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Closer [2004]


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Editorial
Amazon.co.uk Review

Four extremely beautiful people do extremely horrible things to one another in Closer, Mike Nichols' pungent adaptation of Patrick Marber's play that easily marks the Oscar-winning director's best work in years. Anna (Julia Roberts) is a photographer who specializes in portraits of strangers; Dan (Jude Law) is an obituary writer struggling to become a novelist; Alice (Natalie Portman) is an American stripper freshly arrived in London after a bad relationship; and Larry (Clive Owen) is a dermatologist who finds love under the most unlikely of circumstances. When their paths cross it's a dizzying supernova of emotions, as Nichols and Marber adroitly construct various scenes out of their lives that pair them again and again in various permutations of passion, heartbreak, anger, sadness, vengeance, pleading, deception, and most importantly, brutal honesty. It's only until you're more than halfway through the movie that you'll have to ask yourself exactly why you are watching such a beautifully tragic tale, as Closer is basically the ickiest, grossest, most dysfunctional parts of all your past relationships strung together into one movie. Ultimately, it falls to the four actors to draw you deeper into the story; all succeed relatively, but it's Law and Owen whose characters will cut you to the quick. Law proves that yet again he's most adept at playing charming, amoral bastards with manipulative streaks, and Owen is nothing short of brilliant as the character most turned on by the energy inherent in destructive relationships--whether he's on the giving or receiving end. --Mark Englehart


Another fantastic film to get negative press here...
Review date: 2008-05-14 Rating: 10 out of 10

Closer is a great movie - sophisticated, clever, intelligent, witty and brilliantly acted. I live Clive Owen in this - he's pompous, arrogant and ultimately brilliant. Natalie Portman does a great job too, and the scene in the strip club is worth the watch alone for any red blooded male. Jude Law also deserves credit for his portrayal of his character.

Each character has things in their closet which most people can relate to in one way or another. If you are looking for an ideal relationship rom-com this might not be your scene, but for a dark, truthful look at love -Closer is certainly one of the best.

It's a difficult film to describe, so I won't really bother trying - A film about the inter-woven relationships of four people who randomly meet in London which is cleverly portrayed and always keeps the audience guessing - highly recommended.


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Reviews


A Fantastic Study of Life and Love
Review date: 2008-04-23 Rating: 10 out of 10

I love this film and have seen it many times. To me it is a true depiction of life and love, most people end up compromising, a lot of us don't end up with the people we truly love and the character of Alice, despite being young and beautiful and at times childlike-she is hard done by and forever in the shadow of the older and equally beautiful Anna.

From the opera soundtrack to the beauty of the main leads (although Jude Law is pretty annoying rather than pretty) this is a fantastically absorbing film and unusual in that it has a small cast and each scene is set out like a play. Although how Julia Roberts could fancy Jude Law over Clive Owen will puzzle me for a long long time!

Only one person acting
Review date: 2008-04-07 Rating: 2 out of 10

5 stars for Natalie Portman's attempts to actually do something with the script, but overall a dreadful film. The play it was based on may have been better, but the script and story are sterile and predictable. The four characters just change places and say the same things to each other, over and over again. The lines are delivered without any feeling (apart from Natalie Portman as mentioned) and without any sense that they are doing more than just reading. If there was a point, it actually got lost by repetition because you just stop listening or caring.

I love this.
Review date: 2008-03-18 Rating: 10 out of 10

I love this film so much that it is hard for me to write a review on this movie. It was almost like a dream. I dreamt it and it happened but I don't remember everything. All I can remember is that it was good. This is a movie that speaks to the heart. If you are an adult and you like exploring the emotional aspects of life then just watch it. Of course, the film was helped by a beautiful cast, Julia Roberts, Natalie Portman, Clive Owen and Jude Law. Jude Law offered a satisfying performance, whereas Roberts and Portman offered a stunning performance and the most notable of them all is Owen's performance. The cinematography and the interplots of this movie is well done in details and you should watch for the little pieces of information throughout the movie which have made it ever more intersting. Love it!

Not a fluffy rom-com
Review date: 2008-03-02 Rating: 6 out of 10

Three stars is possibly a little harsh as I was absolutely glued to the screen for the entire film and turned it up every time I thought I might miss something. But, the big BUT, it's not really "entertainment". Which is surely what a film should be, unless it carries some kind of warning. (While on that point, how on earth did this get a 15 accreditation and not an 18? Don't watch with your grandmother or maiden aunt.)

Watching all kinds of the most horrible relationship issues played out on the screen, and always limited to the four main characters, is a claustrophobic experience. Made worse by the fact it is based on a play. Clive Owen in particular seemed to be woodenly reading from a script, and (correct me if I'm wrong guys) Natalie Portman, great actess though she is, failed to convince me as a stripper. None of the characters had any depth but were representing different aspects of doomed relationships: first months of obsession, the clingy woman, the man drifting away, the power of sexual jealousy, betrayal, revenge. How people can suddenly and for bizarre reasons go off someone irrevocably. Sadly, there was no happy ending or anything to look forward to for any of them. Perhaps they had learned by their mistakes; but it seemed unlikely.

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Clive Owen
Natalie Portman
Jude Law
Julia Roberts

Creators:
Julia Roberts (Primary Contributor)
Jude Law (Primary Contributor)

Director(s):

Recording label: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
EAN: 5035822728172
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: Anamorphic, Dubbed, PAL,
Release date: 2005-06-06
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Audience rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 100 minutes
Theatrical release date: 2004
Language: Arabic (Subtitled)
Language: Bulgarian (Subtitled)
Language: Danish (Subtitled)
Language: Dutch (Subtitled)
Language: English (Subtitled)
Language: Finnish (Subtitled)
Language: Greek (Subtitled)
Language: Hebrew (Subtitled)
Language: Hindi (Subtitled)
Language: Icelandic (Subtitled)
Language: Norwegian (Subtitled)
Language: Portuguese (Subtitled)
Language: Romanian (Subtitled)
Language: Spanish (Subtitled)
Language: Swedish (Subtitled)
Language: Turkish (Subtitled)
Language: English (Original Language)
Language: Spanish (Dubbed)

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