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Should Closer be sent down?

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[Poll]

Should Closer be sent down?


Guilty
  30% (128)
Not guilty
  69% (291)


Total Votes : 419
(last vote on : 24/2/2011 8:20:51 PM)
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Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 9:51:03 AM   
Pav Basra


Posts: 13
Joined: 24/9/2005
Adam Smith considers Closer a film so militantly conceited that it hardly requries an audience. Kim Newman argues the film's contrivances are part of the warp and woof of manufacture.

Should Closer be sent down? Vote now!
Post #: 1
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 9:56:16 AM   
Greg Andrew


Posts: 255
Joined: 30/1/2006
From: Under Burt Reynolds moustache
 Miss portman dancing, that should be the end of the story. But also i really enjoyed it. Thought Jude law was a bit winey at times but great script and cleverly directed. So a not Guilty from me.

< Message edited by Greg Andrew -- 23/2/2007 10:03:37 AM >

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Post #: 2
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 9:56:19 AM   
Tech_Noir

 

Posts: 20199
Joined: 12/10/2005
Although Jude Law and Julia Robert are two of my most hated actors in the known universe, this is the film where Natalie Portman plays a hot stripper, so not guilty.

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Post #: 3
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 12:50:21 PM   
Harry Lime


Posts: 5115
Joined: 30/9/2005
What a joke.
 
Not guilty. It's one of the best films of 2004. Clive Owens foul mouthed diatribe at Roberts is worth a not guilty vote alone.

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Post #: 4
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 1:43:55 PM   
PatBateman

 

Posts: 1611
Joined: 11/10/2005

quote:

ORIGINAL: Harry Lime

What a joke.
 
Not guilty. It's one of the best films of 2004. Clive Owens foul mouthed diatribe at Roberts is worth a not guilty vote alone.


Exactly. For anyone who's been in that situation, it really captures the anger, but also the need to know what happened and I really don't think any other film really comes close.

Has the prosecution ever actually won a case?

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Post #: 5
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 3:33:38 PM   
!!!


Posts: 73
Joined: 23/1/2007
quote:

ORIGINAL: Harry Lime

What a joke.
 
Not guilty. It's one of the best films of 2004. Clive Owens foul mouthed diatribe at Roberts is worth a not guilty vote alone.


I agree. It's a great cinematic moment.

All the four leads are thoroughly unpleasant characters, and it can feel a bit stagey due to the strict adherence to the source material, but the fact is that it portrays people's worst instincts amazingly well, is full of dark, nasty humour, and all four totally confounded my expectations of them.  Plus the internet scene between Clive Owen and Jude Law was funnier than 99% of the stuff in mainstream comedies. Not guilty.

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Post #: 6
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 3:48:41 PM   
Charliebois

 

Posts: 212
Joined: 23/2/2007
Hi

I actually subscribed to this board in order to respond on the Closer trial in the magazine.

Never has a film created such a reaction in me having seen it.  The bus home from the cinema was the scene of a huge out pouring of emotion and that is the real power of the film for me.  It was about all relationships, with characters that weren't perfect, that didn't have all the right answers, and got it wrong.  It was me.  It was all the mistakes I'd ever made and it hurt.  One of the few dramas that I continue to watch, again and again, and I'm constantly moved by.  Portman, Owen, Roberts and Law have never been so good, before or since.

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Post #: 7
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 4:59:49 PM   
PatBateman

 

Posts: 1611
Joined: 11/10/2005

quote:

ORIGINAL: Charliebois

Hi

I actually subscribed to this board in order to respond on the Closer trial in the magazine.

Never has a film created such a reaction in me having seen it.  The bus home from the cinema was the scene of a huge out pouring of emotion and that is the real power of the film for me.  It was about all relationships, with characters that weren't perfect, that didn't have all the right answers, and got it wrong.  It was me.  It was all the mistakes I'd ever made and it hurt.  One of the few dramas that I continue to watch, again and again, and I'm constantly moved by.  Portman, Owen, Roberts and Law have never been so good, before or since.


Welcome, and well put. I absolutely agree with what you say. It is a hugely powerful film, and does capture human imperfection pretty well.

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Post #: 8
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 5:09:11 PM   
King_Wah


Posts: 2348
Joined: 1/10/2005
From: Halesowen
 Its a poor film. I need to root for someone in a film but every character was loathsome. Also Owen is the only person who can act in the film. This was the film that convinced me to stop fighting and give in to my loathing of Jude Law. He is a tart.

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Post #: 9
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 6:04:40 PM   
Lebowski


Posts: 1759
Joined: 30/9/2005
I'm really surprised that this was even considered for a Movie Trial, admittedly I wasn't expecting much before I saw it but I thought it was great.

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Post #: 10
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 7:28:43 PM   
doncopey1


Posts: 4982
Joined: 29/11/2005
From: Liverpool: Age 25
 Are you kidding? Not Guilty! One of the finest films of 2004. A fantastic ensemble especially from Owen who gives his best performance to date, well directed and great music. Its one of the most original and brilliant films in recent times. 

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Post #: 11
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 7:38:56 PM   
Dick Jones


Posts: 1111
Joined: 26/9/2005
quote:

ORIGINAL: Harry Lime

What a joke.
 
Not guilty. It's one of the best films of 2004. Clive Owens foul mouthed diatribe at Roberts is worth a not guilty vote alone.


Yes indeed. Plus we have his annihilation of Law in his office as well.

Owen is bloody great in this film.

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Post #: 12
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 7:52:33 PM   
Harry Lime


Posts: 5115
Joined: 30/9/2005
quote:

All the four leads are thoroughly unpleasant characters, and it can feel a bit stagey due to the strict adherence to the source material, but the fact is that it portrays people's worst instincts amazingly well, is full of dark, nasty humour, and all four totally confounded my expectations of them.  Plus the internet scene between Clive Owen and Jude Law was funnier than 99% of the stuff in mainstream comedies. Not guilty.
Excellently put. The whole film is littered with this kind of jet black comedy. The scene where Owen practically rips Laws heart out of his chest and then jumps up and down on it is pure gold.

"I lied to you. I did fuck Alice. Sorry for telling you. I'm just not big enough to forgive you, buster."
 
Owen is pure class in this film and, as far as I'm concerned, he was robbed at the Oscars by a sentimental vote for Morgan Freeman.

_____________________________

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If I get there early will it be the right time
our heaven is just waiting so put your hand into mine.

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Post #: 13
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 7:53:40 PM   
Harry Lime


Posts: 5115
Joined: 30/9/2005
quote:

ORIGINAL: Dick Jones

quote:

ORIGINAL: Harry Lime

What a joke.

Not guilty. It's one of the best films of 2004. Clive Owens foul mouthed diatribe at Roberts is worth a not guilty vote alone.

Yes indeed. Plus we have his annihilation of Law in his office as well.

Owen is bloody great in this film.

You read my mind!

_____________________________

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If I get there early will it be the right time
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Post #: 14
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 8:51:39 PM   
Ed Wood

 

Posts: 288
Joined: 1/10/2005
Guilty
How I never walked out of this film I'll never know!!
Beautiful people moaning for 2 hours!
Was interested because Patrick Marber wrote it,
Terrible film, should be sentenced to death.

< Message edited by Ed Wood -- 23/2/2007 8:52:43 PM >

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Post #: 15
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 9:53:07 PM   
!!!


Posts: 73
Joined: 23/1/2007
quote:


Excellently put. The whole film is littered with this kind of jet black comedy. The scene where Owen practically rips Laws heart out of his chest and then jumps up and down on it is pure gold.

"I lied to you. I did fuck Alice. Sorry for telling you. I'm just not big enough to forgive you, buster."


Yeah, that's fucking hilarious. The look on Law's face is awful yet amusing.  I also liked the little exchanges between Larry and Alice, in different scenes-

Larry: [on Dan] He's very pretty.
Alice: [on Anna] She's very...tall.  [little smirk of delight]

And later on when Larry is crying in the strip club, the way Natalie Portman looks at him and says with a little moue of disgust "You can't cry in here" is perfection.

Shit, I wrote all this and I left out the sheer horror of Larry and Anna's meeting.

"She was a woman. I got a huge...she wasn't, was she?  What a bastard!"
 
quote:

Owen is pure class in this film and, as far as I'm concerned, he was robbed at the Oscars by a sentimental vote for Morgan Freeman.


Completely agree; I'm glad to see him in more stuff because of this role.  He's one of the best British actors working today.

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Post #: 16
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 23/2/2007 10:21:41 PM   
jazzyjazz89


Posts: 5
Joined: 23/2/2007
From: England
 The four main actors are all brilliant with out a doubt, but this movie was random a bit like that morgan freeman, owen wilson and charlie sheen film. I can't remember what it was called, but that was so random and boring I fell asleep through it. However closer did keep me awake. I think mainly because I was hoping for an aspect of comedy which I was never given so for me it's a

< Message edited by jazzyjazz89 -- 23/2/2007 10:22:09 PM >

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Post #: 17
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 24/2/2007 11:36:07 AM   
Smudge

 

Posts: 14
Joined: 4/10/2005
Guilty as charged!

Doesn't mean it's a bad bad film per say, just unpleasant, car-crash cinema.  I'm not averse to some industrial language and character asassination in movies, but this seemed to go over the top, and to me, spoiled the film some-what by revelling in it (hear Julia Roberts and Padme swear, and I mean REALLY swear).

As for Natalie Portman's contribution, that should be the subject of separate debate, preferably in the pub!

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Post #: 18
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 24/2/2007 1:25:16 PM   
pettsy

 

Posts: 5969
Joined: 30/9/2005
quote:

ORIGINAL: King_Wah

Its a poor film. I need to root for someone in a film but every character was loathsome. Also Owen is the only person who can act in the film. This was the film that convinced me to stop fighting and give in to my loathing of Jude Law. He is a tart.


Well put sir.  I couldn't empathise with anyone in this film.  Their reasons for doing what they did were poorly fleshed out.

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Post #: 19
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 24/2/2007 2:53:37 PM   
Yvash


Posts: 25
Joined: 30/9/2005
From: the Shadow Gallery
quote:

And later on when Larry is crying in the strip club, the way Natalie Portman looks at him and says with a little moue of disgust "You can't cry in here" is perfection.


"What does it take to get some fucking intimacy around here?!"

Closer wouldn't even make it to court, there's simply no way a movie with dialogue as sharp, self righteous and realistically self pitying could be seen as guilty - and even then, only in the eyes of those who's lovelife the film painfully echoes. It's the sort of anti-hollywood relationship drama that should be cherished for the simple reason that it shows how people in love can be truly reprehensible creatures.

It's a little stagey, that's a given considering the source material, but it works as we get to see the bad and badder sides of each character as they unremittingly fuck and philander their lives to emotional hell, the boys taking the proceedings to a new level of one-upmanship as they square up in an emotional (and physical, albeit by proxy) battleground over Anna, a limp cow with no idea what she truly wants. Meanwhile, Alice, the bewildered 4th wheel on this deranged shopping trolly of love, is a pretty, spunky little enigma the likes of which any sane man would drop the twitching, wet eyed Anna over, but is left reeling as the boys duke it out over a woman each wants to want more than the other.

There's no clear 'winner' in this game either, though it's arguable there's one definative loser, Dan - a man so whiney, paranoid and self obsessed you can't help but root for his egotistical, brutish counterpart, Larry. A man with a penchant for wanking at work and the ability to lay down some of the most endearingly scathing deadpan insults known to man, brought brilliantly to life as Clive Owen pulls out his best performance in his career thus far, and even more amusingly, since he once played the part of Dan on stage...

"Thankyou for your honesty. Now fuck off and die. You fucked up slag."


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Post #: 20
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 24/2/2007 2:56:45 PM   
PatBateman

 

Posts: 1611
Joined: 11/10/2005

quote:

ORIGINAL: pettsy

quote:

ORIGINAL: King_Wah

Its a poor film. I need to root for someone in a film but every character was loathsome. Also Owen is the only person who can act in the film. This was the film that convinced me to stop fighting and give in to my loathing of Jude Law. He is a tart.


Well put sir.  I couldn't empathise with anyone in this film.  Their reasons for doing what they did were poorly fleshed out.



So are most people's. That's the beauty of the film.

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Post #: 21
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 24/2/2007 4:45:42 PM   
pettsy

 

Posts: 5969
Joined: 30/9/2005
Unfortunately, it completely put me off.  I need to understand why a character is cheating, even if I don't agree with it. Of course, it could be bitter experience of cheating partners that makes me think this way. 

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Post #: 22
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 24/2/2007 6:09:43 PM   
carsrock

 

Posts: 7
Joined: 6/2/2007
Closer was a great film!Great script,great performances by Portman and Owen. The story was so brutally truthful in some parts, and of course the Damien rice song was used to great effect.NOT GUILTY!

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Post #: 23
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 24/2/2007 6:22:11 PM   
monkeyfish


Posts: 1234
Joined: 18/9/2006
From: Under the sea
 It's far too flawed to be a truly great film but certainly isn't guilty of crimes against cinema. The conceit of showing beginnings and ends of relationships means that it's a patchy affair with some good moments and some really not so much and it is definitely far too stagey to make great cinema. Marber's writing, although a little artificial, is filled with gems of dialogue and put downs which Owen in particular delivers with a certain aplomb I, for one, had never thought him capable of. Owen's performance and character are reprehensible in a very watchable manner while Law and Roberts appear self absorbed. And then there's Natalie Portman as Alice, truly stunning, a great sexy, vulnerable, messed up performance and from the beginning and ending scenes it's clear how much the camera loves her. I'm sure that any guy watching the film at least enjoyed it on some level because of her. However, I still don't think it's something I would particularly watch again as it doesn't really hang together as a whole or seem to have a point in the end for all the strong performances and sparky insults.

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Post #: 24
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 24/2/2007 8:41:04 PM   
i007_Bond_007i


Posts: 8026
Joined: 5/10/2005
Not Guilty - Natalie Portman dancing half-naked, for God's sake!!!

Also, it was quite funny. Though a little bit depressing.

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Post #: 25
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 26/2/2007 1:25:58 AM   
Lydia_H


Posts: 3799
Joined: 26/11/2006
Not Guilty!

I think it's utter class, one of my favourite films


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Post #: 26
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 26/2/2007 10:01:18 PM   
Ilkworm

 

Posts: 1
Joined: 26/2/2007
Guilty

The only thing good about that was Natalie Portman in a pink wig and the Damien Rice music. Otherwise it was a soulless piece of trash that shouldn't have existed. That and Julia Roberts is in it

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Post #: 27
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 27/2/2007 2:31:08 PM   
elab49


Posts: 52022
Joined: 1/10/2005
quote:

ORIGINAL: Pav Basra

Adam Smith considers Closer a film so militantly conceited that it hardly requries an audience. Kim Newman argues the film's contrivances are part of the warp and woof of manufacture.

Should Closer be sent down? Vote now!



On that summary they both agree it is bad.

It isn't really so absolute - some of it is OK, and it is annoying as it clearly thinks it is more than it is. Owen's performance is fine, most of the others are so-so. But one of Marber's more mannered pieces of writing.

But allis irrelevant. The chaps leching over the androgynous semi-naked Miss Portman will ensure this stays up. Figuratively speaking.

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Post #: 28
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 28/2/2007 1:20:45 PM   
discodave101


Posts: 1884
Joined: 4/10/2005
From: Sheffield
 I absolutely love this film, and it really holds up on repeat viewings and allows you to further immerse yourself in the characters. I thought Natalie Portman's acting was outstanding, and I consider it her best work to date. The fact she also happens to be a stripper makes it all the better!

There's only one scene that didn't really work or make sense to me, and thats in the art gallery where owen touches portmans face very intimately without even knowing her at that point. Seemed a bit odd and out of place to me.

All in all an awesome movie and definitely one of the best of 2004. Whenever I flick onto it on Sky I can't turn over.

NOT GUILTY!

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Post #: 29
RE: Should Closer be sent down? - 28/2/2007 6:51:33 PM   
Lydia_H


Posts: 3799
Joined: 26/11/2006
quote:

ORIGINAL: discodave101

I absolutely love this film, and it really holds up on repeat viewings and allows you to further immerse yourself in the characters. I thought Natalie Portman's acting was outstanding, and I consider it her best work to date. The fact she also happens to be a stripper makes it all the better!

There's only one scene that didn't really work or make sense to me, and thats in the art gallery where owen touches portmans face very intimately without even knowing her at that point. Seemed a bit odd and out of place to me.

All in all an awesome movie and definitely one of the best of 2004. Whenever I flick onto it on Sky I can't turn over.

NOT GUILTY!



My thought was ... That Larry is a master of manipulation and has a meticulous eye for people. Obviously, he knows that Alice knows that something is happening between her Dan and his Anna ... Alice is the most vulnerable and sensitive of the characters and to Larry she reeks of desperation or sadness (She's smoking, on her own in what's a dark, isolated area, looking at a picture of herself crying ... and when she talks she a little childish and poisonous) ... Larry places her emotions as a consequence of Dan playing away, and must realize there's a possibility of a little sordid revenge bubbling between them ... But Larry has no intention of doing that, he's just confirming that if he wanted to, he could have Alice ... she isn't interested in revenge, she is too frightened even to approach Dan about his cheating (And naturally she doesn't want to discuss with Dan what may've been a little naughtiness with Larry later on), she just wants someone to cling onto, to take her away from her undernourished life as a stripper, she would give herself entirely to Larry if he demanded her. He perhaps knows this, and looking only for a one night stand (That maybe he can approach Anna with, instead he probably just makes something up later when he tells her he cheated on her)  he is satisfied in knowing he caused Alice to melt on the spot and beg him to take her away from Dan (She can't possibly leave him, she is scared that he may be her only opportunity...). Wonderful scene I thought

Anyway I haven't seen it in years so that's a bit of a rant But hopefully it adds up somehow



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