I didn’t plan it, but this movie provides a pretty amazing contrast to The Last Samurai. Here we also have Americans living in the midst of Japanese culture, but in modern-day Tokyo. It’s a pretty stunning comparison. I get the feeling that Sophia Coppola represents a unique phenomenon in Hollywood because her father’s name, connections, and resources give her a lot of freedom as a director. One result of this is some youthful self-indulgence in the movie as soaks you in various aspects of pop and indy culture. What saves it is that she has something to say about these cultural phenomena, and she does it without preaching or pounding you with her point of view.