AllMovie

Intimacy is noteworthy for its acting and graphic sex scenes, but otherwise it's a disappointing downer. Granted, it has the trappings of a realistic non-Hollywood film: handheld camera work; unflattering lighting; obtrusive background noise; seemingly indiscriminate editing; drab settings; actors who look relatively unglamorous; and, most conspicuously, explicit sex. But the sex scenes were designed to be more provocative than titillating, and the two leads, Jay (Mark Rylance) and Claire (Kerry Fox), are the type of off-putting characters favored by filmmakers who believe that real people are all self-absorbed and miserable. Unfortunately, the film tends to wallow in their misery instead of probing deeper to understand what drove them to this point. Jay's interactions with Claire's husband Andy (Timothy Spall) are particularly unpleasant because the movie doesn't adequately explain the source of his rage and self-loathing. Nonetheless, Rylance and Fox both provide emotionally (and otherwise) naked performances that carry the film through some of its weaker scenes, and Spall does a splendid job of fleshing out his role to create a multidimensional character. Unfortunately, the dialogue doesn't always ring true, some of the emotional confrontations seem contrived, and the story line meanders at times. So the movie isn't satisfying as a whole, although it does contain some powerful moments.