Debbie liked Lost in Translation, and for good reason. It captures that sense of being stranded in a foreign city, a foreign language. (If the Wachowskis invented Bullet Time, Sofia Coppola must get some credit for filming in Jet Lag Time.) It's understated, in the right ways. And it doesn't go the Emma Bovary route. It is refreshing to have the Harry Met Sally question answered in the positive, to show a meaningful friendship The Bill Murray character ("Bob") and Scarlett Johansson character ("Charlotte") strike up a friendship, but we never feel that they will (or should, or feel they might) become lovers.
But something bothered me as I watched LIT. Was it the depiction of the Japanese? Not really, but I'm sure someone at Yale is furiously writing an essay about the Other as we speak. Then I figured it out -- this movie is to friendship as pornography is to sex.
The beginning of LIT depicts Bob & Charlotte's boredom and loneliness. They stare out of hotel windows at buildings. They don't understand the language. There's no one to connect with. By the time Bob & Charlotte connect, we the audience are desparate for some human connection. And what we get is a complete fantasy. The situation is as artificial and contrived as the set-up for a porn flick -- "I didn't order a pizza!" "You're not the regular pool boy!" LIT throws Bob & Charlotte together for a week with seemingly nothing to do but hang out and be all friends and stuff. It's like one of those montage sequences where you see a new couple doing fun things all the time.
And who wouldn't want to be friends with Bob or Charlotte? She's quirky, sexy, smart, funny. So is he (if you can call Bill Murray sexy, which I can't really). And Bob is famous! Isn't this the fantasy of every fan? "Gosh, that famous person is probably really normal deep down. I'll bet we could even be friends in the right circumstance. Like, I bet he's tired of people treating him as some sort of idol -- we'd be great friends because I'd treat him normal. If only I were in some situation, you know, where he'd get the chance to know me..." Like, for instance, being stuck in Tokyo with nothing to do and no one else to talk to? This movie is a complete fantasy, not a story.
Is this fantasy of friendship behind the growth of Friendster? I signed up when invited, as I've always been sort of interested in social network software. I have six people I know directly -- which connects me to 38,486 people in my "personal network." 38,486 people? It's completely useless. Friends of friends I could see, but FOAFOAFs? I'm not sure I quite see the point, unless I were trolling for sex. (Don't worry, I'm not listed under an "open marriage".) Or compliments. (Thanks, Chris!) Or even -- fantasizing about friendship.
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Great post! I like your idea of the "friendship fantasy" and the yearning for platonic connection. I think this fantasy is widespread, and it's as much about idle time as it is about fellowship. We live in a culture where looking for sexual or marital relationships is considered a valid use of time, but spending time to turn an acquaintanceship into a friendship is a something that people rarely do purposefully unless they find themselves at loose ends or "lost"--a condition that suddenly looks kind of appealing, as per LIT. However, I don't think that's what most people are up to with Friendster. On the contrary, I think people on Friendster (the ones not looking for dates, that is) are more interested in broadening their network of acquaintences, and in the liberating, mobilizing idea that there are social possibilities beyond the folks you see regularly. I haven't gotten around to really exploring my Friendster network, but the way I'd most like to use it is not to find soulmates. Rather, I imagine that sometime when I'm on my way a new town where I've never been and I don't know anyone, I'd look up one of my FOAFOAFs and send him or her a message saying, "Let's have lunch, and a walk around. You can tell me what it's like to live here, and when you come to New York, I'll do the same." Which, when you think about it, is precisely the road not taken in LIT.
Comment #1 :: link :: November 5, 2003 09:00 AMWell put, Ms. Moed. I realize now what Friendster is really for -- realizing how freaky your friends' friends' friends are.
Comment #2 :: link :: November 11, 2003 09:00 AM
