when I first saw "Lost in Translation." If you want to go to a movie to feel good and have something truly tug at your heartstrings, go see it.

to watch. He had great credibility as a father. Juliette Lewis was likable and believable as a woman falling in love after the loss of her husband.I liked the fact this movie didn't have gratuitous sex and showed people developing relationships, all in a humble, non-preachy way. The plot unfolded slowly and with subtleness. It made you work, and made you think more deeply, which to me, is what an indy film should do. I liked the subtle, yet impactful emphasis on values and spirituality. The main characters in this film, including Knoxville's and Lewis' characters were just plain, decent people. This might be the kiss of death in reviewing it, but you could show this film to a church group, and have plenty to discuss. Plus, it is funny, and has a kick-ass soundtrack. And, while this isn't a selling point for everyone, I find Johnny Knoxville someone who, despite all the fun and rapier wit of Jackass and Wildboyz, appears to be a deep thinker, with intelligence, and, dare I say, the desire to make a nice family film with a moral message. I loved it!

would hate this movie, though. They can't see Knoxville doing a serious movie, or they just think it's an awful movie because the plot doesn't appeal to them. Just try it. It really is a great movie.

fun to watch, and she handles her small role perfectly.

to the supporting cast members, plays their parts brilliantly and makes their characters believable. For me, Knoxville really shines when in his scenes with Sophie Traub who plays June. There is a very endearing awkwardness to his character and he is very likable in this role. The other actors - especially the aforementioned Traub and the criminally underrated Juliette Lewis help to round out a solid cast. I would say that there do seem to be rather too many plot threads going on at one time, and perhaps the film would benefit from a few of them being trimmed and the film just concentrating on Daltry and June's relationship, but other than that, this film is actually well worth your time and effort to watch.This isn't the best film in the world, nor is it ever likely to become so, but if you just want to see a sweet, well acted 'Sunday afternoon' type movie then give it a chance. Not every film has to be 'The Godfather', not every film has to change your life or make a difference. Sometimes all you want is to be entertained, and this film certainly does that.

very mediocre script with a very mediocre supporting cast other than Juliette Lewis, who is totally misplaced and misused.It's easy to think this is a decent script with a decent plot. It's not. It's about a woman dying of cancer who drops her gifted 14 year-old daughter with her father who hasn't seen her since birth, just as his business empire is collapsing; not that he wouldn't trade that empire for his daughter, whom he accepts immediately and appears in awe of at most times.The daughter seems unaffected by circumstance, taking what life gives her without much outward complaint, not letting anything get in the way of her music, or her dreams of going to Julliard, where she'll be whisked into high society, with all its patronage and the social life that comes with being an artisan in Manhattan, a place where June will always be welcome.Traub could have pulled an Oscar nomination from a less political academy, but they'll likely make her pay her dues. Look for her to get increasingly meatier roles in films with bigger and bigger budgets, until she delivers that defining performance that gets her the future Oscar that appears to have her name on it, if she maintains her present course.Oh yeah, Johnny Knoxville isn't bad in this film. He, like the rest of the cast, is very good at getting out of the way so Traub can shine.

the writer and director for making us look so good. David Koechner turns in a touching performance in the film, as well. Sophie Traub, as June is a real discovery. I understand that she is not a south paw, as she plays in the film: it makes it easier to understand why she has such a hard time playing convincing air guitar, at the end. Her vulnerability will TOTALLY intimidate you traditional Johnny Knoxville fans out there, so PLEASE, just stay away if you've got a closed mind. Her next film with Russell Crowe, "Tenderness" should be out in November. This movie is such a breath of fresh air that many people will not be able to inhale it. I think it's a sleeper that is truly visionary.

Fiction' couldn't be farther away. Clearly a case where a movie company wants to cash in on the popularity of two of the people involved. Sure, Tarantino will have made the movie financially possible, so what he says goes, I suppose, but I just find it hard to accept that potential viewers are given wrong expectations.Actually the movie is a kind-hearted story about the hardships of a fourteen year old girl that is about to loose her mother and find her father not a spoiler; we are told so in the opening sequence . Knoxville plays the father, Daltry Calhoun, and does so adequately. His acting doesn't stand out, nor is it irritatingly bad. The same can be said of the other actors. Julliette Lewis gives her character, the young widow Flora Flick, the right mix of ignorance and cleverness to be convincing. It's a pity that the part doesn't offer her enough room to show all her qualities. More caricature than character, I'd say.The person that lifts the entire movie to a higher level is young actress Sophie Traub. She is the smart, friendly teenager June that is struggling with some very grown-up problems. She manages to make you feel sympathy for her without getting melodramatic. The scene in which she tries to get her father's young associate Frankie Kick Gurry to tell her everything about French kissing is NOT sleazy, it's plain funny.This is also a feel-good movie, but not such a lame, predictable one. Okay, the stroke of good luck that her father has, that will make all the problems go away, may not come as a surprise and of course the ugly duckling turns into a pretty swan, but hey, she deserves it.In short, a movie that was overlooked in the theaters and really deserves a second chance as the endearing dramatic comedy that it is. And as for Sophie Traub; may her acting career be long and fruitful.Holland, November 2006