Closer
Closer. 2004. Directed by Mike Nichols, who is Mr. Diane Sawyer, FYI. #27 in my 50 movie challenge for the year. I’d heard mixed things about this film. Some said it was great with terrific performances. Others said it was too dark and overly cruel. Both are true, though. It is well directed and acted, and doesn’t paint a reassuring portrait of couples in love. It does show, though, with cutting accuracy some of the truly funny and pathetic things people do while in pursuit of what they call love. I thought Clive Owen’s performance as Larry was the strongest, and not just because I have a crush on him. Many reviews said there were no sympathetic characters, bu at the end of the film, I liked and understood Larry, which I think had a lot to do with Owen’s portrayal. The scene when he and Julia Roberts reveal secrets to one another had tremendous emotional power. Much less effective was Natalie Portman. I am mystified that she earned an Oscar nomination. I could tell by Portman’s delivery that the script originally was a play. She sounded like she was reciting lines. Owen starred in the stage version, though in the character of Dan, played by Jude Law in the film. Charlie Rose interviewed Owen and tried to get him to admit which of the two parts he liked best. Owen, however, would not be goaded into an undiplomatic statement. He was unequivocal in his respect for having worked with Nichols, whom he called brilliant, but rather less effusive about Robert Rodriguez, with whom he worked on Sin City.