Eye for Film — David Haviland Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 8 January 2004. The critic finds the film touching and surprisingly funny, praising the understated performances of Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson along with the surreal, dream-like quality of its Tokyo setting. Minor reservations are noted about the film's condescending portrayal of Japanese characters and culture. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/lost-in-translation-film-review-by-david-haviland) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/lost-in-translation.md