Closer

A great soundtrack will reinforce the theme and mood of the movie, without taking away from the film. Mike Nichols' "Closer" (2004) follows four characters dealing with relationships and adultery, and in doing so explores the meaning of love and the effect betrayal has on someone. The characters in film, as well as the film itself, are beautiful, yet it is full of depression.

The use of song throughout the film is minimal, but every song picked, does have an underlying tone of adultery or depressing beauty. Even the opera, Così fan tutte, in which Dan (Jude Law) and Anna (Julia Roberts) attend, while in the midst of an adulterous affair, is about fiancée swapping. (And unless you are an opera buff, there is no way you would know this).


The minimal use of song in the movie reinforces the minimal aspect of the movie in that we are simply watching four emotionally corrupt people hurt and destroy the ones that they claim to love.



Two of the songs struck me as a perfect puzzle piece fit for the films theme and mood, The Smiths' "How Soon is Now?" and Rice's "Blower's Daughter." The two songs, although different in style, The Smiths being an 80s indie rock band, and Rice an Irish folk singer of the late 90s, are similar in their beautiful outside that is laced with depressing lyrics.

"How Soon is Now?" plays while Larry (Clive Owen) is talking with Alice (Natalie Portman), at a strip club. He is questioning Alice, prying into her personal life, and the song plays faintly in the background, so faintly in fact, if you weren't looking for it you may not have noticed the switch from the strip club music that had been previously playing seconds earlier.

Although the song is obviously not the main feature of the scene, the lyrics, "You shut your mouth/How can you say/I go about things the wrong way/I am Human and I need to be loved/Just like everybody else does," is exactly what Alice would be thinking in the scene, but would never say.

In contrast, Rice's "Blower's Daughter," is the main feature of the opening and ending scenes of "Closer." The film opens as Dan and Alice walk towards each other on a busy street, only for her to be hit by a car. The beauty of their love at first sight is crushed by the accident.

The use of "Blower's Daughter," in the final scene as Anna is in bed with Larry, who has already fallen asleep, brings the viewer back to the beginning of the film. The first lyrics, "Life goes easy on me/Most of the time," leaves the viewer understanding that although this is what Anna wants, there is a part of her that will always be unhappy. "And so it is.../No love, no glory," are exactly the emotions that Anna leaves the viewer with.

As Alice, goes back to America, and we find that her real name is plain Jane Jones, as the line "I can't take my eyes off of you," repeats. The fact of the matter is that throughout the entire movie it is hard to take your eyes off of Portman, whether she is sporting short red hair, a cleaner longer brown bob, a pink wig as a stripper, or as the movie closes with long curly brown hair.

The repetition of the song leaves me with a more reinforced understanding that these people have not learned from their mistakes and will continue to make them in the future.

"Closer," is a great film, and although the soundtrack is minimal, it is effective, emotional and raw, just like the movie.