"Closer" is one of those movies where the acting and the dialogue take center stage. When it's done well, I love movies like that. "Glengarry Glen Ross" and "Your Friends and Neighbors" are two that come to mind. "Closer" is another. Like "Glengarry Glen Ross" and "Your Friends and Neighbors," "Closer" has incredible acting and brilliant dialogue. I loved watching the four performers do their thing, and I loved hearing the dialogue come outta their mouths. This is a really good movie. However, "Closer" is not for the faint of heart. The dialogue is raw, brutal, and quite vulgar. On top of that, as a whole, it's not a happy movie. In fact, it's downright ugly.
This is gonna be a short review, I can tell. As I sit here trying to figure out what to write next, I realize that aside from wanting to write very little about what happens in this movie, I can't really relate to the characters or the story. I enjoyed the movie, but it was like I was on the outside looking in. I'm not like any of the people portrayed in the film, and so there isn't much extra for me to write about. All I can do is marvel about the writing, the acting, and the directing, so that's what I'll do.
The acting is simply excellent. There are four main players, Jude Law, Julia Roberts, Clive Owen, and the stunningly beautiful and talented Natalie Portman. All four of them are great, but Clive Owen and Natalie Portman stand out the most. This isn't to say that Jude Law and Julia Roberts are bad, quite the contrary. Jude Law is very good, as is Julia Roberts (though the nature of her character requires her to play the part with notable indifference). It's just that Clive Owen and Natalie Portman play the showy characters. My introduction to Clive Owen was with "The Hire," a series of short films from BMW Films, and his commanding presence was obvious from the start. Also, he was really good in his small, but pivotal role in "The Bourne Identity," and he was one of the only bright spots in "Gosford Park." He starred in "King Arthur," but I never saw that movie (I may watch it when the Director's Cut is released on DVD). In everything I've seen him in, I've liked his work a lot, and it seems like he has the potential to be a huge star. Maybe "Closer" is the film to do that. As for Natalie Portman... well, what more can I say about her? Ever since her astonishing debut in "The Professional," I've followed her career. If you wanna see a great actress at work, watch her in "The Professional," "Beautiful Girls," "Garden State," and "Closer." In fact, her performance in "Closer" will probably earn her the first of many Academy Award nominations she'll get in her career.
By the way, I know that there's been some talk that "Closer" would include Natalie Portman's first nude scene, but those walking in eagerly expecting it will be disappointed. Supposedly, nude scenes were shot, but they ended up on the cutting room floor, and I don't think we'll see them on the DVD.
"Closer" was directed by the legendary director Mike Nichols, who most recently directed the Emmy Award winning, critically-acclaimed HBO mini-series, "Angels in America." He also directed "Carnal Knowledge" and "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?," two movies that "Closer" is constantly being compared to. He also directed the masterpiece, "The Graduate." I like the way he directed this film, but it's mostly a filmed play. That's not a bad thing, simply an observation. Besides, if anyone is good at that sorta thing, it's Nichols, who has directed a number of plays himself. The screenplay was written by Patrick Marber, and it was based on his play. I know that Marber is a British playwright, but that's all I know about him. I'd never heard of him prior to this film. Now that I've seen his work, I'm pretty interested in seeking out more of it.
Aside from not being able to relate to the characters or the story, "Closer" also suffers from being a little slow at times, but it's still a really good movie. It's not for everyone, and it might offend some, but those who can deal with the vulgar words who happen to like great acting and great dialogue would really like this movie.
Scale of 1-10: 8