SHERDOG MOVIE CLUB: Week 21 Discussion - Closer

[Guestx]

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@Caveat decided it was time for a Natalie Portman film festival and so this week our winner was Mike Nichols' Closer. This marks, I think, only the second time that we've returned to a director throughout the Movie Club's 21 week run.

Our Director​

Closer is directed by MIKE NICHOLS. Born in Berlin, Germany in 1931, he immigrated to the United States at only seven years old in order to escape Jewish oppression in Nazi Germany. His film career got started when he directed Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? . . . but that opportunity came only after a celebrated and distinguished career as a stage director. In fact, before moving into films he won multiple Tony awards, and Time Magazine even once called him "the most in-demand director in American theater."

Nichols developed a reputation as an auteur who liked to work closely with writers and actors, and he was also known for his talent in getting the best out of an actor, regardless of their experience level.

He's made several films that you've probably heard of but didn't realize who the director was: The Graduate (which garnered him an Oscar for Best Director), Working Girl, Regarding Henry, Wolf and Charlie Wilson's War, to name a few.

Nichols died in 2014.

Our Stars​

Jude Law: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000179/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Natalie Portman: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000204/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Clive Owen: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0654110/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Julia Roberts: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000210/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Film Overview and YouTube Videos​

Premise: The relationships of two couples become complicated and deceitful when the man from one couple meets the woman of the other.

Budget: $27 million
Box Office: $115 million worldwide

​

​

Trivia
(courtesy of IMDB)​

* At the beginning of filming, Natalie Portman gave 'Julia Roberts' a necklace that said "cunt" in honor of their characters' foul mouths. At the end of filming, Julia Roberts gave Natalie Portman a necklace that said "lil' cunt".

* The role of Alice was set to be Eva Green's Hollywood movie debut, but she dropped out at the last minute.

* Anna's exhibition is the only time all four characters are in the same room.

* Cate Blanchett was originally signed to play the role of Anna, but due to her second pregnancy she had to drop out of the film.

* Clive Owen played the role of Dan in the original stage production.

* The original Broadway production of "Closer" by Patrick Marber opened at the Music Box Theater in New York on March 15, 1999.

* 2nd time Jude Law and Natalie Portman were together on screen. 1st was their small scene in Cold Mountain (2003).

* The film cast includes two Oscar winners: Julia Roberts and Natalie Portman and two Oscar nominees: Jude Law and Clive Owen.

* The film stays very true to the original play upon which it is based, with one major exception. The play closed with Dan and Anna speaking briefly on a park bench, several years after Alice and Dan's breakup. Dan tells her that Alice had been hit by a car in New York City and had died, and that he was the only one authorities could find to identify her body. However, the film closes showing Alice alive, well and confidently walking the streets of Manhattan--BUT, the very last shot as she's walking across a road in Manhattan is a pan/tilt up to a red "DON'T WALK" signal, thus hinting that her fate as in the play will be fulfilled.

Members: @shadow_priest_x @europe1 @EL CORINTHIAN @HUNTERMANIA @iThrillhouse @Zer @DaDamn @chickenluver @gorgonon @jeicex @MusterX @Scott Parker 27 @BeardotheWeirdo @Caveat @method115 @blkjack @Black Angus @melvinj0

 

[BisexualMMA]

I've got the coat. The white coat...

 

[DaDamn]

Too much football and world cup hockey going on right now.



Saw this years ago, will re-watch by the weekend.

 

[method115]

Been waiting to talk about this crazy ass movie. Luckily for me my Fiance was interested in watching this as well otherwise I might have had to skip this week. She was off Monday and Tuesday and we have an agreement when she's off work we hangout. She works nights and me days so we don't get as much time together as other couples. Can't even begin to describe the look she gave me when I told her I was in some internet movie club.

Ok so first off I'll give this movie credit for the arguments they had whenever the people found out they were being cheated on. Very realistic and it was making me laugh because so many of the questions that were being asked (is he better than me?) were the same thing's I've asked or have had asked. The one time when he was asking Julia Roberts where they fucked in his house had me dying because my cousin just went through this same thing with his best friend. He fucked his BF's wife and his friend wanted to know where. So he started pointing out all the spots (there were tons of them) and the guy finally just said "Stop I can't hear anymore". That to me was my favorite part of the movie was the break up arguments were very realistic.

I kind of felt bad for Jude Law because while he was a dick to Portman I do feel he really cared about Julia Roberts and would have made it work with her. He just happened to meet Portman first and he didn't want to hurt her. Julia and Portman are clearly both crazy as fuck. The fact that Portman had never told Jude her real name was ridiculous and she clearly never planned on doing that. At the end of the movie she made it clear that the truth didn't really matter simply the reality she created is all that mattered. I could never be with that kind of psycho. Julia sleeping with her ex just to get a divorce was disgusting and her trying to justify it was even worse. It's funny that Clive Owen turned out to be the only one who was at least a decent human being in this movie. I would have liked more of an explanation of why him and Portman never made it but no biggie.

The ending was down right dumb to me. The guys turning their heads at Portman while she walks through the city (she didn't even look all that hot here) it almost came across like a big joke or parody. I think in the end Jude Law came out the winner in this movie. Portman was nuts and so was Julia. At least Jude still has a chance to go out there and meet a respectable women who doesn't lie about something as basic as her name.

 

[europe1]

I won't be able to get any real typing in until Thursday/Friday

Can't even begin to describe the look she gave me when I told her I was in some internet movie club.

Please... try

 

[Guestx]

I won't be able to get any real typing in until Thursday/Friday

Europe been slacking lately. . .

 

[Guestx]

Well this was a fucked up movie.

Here's the thing: On a technical level, I have no complaints. It's very well done. Mike Nichols proved himself to me with Virginia Woolf and I have no issues here with either the direction or the acting. But thematically, I just don't get down with movies like this. I mentioned earlier that I do not enjoy stories about adultery and this movie did nothing to change that.

Having expressed that sentiment, you might be surprised to learn that I'm a big Woody Allen fan. A great many of his movies have adultery/cheating as a theme, but the thing about his films is that they also offer insights on other topics as well. This is also how I felt about Virginia Woolf. Adultery was a theme, but there was more there to chew on.

With this film, there is not more there to chew on. The whole film is about how we hurt, deceive and manipulate each other. I find that highly fucking depressing.

Furthermore, no one is likable in this film and everyone is pretty shitty. It's just one big maelstrom of people lying to each other and being unable to keep their legs closed and keep their dicks out of places that they shouldn't be in. I thought, maybe, that Alice would turn out to be a decent character but she just ends up proving that once a whore always a whore, and it turns out that she was living some kind of double life the whole time anyway.

I did, on some level, enjoy the interrogation scene in Larry and Anna's house, but that's only because it was so well written and staged, and not because I found the content to be any less repugnant than most of the rest of the film. And I'll say that it had a strong visual look, so credit goes to the cinematographer.

As a whole, however, I was just not down for this film. Not only did I not enjoy it thematically, but I also felt that the script started to fall apart a bit near the end. There were weird, clunky time jumps and I felt like we eventually reached a point where they just wanted to keep the twists coming for the sake of twists rather than the story actually needing them.

Not sure how to rate this one so I'm not even going to try. But I think it's a shame that Black Swan didn't finally win.

 

[Guestx]

Can't even begin to describe the look she gave me when I told her I was in some internet movie club

I agree with Europe, you at least have to make an attempt on this one.

I kind of felt bad for Jude Law because while he was a dick to Portman I do feel he really cared about Julia Roberts and would have made it work with her. He just happened to meet Portman first and he didn't want to hurt her. Julia and Portman are clearly both crazy as fuck. The fact that Portman had never told Jude her real name was ridiculous and she clearly never planned on doing that. At the end of the movie she made it clear that the truth didn't really matter simply the reality she created is all that mattered. I could never be with that kind of psycho.

Bitches be crazy. This movie just reinforces that.

Like I said in my review, I thought for a minute that Alice was going to turn out to be a somewhat decent character. Okay, fine, she was a stripper once. I personally wouldn't be with someone who used to strip, but whatever, if it was in the past, etc. Now she's reformed and just being a dude's loving girlfriend. Right?

Nope! As soon as they break up she goes back to stripping and it turns out the whole time she was lying her fucking ass off about who she really was. What a cunt.

It's funny that Clive Owen turned out to be the only one who was at least a decent human being in this movie.

Oh, I disagree. I thought this was maybe going to be the case about halfway through but he just got crazier and crazier. Coercing Anna into fucking him one last time as payment for signing the divorce papers, and all the crazy shit he said to Alice in the strip club, and his little stunt in his office with Dan at the end just made me think that the guy was a legit psycho.

The ending was down right dumb to me. The guys turning their heads at Portman while she walks through the city (she didn't even look all that hot here) it almost came across like a big joke or parody. I think in the end Jude Law came out the winner in this movie. Portman was nuts and so was Julia. At least Jude still has a chance to go out there and meet a respectable women who doesn't lie about something as basic as her name.

I'd probably agree with that. Like I said earlier, I didn't think that any of the characters were ultimately all that likable, but if I had to choose one as the least objectionable it would be Dan.

 

[method115]

As a whole, however, I was just not down for this film. Not only did I not enjoy it thematically, but I also felt that the script started to fall apart a bit near the end. There were weird, clunky time jumps and I felt like we eventually reached a point where they just wanted to keep the twists coming for the sake of twists rather than the story actually needing them.

Yea I forgot me and my fiance were laughing at the time jumps. This movie would do time jumps and give you the most subtle hints I've ever seen in a movie to tell you that it jumped time. Almost anytime the scene changed I'd say "Ok listen closely to make sure we catch how long it's been".

I agree with Europe, you at least have to make an attempt on this one.


This is about as close as I can get to what it looked like. In fact I thought of this meme when she looked at me but with just a little more "I've lose some respect for you" in the eyes.

Bitches be crazy. This movie just reinforces that.

Like I said in my review, I thought for a minute that Alice was going to turn out to be a somewhat decent character. Okay, fine, she was a stripper once. I personally wouldn't be with someone who used to strip, but whatever, if it was in the past, etc. Now she's reformed and just being a dude's loving girlfriend. Right?

Nope! As soon as they break up she goes back to stripping and it turns out the whole time she was lying her fucking ass off about who she really was. What a cunt.

Yea I'm the same way I could never date a stripped but like you I thought hell shits changed she's moved on from that and is just trying to live her life. Going back to stripping I could actually understand after such a hard breakup (she clearly loved Jude a lot) but lying to him that whole time all I could think is your a psycho. Then at the end when she basically said "what does it matter if I lie just believe me and let's be happy" I was like leave this girl and go find someone else.

Oh, I disagree. I thought this was maybe going to be the case about halfway through but he just got crazier and crazier. Coercing Anna into fucking him one last time as payment for signing the divorce papers, and all the crazy shit he said to Alice in the strip club, and his little stunt in his office with Dan at the end just made me think that the guy was a legit psycho.




I'd probably agree with that. Like I said earlier, I didn't think that any of the characters were ultimately all that likable, but if I had to choose one as the least objectionable it would be Dan.

I'm not saying Larry was perfect he did some fucked up things but to me overall he seemed to be the only one really trying to make things workout. Yes he cheated in NY but I suspect that had more to do with Anna not banging him much if at all. I could be wrong though and the guy could just be scum like the other three. To me the others just did so many fucked up things that what Larry did wasn't on that level.

Anna - Clearly one of the worst hopping between guys, getting married while cheating. She is officially the worst IMO.

Alice - Just an all around crazy, lying, stripper. It takes lying to a whole new level to lie about your name for that long.

Dan - This guy wouldn't have been so bad if he wasn't constantly trying to get with Anna while he's with his current GF. Like dude have some respect for her at the very least.

Larry - Bad guy but honestly he just seemed to be a victim of all these other people's BS and trying to get a dig in when he could.

 

[HUNTERMANIA]

I didn't really identify too much with this movie or any of the characters.

 

[Guestx]

I didn't really identify too much with this movie or any of the characters.

Any other thoughts you care to add?

 

[HUNTERMANIA]

Any other thoughts you care to add?

I haven't watched it in like a year or so. Natalie Portman was hot. I mean, IDK. I just didn't identify with any of the characters that I remember.

 

[Zer]

I've always been really butthurt that Clive didn't get an Oscar for this. Instead they gave it to Morgan Freeman for his Morgan Freeman gimmick in Million Dollar Baby. Larry is a unique character and brilliantly executed

I really like Closer. It's a beautiful concept - just get four assholes together, let them bang each other and see what happens. It could almost be an episode of Sunny. What stands out the most is Larry and Anna's relationship and how it's ultimately held together by guilt. Anna, who desires remorse, leashed to Larry who wants power. I haven't really seen that spin on a relationship before. At least not in a movie, where that kind of top - bottom type shit is played as kinky fun rather than the basis of a sexually benign relationship.

Anyway I haven't seen this flick in like 10 years so I should watch it again before I start analyzing it

 

[Guestx]

Yea I forgot me and my fiance were laughing at the time jumps. This movie would do time jumps and give you the most subtle hints I've ever seen in a movie to tell you that it jumped time. Almost anytime the scene changed I'd say "Ok listen closely to make sure we catch how long it's been".

LOL, yeah. Seems odd to me that the way it was handled didn't seem very odd to Nichols or the writers.

Yea I'm the same way I could never date a stripped but like you I thought hell shits changed she's moved on from that and is just trying to live her life. Going back to stripping I could actually understand after such a hard breakup (she clearly loved Jude a lot) but lying to him that whole time all I could think is your a psycho. Then at the end when she basically said "what does it matter if I lie just believe me and let's be happy" I was like leave this girl and go find someone else.

Yeah. Movies like this make me terrified of relationships. I'll probably be single for a good five more years now while I recover.

I'm not saying Larry was perfect he did some fucked up things but to me overall he seemed to be the only one really trying to make things workout. Yes he cheated in NY but I suspect that had more to do with Anna not banging him much if at all. I could be wrong though and the guy could just be scum like the other three. To me the others just did so many fucked up things that what Larry did wasn't on that level.

Anna - Clearly one of the worst hopping between guys, getting married while cheating. She is officially the worst IMO.

Alice - Just an all around crazy, lying, stripper. It takes lying to a whole new level to lie about your name for that long.

Dan - This guy wouldn't have been so bad if he wasn't constantly trying to get with Anna while he's with his current GF. Like dude have some respect for her at the very least.

Larry - Bad guy but honestly he just seemed to be a victim of all these other people's BS and trying to get a dig in when he could.

I guess that's one way to look at it. I suppose it's true that he didn't actually cheat on anyone, he just reacted to what was going on around him.

And agreed on showing respect to Alice. The scene early on when Dan was trying to sway Anna to his side while Alice was in the bathroom, I was like, "Jesus Christ, man! This guy has no shame!"

 

[Tycho- Taylor's Version]

LOL at repugnant!!

I have a lot to write about this one.

 

[Guestx]

LOL at repugnant!!

I have a lot to write about this one.

Bring it, motherfucker!

 

[BeardotheWeirdo]

It was OK

5.5/10

The acting and the ending were the only highlights for me... and Portman's ass.

I don't really have anything to say about this one

This cat sums up my feelings towards the characters.

Which isn't a huge deal to me, but the script was boring, and there wasn't much to the story either.

For me I'll take a good story with shitty acting, over a bad story with good acting, any day of the week.

I respect the honesty though. Halfway through I thought "this is just you standard romance story, they're going to switch partners and be happier that way" but unlike most rom-coms this movie showed the negative effects of breaking up, instead of taking the "just show the happy couple and forget about the heartbroken ones" route. The one that gets left is usually the rich one, in favour of the more passionate one, but in this movie the rich power-hungry guy won, and the one who thinks with his heart lost... It paled in comparison to "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf"

For the people who voted for this movie... why? (honest question, not trying to be a dick, just curious)

 

[Guestx]

For me I'll take a good story with shitty acting, over a bad story with good acting, any day of the week.

Agreed.

The story is the foundation for everything. No matter how much gloss is thrown onto a film, if the story is dull then the movie will be dull.

Though I differ from you in this case in that I didn't really find the story dull. I just found it depressing.

I respect the honesty though. Halfway through I thought "this is just you standard romance story, they're going to switch partners and be happier that way" but unlike most rom-coms this movie showed the negative effects of breaking up, instead of taking the "just show the happy couple and forget about the heartbroken ones" route. The one that gets left is usually the rich one, in favour of the more passionate one, but in this movie the rich power-hungry guy won, and the one who thinks with his heart lost...

This one I grabbed on DVD from the library and on the back of the DVD there's a blurb that says, "Finally! A love story for adults!"

Having now seen the movie that sounds pretty retarded to me on a number of levels. It may be a story about love . . . but it's not really a love story. THIS is what that reviewer has been waiting for all this time?

It paled in comparison to "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf"

Well yeah.

For the people who voted for this movie... why? (honest question, not trying to be a dick, just curious)

I think most of the responses are going to run along the lines of, "Well, it was the only one I hadn't seen before." But I am curious to hear what people have to say.

 

[HUNTERMANIA]

Another opportunity to see Black Swan was missed by the SMC -- we should learn, as a group, from this.

 

[Guestx]

Another opportunity to see Black Swan was missed by the SMC -- we should learn, as a group, from this.

Hey man, I voted for it.

The weird thing is that it wasn't even close to winning.