Why You Need a Foreign Language & How to Learn One: Online Version
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Introduction: English-speakers lost in translation
The film Lost in Translation received considerable acclaim in 2003 for its portrayal of two Americans who meet in Japan. The movie primarily deals with the themes of loneliness, alienation, and the wistfulness of an unconsummated romance. However, Lost in Translation also makes some revealing (if inadvertent) points about the struggles that monolingual English-speakers face when they are forced to rely on the language skills of others.
Lost in Translation casts Bill Murray in the lead role of actor Bob Harris. Bob Harris is a faded star who--not unlike many real-life actors whose glory days are behind them---is leveraging his earlier fame to earn money through television product endorsements. Harris is luckier than most Hollywood has-beens; he doesn’t have to resort to peddling steak knives or abdominal machines on cable TV. In fact, Harris has landed a fat contract with the Japanese beverage giant Suntory. As the movie opens, the actor is making his way through the exotic streets of urban Japan, where he will appear in a series of television commercials.
When Harris arrives on the studio set, he meets his director for the first time. The director speaks minimal English, and Harris will have to rely on an interpreter throughout the project. Although the actor appears to have some misgivings about the arrangement, he has obviously been through hundreds, if not thousands, of studio sessions before. He begins his first round of shooting with the confident air of an old pro.
In order to give the commercial a relaxed, upscale atmosphere, the studio set has been designed to look like a private study in an elegant home. Harris is instructed to sit at a small table with a bottle of Suntory whisky and a glass of the beverage. When the cameras roll, he is supposed to lift the glass and deliver the lines, “For relaxing times, make it Suntory time!” Simple enough.
But of course it will not be that simple. There are innumerable ways to deliver these lines, and a myriad of subtle messages that could be conveyed or garbled in the process. These are the nuances that directors are paid to manage, and Bob’s director is in a managing mood. Before the shooting begins, the director approaches Harris and gives him a lengthy explanation of how he wants the actor to deliver the lines. The director rhapsodizes about mood and voice inflection, timing and feeling. He rambles on for several minutes. In Japanese. (Continue reading)
Copyright 2005 Beechmont Crest Publishing
