I think I’ve been watching too may World War Two movies. I leap out of my seat every time the woman on the loudspeaker comes on to warn journalists that a film is about to begin. At the end of her little spiel, in English but with a heavy Italian accent, she says: “Thank you for your collaboration.” How hard would it be to change that to “cooperation” and allow us all to relax?

Translating in general has been pretty ropy in Venice. While I speak not a word of Mandarin, very lengthy answers at news conferences from Chinese actors and directors tend to get boiled down to just a few words, making me suspect that we are not getting the full version.

But the “Lost in Translation” prize must surely go to the Russians. The production notes for “12″, Nikita Mikhalkov’s remake of the 1957 Sidney Lumet classic, quote the director as saying: “It is very honorable event, very prestigious to represent my country at a festival like the Venus one.” No, that’s not a typo. That’s what it says.