Sunday, January 16, 2005

Closer Is A Close Call

Closer stars Natalie Portman, Jude Law, Julia Roberts, and Clive Owen. Directed by Mike Nichols.

IMDB's Plot Outline stinks but I can't come up with anything better:
An intriguing story of passion, drama, love, and abandonment involving two couples, which only gets more complicated when the man from the first couple gets acquainted with the woman from the second coupling.
Personally, I liked this movie. I liked it a lot. Some people are very vocal about not liking it. Seems as though there's a sharp schism in peoples' reactions so know that though I like this one, you may not.

It's difficult to discuss without giving anything away but I'll try. The movie and characters are rather complicated. I think the running themes throughout are questions like: What is love? When are you "in love?" Do you need truth for a relationship to work? And what happens when you don't have that truth? Even those questions are pale imitations of the movie's efforts.

If nothing else, I can say that this is a movie that makes you think. Coming out of it, it had me thinking about relationships, truth and trust. Could I knowingly enter a relationship when the other person has cheated on a former boyfriend? What if that person cheated in order to be with me? Or does that destroy any lingering trust that might be? Tough questions with no good answers. And you'll notice I'm not discussing the movie so much but rather the effect it had on me. Just as I describe Garden State as a "dark romantic comedy" that had me laughing and thinking, Closer is a "dark romantic drama" that had me laughing and thinking. Not to say the two are really that similar but they certainly had a similar effect on myself.

Two quotes from the movie:
What's so great about the truth? Try lying for a change - it's the currency of the world.

Lying is the best thing a girl can do without taking her clothes off. But it's more fun if you do.
ALAN'S MOVIE REVIEW: DVD-Worthy (for me).