Watch Closer

The movie Closer in a lot of ways is the antithesis of the modern day romantic comedy. It is instead a more realistic drama about adult relationships and how truly complicated they can be. The movie, based on a play of the same name, has four main characters: Anna, played by Julia Roberts; Alice, played by Natalie Portman; Dan, played by Jude Law; and Larry, played by Clive Owen. Taking place in London the four characters become involved a love rhombus, for lack of a better term, where they all end up in relationships with one another in one way or another over the course of several years. It all begins with Alice, an American, moving to London, where she meets Dan, a writer. Dan is immediately smitten with Alice, and while the two become a couple, Dan also writes a book based on Alice's life, which launches his career. In preparation for his book release, Dan is sent to Anna, a photographer, to have his picture taken. Dan, while with Alice, falls for Anna and tries to entice her into an affair with him. Anna resists Dan's advances, much to his dismay, so as a way to seek revenge Dan pretends to be Anna on the internet and sets up a meeting between her and Larry, a man that Dan only meets on the internet and who only seems to be interested in a physical and somewhat vile relationship. However, when Anna and Larry meet for real, Dan's plan back fires, as the two hit it off and end up getting married. Meanwhile, Alice is aware of Dan's wondering eye, and the two do not stay together, but Dan finally gets what he wants when he begins an affair with Anna after she is married to Larry. It is here when all hell breaks loose among the four characters. Emotions come pouring out of all of them, as no one is who they appear to be. It becomes a movie that doesn't pull any punches, and isn't afraid to get real, which makes it an honest and interesting portrayal of adult relationships, with a lot of twists and turns, and one final twist ending.