Closer | | Cast : | Natalie Portman, Jude Law, Julia Roberts, Clive Owen | | Director : | Mike Nichols | | Studio : | Columbia Tristar Hom | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound | | Released Date : | December 03, 2004 | | DVD Released Date : | March 29, 2005 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), French (Dubbed), French (Subtitled) | | Audience Rating : | R (Restricted) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | August 08, 2005 | | Summary | Hide the Sharp Instruments | Content
 | This movie plays like a bad parody of an Ingmar Bergman film. People fall in desperate love after five minutes of inane conversation. Jude Law is terrific in his first scenes as an obituary writer who gets a crush on Natalie Portman's character after an auto/pedestrian accident. But the next time we see him, he seems to be playing someone else entirely. Julia Roberts is flat as the photographer who falls for Jude-the- jerk. Portman is serviceable as the waif who drifts through the lives of the other three. As many have noted, Clive Owen steals the movie. He brings badly-needed energy and edginess to every scene. I really can't imagine anyone caring what happens to these four sad sacks (except, possibly, Owen). This is one of those films that critics love, and the people who have to pay for their tickets loathe. And I still have no idea what the title means. If this is "Closer," then I'll be happy to keep my distance. |
| Rating | | | Date | August 08, 2005 | | Summary | Closer to what? | Content
| I agree with other reviewers when they say that Clive Owen, nasty as his character is, is the only thing vaguely remarkable about this depressing, senseless film.
What is this movie trying to be? It's all about raunchy talk and twisted sexual innuendos and allusions and yet there's nothing really even approaching sex between the characters. The best I can figure is that the two leading ladies are prudes at heart. If a person wants to watch porno, obviously they can, but this movie needed to put a little bit more of its money where its mouth is if we're to get a feel for the deeper reality of the characters. All I came away with was a bad taste in my mouth from watching three and a half (Portman isn't quite as repugnantly immoral) backstabbers from hell. Law and Roberts deserve something horrid to befall them; what a couple of childish, lying, selfish monsters. Why would Owen want Roberts back the third time, simply revenge? At least his character was almost believable as some obsessive macho type with a bit of a (twisted) mind. Can't quite buy him as a doctor, though.
I also definitely couldn't buy Portman's sudden about face with regard to Law at the end. Nobody who truly loves somebody as much as she supposedly loves Law could instantly and utterly write them off for simply wanting to know the truth. I couldn't really buy Portman in this role in general, actually. She seems like some kind of bleeding heart, Ivy League ______ Princess type in real life and I think that her playing a vagabond/stripper, no nudity mind you, is just one of those things actors try to do to show off their "range". I can't see her as anything other than Natalie Portman in anything she has yet played. She was promising in "The Professional" but has since never even matched her work in that film from the early 90s. I can't say I really get Roberts as a heartbreaker either. She has a unique look and vibe, but nothing to launch a thousand ships or drive a man to threatening murder. Glad that this one only cost me a dollar to rent, neighborhood promotion, and a couple hours of my time. Too pretentious and phony realistic; typical of a lot of modern plays... |
| Rating | | | Date | August 08, 2005 | | Summary | Utter garbage, only saving grace was Clive Owen | Content
| I have been a great fan of the director Mike Nichols right from his first film. However, in this movie, I have to draw the line. Firstly, I am glad that I rented the movie and did not see it on theatre. It shows the life of 4 people who are drawn in different directions. Granted that life is never straight, but I never thought that it was this distraught. Maybe I was wrong. It has a big cast, Jude Law, Natalie Portman, Clive Owens and Julia Roberts. I for one think that Julia Roberts and Jude Law were totally wrong for the movie and were reciting their lines. In fact, I think that Jude Law is way overrated. I cannot think of a single movie where he was spectacular. After this movie, he should retire. Natalie Portman was not bad, but Clive Owens was the only one showing real human emotions. The movie is replete with bad language, adultery and lying to each other without any obvious reason. While Patrick Marber's stage play was terrific, the movie was terrible. If the director wanted to bring out the irony behind love, he did a shoddy job of it. I will not go into the story, there are enough reviewers who have done so. Life is bad enough as it is, without a movie taking all the ironies to the extreme and portraying it in a dull, stupid way. All I can say after this movie is that, I am glad that I am not into internet chat rooms and my respect for some actors and the director have gone down tremendously. Please avoid at all cost. |
| Rating | | | Date | August 05, 2005 | | Summary | Just bad. | Content
| How can you call this movie a masterpiece? The characters were cardboard and the plot was just dumb. I can sum this movie up in one line:
A porno movie with no nudity and lots of foul talking. |
| Rating | | | Date | July 27, 2005 | | Summary | Closer to Tears | Content
| The ménage à trois of Columbia/Tristar/Sony begets a Superbit product bringing all "Closer" to tears.
Damien Rice's "The Blower's Daughter" constitutes the bonus material--if one can call it that. Amid nine trailers, the music video from the soundtrack and Rice's debut album melts in tears.
None can take eyes nor mind off Natalie Portman's transparent face in the "extras" window.
Consumers buy the DVD to see the content of the cutting room floor. Typically, the feature falls secondary despite Dolby 5.1/DTS, high definition, anamorphic widescreen, bilingual audio and subtitles.
As for the film itself, the motif rings true: Infidelity triumphs over monogamy when all's said and done. |
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