Spike Jonze was once married to Hollywood Royal, Sofia Coppola, whose seminal “Lost in Translation” earned her an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay in 2003.

Ten years later, Spike Jonze surveys similar landscape in “Her” with his introspective and presentational study of modern love. Both films star sex symbol Scarlett Johansson as the love interest, except this time she doesn’t have a body.

Taking place in the flashy neon-lit backdrop of modern-day Tokyo, Sofia’s “Lost in Translation” offered an intimate view into the characters’ lives in a busy city, where both people felt lost, searching for some type of connection and meaning in their lives. They found it, if only temporarily, in a platonic relationship with one another.

Similarly, Joaquin Phoenix’s character in “Her” is in love with his “OS” or Operating System, with whom he has a romantic relationship, though it can never officially be consummated, in the physical sense. What both films aim to penetrate, (pardon the expression) is what it means to connect with another (human) being.

In the futuristic setting in which Theodore (Joaquin Phoenix) lives, everybody wears high-waisted pants and carefully listens to a small device in their ear, which can connect them to any type of digital world experience: music, news, email, and…love. In this world, being in love with a computer operating system, while a little out of the ordinary, seems entirely plausible. Phoenix’s best friend, played by the talented Amy Adams, becomes intimately connected with her OS system, as well. The two discover what it is like to be in a relationship with somebody “without a body.” Anyone who’s ever been in a long-distance relationship can relate to what it is like to carry on a relationship largely over the phone. It’s possible; but not without problems. That’s what makes “Her” such an outstanding mirror of our current day society. Our experiences are not so different from what Theodore is experiencing in his cyber relationship with Samantha.

As in the film “Lars and the Real Girl” (a brilliant film exploring the intricacies of human attachment and personal development) Ryan Gosling uncovers the true meaning of the concept “real”, as he introduces family members and even his church group to his new love, a blow-up doll he ordered online from China. Gosling’s projection of his feelings onto his blow-up doll are similar to the reflexive responses offered by Samantha, Phoenix’s Operating System, voiced by a breathy Scarlett Johansson. Samantha reacts in direct response to what she, as an incredibly advanced and intelligent operating system, has gathered from Phoenix’s likes and dislikes. Imagine the perfect mate. Is it really real?

Theodore’s “real” relationship with his ex-wife, played by the stunning Rooney Mara, presents the question of what a “real” relationship really means. Does it mean heartache and loss? Does it mean problems and arguments? Challenges and frustrations? Yes. All of that. And memories, happy memories, too. Just like when his Operating System, Samantha, and he go to the beach together, or on a picnic with Theodore’s work friends. Theodore experiences challenges with Samantha, too. Like the title suggests, the movie is focused mainly on “Her”; however, this study in intimacy and attachment might point directly to the person that needs to be more closely looked at: Him.

While both Bill Murray’s character in Sofia’s “Lost in Translation” and Joaquin Phoenix’s character in “Her” develop an exhilirating chemistry with Scarlett Johansson in each respective films, the feeling of isolation and loneliness derive from the protagonist’s search for meaning in a globalized, seemingly connected world, where people feel more disconnected than ever.

The sense of isolation amidst populated cities pervades both Spike and Sofia’s films, offering relevant commentary on our society’s current experience of modern love. Despite the colonized cultural landscape of social media, dating websites, speed-dating and the like, we have become a paradoxically plugged-in and disconnected society.

Both Sofia and Spike examine these themes masterfully in their films.

It is interesting that while these two weren’t able to make their relationship last in real life, they’ve stayed connected, if only thematically, in the imaginary world of cinema.