Engaging performances by a powerhouse cast make for a very interesting film

Rating: 7/10 (22 January 2005)

'Closer' plays as a sequence of incidents in the lives of four main characters with passage of differing lengths of time between each scene so that to a certain extent, the audience has to fill in the gaps.
The film opens with a shot on a busy street where Dan (Jude Law) and Alice (Natalie Portman) are walking towards each other to a soundtrack of Damien Rice's 'The Blower's Daughter' (I loved this track the instant I heard it and it suits the opening and end scenes so well). There is a spark as Dan and Alice catch each other's eye but before introductions are made, Alice is knocked down by a taxi and Dan accompanies her to the hospital. At this point in time, we learn that Dan is an obituary writer. Later, we find out that he has used Alice's life as the subject of his novel. He meets Anna (Julia Roberts) who photographs him and they end up kissing. As a result of a prank Dan plays when chatting to Larry (Clive Owen) on an Internet chat room, Larry meets Anna at the London Aquarium.
At times, the film protrudes the intensity of a theatre production which is little surprise as 'Closer' is an adaptation of a Patrick Marber play. All four leads play on the whole, unsympathetic characters but are no less interesting because of it. Natalie Portman even plays against type as a stripper. At times, the film is darkly funny and I would not recommend this film if explicit dialogue offends you.
This is a love story that is different from the norm and deals effectively with the issue of deception and how it impacts on the lives of the central characters.