‘Closer’ not close to the mark

Can four beautiful, self-serving people find lasting love and

happiness? That’s the question raised and never fully answered in

director Mike Nichols’ “Closer.”

This is definitely a movie for adults. It’s a dark, bitter

diatribe about sex, lust, lies, betrayal, lies and -- oh yes -- love.

Dan (Jude Law) is an aspiring novelist who writes obituaries for a

London newspaper. Alice (Natalie Portman) is a stripper who recently

fled New York and a bad relationship. Anna (Julia Roberts) is an

American photographer just coming off a bad marriage. Rounding out

this quartet is Larry (Clive Owen), a randy dermatologist who likes

to have cyber-sex in his hospital office.

So, round and round we go, lots of “meet cutes,” flirting,

painfully articulate confessions, broken hearts and betrayals upon

betrayals.

These four display no genuine intimacy. Their urges to couple and

then push one another’s buttons seem motivated more by a desire to

inflict pain than anything else.

The performances, especially by Clive Owen, are creepy and

fascinating -- they entice you to watch them and yet look away at the

same time. Not since 1966’s “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” -- also

directed by Nichols -- have I heard such venomous dialogue, and it

leaves you reeling afterward.

Watching the characters volley their affections and hurtful ways

around like ping-pong balls, you feel that whomever they wind up

with, they truly deserve each other.

It’s all just a game, and to the winner goes the spoiled.

* SUSANNE PEREZ lives in Costa Mesa and is an executive assistant

for a financial services company.

‘Daggers’ on target

“House of Flying Daggers” is filled with ancient Chinese warriors

who are equal parts soldier, gymnast, mystic and daredevil. Their

stage is set by the magnificent, sweeping countryside of lush forests

and streams as they might have looked a thousand years ago. The

haunting music transports the viewer to that time long ago when the

legendary action takes place.

If you saw “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” you know exactly where

this new movie is coming from. They both star the stunning Chinese

actress and acrobat Zhang Ziyi. Her petite size contradicts the

awesome physical abilities she brings to the screen. The two male

rivals for her affection, played by Andy Lau and Takeshi Keneshiro,

fully complement her acting talent and martial-arts prowess.

Director Zhang Yimou makes ample use of CGI and ballet-style

choreography to highlight the battle scenes. But the special effects

are subservient to the drama of loyalty, love and betrayal. Unusual

for an action film, the personal realities and intertwined feelings

of the main characters are the true focus of the plot. This also

lends the slowly developing story to more than a touch of melodrama.

The operatic ending is overwrought and 10 minutes too long. But the

nearly supernatural beauty of all that comes before makes this film

well worth watching for fans of the genre.

* JOHN DEPKO is a Costa Mesa resident and a senior investigator

for the Orange County public defender’s office.