Director Watch Podcast Ep. 40 – ‘Lost in Translation’ (Sofia Coppola, 2003)

Welcome to Director Watch! On this AwardsWatch podcast, co-hosts Ryan McQuade and Jay Ledbetter attempt to breakdown, analyze, and ultimately, get inside the mind of some of cinema’s greatest auteurs. In doing so, they will look at their filmographies, explore what drives them artistically and what makes their decision making process so fascinating. Add in a few silly tangents and a fun game at the end of the episode and you’ve got yourself a podcast we truly hope you love. On episode 40 of the Director Watch Podcast, the boys are joined by Pop Culture Confidential host Christina Jeurling Birro to discuss the next film in their Sofia Coppola series, Lost in Translation (2003).

Four years after her confident, striking debut, Sofia Coppola returned with her most celebrated, revered film to date with Lost in Translation. Set in modern day Tokyo, we follow a veteran movie star going through a mid-life crisis and a young woman neglected by her husband who form an unlikely bond after crossing paths in the hotel they are staying at. This innocent, sweet friendship blossoms into an awakening for the both of them, realizing what they must do going forward to live out their lives as well as continue to move on in their marriages. Shot on location in Japan a relatively cheap budget, Coppola was able to tap into her personal life, looking both at her family’s material history as well as her own as she had just recently married at the time. In doing so, she created one of the most talked about, acclaimed films of the 21^st century. Ryan, Jay, and Christina break down their relationship with the film, the aspects that have agreed well as well as the ones that haven’t over time, fish out of water stories, personal stories of random connections they have had over time, Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson’s performances, and how no one likes to cook their own meal at a restaurant.

You can listen to the Director Watch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.

This podcast runs 2h. The guys will be back next week to continue their series covering the films of Sofia Coppola with a review of her next film, Marie Antoinette. You can stream the film on Pluto TV. You can rent it via iTunes and Amazon Prime rental in preparation for the next episode of Director Watch. Till then, let’s get into it.

Music: MUSICALIFE, from Pond5 (intro) and “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro)

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Ryan McQuade

Ryan McQuade is the AwardsWatch Executive Editor and a film-obsessed writer in San Antonio, Texas. Raised on musicals, westerns, and James Bond, his taste in cinema is extremely versatile. He’s extremely fond of independent releases and director’s passion projects. Engrossed with all things Oscars, he hosts the AwardsWatch Podcast. He also is co-host of the Director Watch podcast. When he’s not watching movies, he’s rooting on all his favorite sports teams, including his beloved Texas Longhorns. You can follow him on Twitter at @ryanmcquade77.

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