An outstanding movie

Rating: 9/10 (27 April 2009)

Closer is an outstanding movie with complicated love stories. I was at first attracted by the splendid cast rather than the plot. The fetching performances of the four well-known stars starring in it do make what is good still better. In Closer, the four tragic characters play a game called romance and the winner will get true love. But in the end, there is no winner and none of them wins true love. The all lose the game because they thought they can win true love through lies and revenges. In this society, true love is a rarity. So is the movie. It stands out among others of its kind in two aspects. On the one hand, explicit dialogues and vicious statements are frequently presented in Closer. Through the dialogues, we can learn more about the plot, the personalities and emotions of four characters and the secrets below the surface. On the other hand, Closer deals with a distinctive theme – love and sex. It won't be an enjoyment for people who have just begun new relationships or have recently fallen in love. The movie sheds light on the cruel and nasty side of the so-called romance, which is filled with lies, betrayal, revenges and insatiable desires. It may challenge some people's beliefs in true love and provoke them to examine their relationships and souls.
All the four characters have secrets and tell lies in the movie. Dan is in constant pursuit of love at first sight, even though he claims he fancies Alice. The quotation from the movie preview that if you believe in love at first sight, you never stop looking will explain the reason. Alice is a mysterious young woman with sweet and deceptive appearance but a callous heart. She seems to love Dan more than he loves her, but she never reveals her real name to Dan. Anna marries Larry in hope of forgetting Dan, but fails to do so and has secret affairs with him behind Larry's back. Larry coaxes Anna to sleep with him for the last time in exchange for signing the divorce paper, but what he really wants is to get his revenge on Dan for taking Anna away.
I like the scene at Anna's exhibition best. It is the first time and the only time when the four characters show up at the same occasion. Although everyone shakes hands, chats and smiles as he or she is supposed to, I can still feel the tense atmosphere surrounding them. From that moment on, their lives are intertwined in ways they never could have imagined.
It requires much life experience to fully understand the movie. If you just want to get yourself relaxed by watching movies on weekends, Closer won't be a good choice. But it is worth watching and provokes people to ponder over real life.