Lost in Translation

Japan has a reputation abroad, particularly in North America, as a place of the weird and wacky. Heck, Japan gets the credit even when the wacky product is a product of another country. Can’t understand the language? Super wacky? Must be Japan.

Having lived here long enough that the weirdness of a life sized fiberglass Colonel Sanders dressed up like Santa Claus is just background noise, the Japan is so crazy thing doesn’t really make much sense to me. Mostly it’s just our inability to understand the language with a dash of cultural context that makes things seem so goofy. Well, that and the fact that Japan has really tacky, maudlin tastes.

Have you seen Lost in Translation? I know it’s kind of an old movie now, but at the time I was really surprised to find myself repulsed by a movie I thought I’d love. It had everything I look for in a movie-Bill Murray, indie darling director, great soundtrack, and I’m sure that opening scene with the pink underpants pretty much sealed Scarlet Johanson’s career. Ten minutes in and I was ready to throw in the towel. Once you understand what the Japanese people are saying every main character looks like a total asshole. A cute, thoughtful, introspective film becomes completely unwatchable once you get the context.

That pee your pants funny scene where Bill’s character is holding a giant plush owl, waiting in the hospital? The old guy is just asking him how long he’s been in Japan. The ad for Suntory Whisky… the translator is just doing a fabulous job of summarizing the director’s directions. Basically it makes me feel like a bit of a jerk for all the time’s I’ve messed something up because I just didn’t know what people were saying to me. And I cringe internally knowing how many Japanese people watched that movie because they were curious how foreign people saw Japan.

They could’ve shown some of the things that really perplex visitors like trying to figure out which of the million buttons on those special bidet toilets will actually flush the toilet without an unwanted spray in the butt. (Hint: it’s not the buttons.  The regular flush lever is located in the regular spot, hidden behind the control panel.) Or maybe they could’ve shown the crazy prices for “gift” fruit that so many FOBs are prone to buying. If they really wanted to show what throws foreigners for a loop they should’ve replaced the expensive hooker with a random old lady showing up at Bill’s hotel asking him if he had anywhere to grow vegetables. Because that kind of thing still throws me, even when I do know a bit of what’s going on, linguistically speaking.

I mean, seriously, who knocks on someone’s door and offers up farmland?








Anyone know what will grow in a semi-tropical location during winter? A friend wants to know.