Closer
June 2005 Reviewed by: Josh Barber Format: DVD	(all ratings out of 5): Overall Enjoyment Picture Quality Packaged Extras Sound Quality

It seems that every year, when the Academy Award nominations are announced, studios trip all over themselves to get the movies out on DVD as quickly as possible in order to capitalize on the buzz generated by the Oscars. This often means that some of the best movies end up with some of the worst home releases, stuck on discs with rushed transfers and poor extras. Closer does not buck this trend.

Would-be writer Dan (Jude Law) meets a young American woman named Alice (Natalie Portman) on the streets of London. Hearing tales of her life inspires him to write. While he is sitting for his dust-jacket photo, he flirts with the photographer, Anna (Julia Roberts). When she blows him off, he goes into a sex chatroom and uses her name to get some measure of revenge, inadvertently drawing Larry (Clive Owen) into her life.

The film revolves around the shifting relationships of these characters -- so much so that I can't remember anyone else who had dialogue in the film. There is no real hero, no couple to root for. By the end, everyone has been awful to one another and everyone gets what he or she deserves. Closer is no date movie; it is more of a break-up movie.

Playwright Patrick Marber adapted the script from his own play. The film's stage origins show. Nearly every scene frames two people delivering their dialogue at one another as they stand, sit, or pace back and forth. That dialogue may be one of the film's weakest points. The actors manage to make the surprisingly rough and crude talk sound somewhat classy, but the words never sound natural; it always sounds as if their speeches were written for them.

Closer also lacks any sense of chronology. The story is supposed to take place over the course of four years, but there is no real indication of that. There are a few vague references to an extended period of time, but it feels like the film takes place in about a month.

There is no regular release of Closer -- just this Superbit DVD. That means that the picture is very good. There are many close-ups in this film, and the textures on the actors' faces are immaculate. Closer has a muted color scheme, but the perfect black levels show that to be an intentional choice, not due to a bad transfer.

As an adapted play, Closer is dialogue-driven, so don’t expect your speakers to get a workout. There is a bit of action during a rainstorm and a visit to a strip club, but that's about it. The voices are all reproduced clearly, and while there is a bit of ambient noise, it is never allowed to overpower the conversation. The only extra on the disc, other than the previews you may have skipped over at the beginning, is a music video for Damien Rice's song "The Blower's Daughter."

Closer is an enjoyable film that takes a hard look at adult relationships. It may not be the most joyful or uplifting title you'll see this year, but it is worth a viewing.

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