I loved that movie. For a while I commuted back and forth to Japan and could relate.
For me the overall message is: there is a different culture, different language. different needs, even the 13 hours jet lag results in a different circadian rhythm for the foreigners: wake at night, sleepy and exhausted during the day. Disoriented. Where am I?
You just flow with it.
The opening scene where the lights and signs of the city, written in a jumble of Kanji, are reflected in the windows of the cab while the passenger stares out blankly is priceless. What does it all mean? It obviously means something to someone. But the message is lost on visitors.
Another great scene is the photo shoot for the whiskey commercial. He has a translator who is supposedly helping him. As he is being posed he asks a simple question something like “Where should I look?” The Japanese director explodes and starts ranting in Japanese for what seems like a full minute. After he is finished the translator says . “Look at the camera.”
I speak Japanese so I can understand the director. He was actually ranting something like: “What is wrong with this guy? He is supposed to be a professional. He should know what to do. This is wasting time and costing money….” . You, the viewer are not supposed to know what he really says . You just know he is angry.
The translator says a few words but the feeling is lost in translation. “Look at the camera.”