(2004) 4 Perry Seibert Mike Nichols has always possessed a superior ear for dialogue and, more importantly, the rhythm of dialogue. This is what makes him arguably the finest film director of stage works (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Wit, Angels in America). Closer is yet another accomplished film to add to that list. Patrick Marber's play has been opened up visually, but the story remains about the intense relationships between four people who sleep with each other, lie to each other, and -- quite often -- lie to themselves. Clive Owen finds every dimension in his alpha-male character. During one of the many arguments in this film he shouts, "I am a caveman!" Never for a second does the audience question that sliver of self-revelation. Jude Law manages a performance so full of charm and self-loathing that he undercuts his work in Alfie from the same year. However, it is the women that surprise. Julia Roberts became a star after Pretty Woman, and although she tried to shake that image with a series of brave artistic choices in the mid-'90s, she eventually accepted her status wholeheartedly and appeared in a string of pieces shaped to her persona (My Best Friend's Wedding, Notting Hill, and winning the Oscar for Erin Brockovich). As Anna in Closer, Roberts shows not an ounce of movie-star self-consciousness. She is in character at all times, unconcerned with her image. The character is weak and selfish, and Roberts plays it unflinchingly without ever asking the audience for sympathy. It is hard to believe she had a performance like this in her. Last but not least, Natalie Portman announces with this film that she is an adult -- and an actress of the highest caliber. She can play girlish -- smiling and giggling with what appears to be genuine puppy love -- although she is no longer a girl. This character understands how her physicality (something much more than just her sexuality) affects the people around her, and Portman acts with every ounce of herself. The character may well be unknowable to the other characters and to the audience -- but Portman understands her inside and out. With his superior timing, Nichols allows each of these actors to hit every funny, cruel, and intimate moment in the script. Closer is a well-written, well-directed, and well-acted exercise in making cruel people compulsively watchable.

releases for Closer on AllMovie

Closer (2004)

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Closer

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Nudity
Adult Situations
Strong Sexual Content
Not For Children
Profanity

genres

Drama

sub-genres

category

Feature

directed by

Mike Nichols

countries

USA

release date

December 3, 2004 (USA - Limited)
December 10, 2004 (USA)

run time

101 min.

produced by

Columbia Pictures, Inside Track

released by

Columbia Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment

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	Title/Studio	Release Date
	Closer Image More	December 7, 2010

	Closer [Blu-ray] Image More	December 7, 2010

	Closer [Superbit] [With Movie Cash] Sony Pictures More	June 29, 2010

	Closer UCA More	August 3, 2009

	Closer [Blu-ray] Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (Canadian) More	May 22, 2007

	Closer [Blu-ray] Sony Pictures More	May 22, 2007

	Closer [Blu-ray] Columbia Tristar More	May 7, 2007

	Closer Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (Canadian) More	February 6, 2007

	Closer Columbia Tristar More	June 6, 2005

	Closer [Superbit] Columbia TriStar More	March 29, 2005