There are two stars of Girl With A Pearl Earring. The first is the mise en scene, as ceated by the cinematography and set design. The second is Scarlett Johansson. They make the movie as interesting as the book (albeit in very different ways, of course). What I was struck by was the parallels that this movie has with Johansson's other recent release, Lost in Translation, which I have raved about in this space. The both involve a younger woman and an older man who share a moment and a connection but not each other. They ask questions of what might have been, and what if, and what might be. They are about understanding and connection. These movies recognise that the greatest intimacy is not physical, but mental and spiritual harmony, when two people are in complete understanding and in complete tune. Words need not be exchanged; looks need not be passed. Such are the greatest of movies: they show us what we have always felt but never been able to articulate about ourselves, and they reveal to us the most profound insights about human nature in the simplest of ways.