Last night I was flipping through the HBO GO selections and I ran across Closer. I
thought why not watch this movie that has four really good actors, Julia Roberts, Jude Law, Natalie Portman, and Clive Owen and was directed by Mike Nichols. What I saw was an excellent film with much to discuss. So what is the storyline of Closer?
Alice (Portman), a former stripper, is hit by a car in London as she forgets to look right. Dan (Law) comes to her rescue and guides her to the hospital before guiding her into his life. Dan writes obituaries but soon finds a novel in himself thanks to Alice. While shooting the photo for his book he falls for the photographer Anna (Roberts) who pulls back from him given that he's with Alice. For revenge Dan sets up Larry (Owen) in an internet sex chat room to meet Anna thinking this will embarrass him and her. Cupid backfires thus throwing Larry and Anna into a relationship of their own.
What is the nature of each of these characters? Alice is presented as a young girl in need of saving, literally. Anna is a strong, independent artist who seems smart in her career and choices. Dan is a struggling, sensitive writer in search of a muse, someone to inspire and rescue. Larry is a sex-obsessed dermatologist and self-described caveman. With that being said, this is a film that focuses less on these individuals, and more on the relationships between those individuals. If the four characters in Closer were represented by four points on a map, this movie would be a study of the lines that cross between those points, rather than the points themselves.
Closer pulls no punches when it comes to the ugly side of romance, of commitment, of love and of the need to be loved. I recommend that you see this interesting and thought-provoking film.