Wow!

Rating: 9/10 (14 September 2005)

It's interesting; when a film is this good, you can't say much without overdoing it... I will say this, as a writer, this is almost the epitome of what I want my name to be associated with...Wow! What a film...what a story...and what PERFORMANCES!! The thing that is so amazing about this film is the performances and writing. The actors do a magnificent job of playing these parts that were written to be performed by physically beautiful people. They portray these characters who know, on some level, that they are beautiful, whether they'd admit it or not, and it shows...
Julia Roberts, who I love, gives the performance of a lifetime, in that this is outside of ANYTHING that she has ever done. She is so human in this role that it cracks you up to see her play with the character of Dan, and then it breaks your heart to see her admit her faults to Larry. What a performance!!
Jude Law's Dan is like so many other silently conceited men in the world. He is basically saying, "I'm not confident...even though I'm leaving this gorgeous woman who needs me for another gorgeous woman who doesn't, knowing that if the new one doesn't work out, I can always have the other one back who is completely infatuated with me." This is why he cannot wrap his brain around losing her in the end. He does this so well. What a performance!!
Clive Owen is just....MY GOSH....he is so sexy and hateful and gritty and nasty.....and I LOVE IT!!! His Oscar nomination was so well deserved. Everything down to his sly smile and posture was perfect. What a performance!!
How can I accurately describe Natalie Portman in this film? She was so deliciously good and SEXY in this film that you could just poor gravy all over her and sop her up with a biscuit........and that's coming from a gay man. I came out of theatre after seeing this a knew that if anyone was getting an Oscar nomination, it was her. Her Alice is so honestly and beautifully longing for realness and terrified of it at the same time. Seeing her in this made me realize that this will only be the first in a slew of awards and nominations throughout her career. What a performance!!
I actually saw the stage play of "Closer" last week and didn't realize that Alice gets hit by a car in New York and dies in the end. The movie somewhat hints at this in the end when she walks right into the street while the "Don't Walk" sign is lit, but it's VERY subtle... At any rate the play didn't do much for me... All in all, a fantastic film with brilliant performances. Definitely a love story for adults.