Overrated and dull

Rating: 5/10 (21 June 2012)

I've read other reviews, and it seems every person who praises this film only does so because it is "honest".
Yes, sure, it is honest. But it is not engaging -- it needs to be at least 25% engaging in order to express the honesty of the storyline. When it started, it took me no more than two minutes to guess the message of the film and the story line. Don't get me wrong, it did surprise me - but only by becoming more dull than initially anticipated.
They had a lot they could have worked with. The actors were great, the storyline had potential. But the ordering of the scenes, and the general presentation of both the characters and the plot just left you without empathy or concern for anything that was going on. They kept jumping time without any clear explanation, so it was difficult to follow - and so mundane you could not be bothered to try.
I genuinely feel the only reason it has got 7.3 on IMDb is because (a) the actors in it are well known and liked, and (b) the people reviewing it are not used to this "type" of film, so they have nothing to compare it to (NB. I know this is not the case for every one, so please do not take offence). This type of film -- the type about desire, sex, human fallibility and insecurity in adult relationships, etc -- is much better demonstrated by Woody Allen, for example, who cleverly and honestly presents these themes in an engaging way. Try watching Hannah and Her Sisters, Crimes and Misdemeanours, Husbands and Wives, Manhattan, Annie Hall, Alice, and Another Woman. Also try reading his three one-act plays. To name a few others NOT by Woody Allen, that are perhaps more "in the style" of Closer, try Last Night, Blue Valentine, and Like Crazy. Admittedly, I didn't love any of these, but I thought they all still had a few things which Closer does not. Generally, they were much more enjoyable and realistic. One of the only things I found realistic in Closer was the tea drinking.
Also, if you haven't already, watch American Beauty (which I did love) for the same reasons (realistic, engaging, enjoyable, but also clever and well thought through, like Allen's films).
If you watch any of these films I have suggested you will hopefully see what I mean by saying that Closer is no match and cannot deserve anything more than 5/10 only because it is "honest". Newsflash, a lot of films these days are honest...because they're allowed to be. It does not make them good.
Side note: Perhaps the play that inspired the film is better, but I am only speaking about my opinion of the film.
In conclusion, it is not anything to get excited about, and it should-- if not be avoided--be watched as a last resort on a rainy afternoon with a box of wine...