Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Number 80

I was trying to come up with a way to do a picture post that wouldn't take eight hours but realized that I was actually watching Number 80 on my movie list, so that works, too.

90. Borat
89. Chicago
88. Zoolander
87. Apollo 13
86. Grease
85. The Thin Red Line
84. Born Into Brothels: Calcutta's Red-Light District
83. The Natural
82. The Little Mermaid
81. Meet Me In St. Louis
80. Closer (2004)


What It Is:
The best word to describe this movie is "raw." It follows the love-hate-lives of four characters (the only in the movie): two American women and their male British lovers in London. All four stars are beautiful and tremendously talented. Daniel is an obituary writer who meets the stranger, Alice, a stripper from New York. Daniel writes a book about Alice, and then meets Anna, who is the photographer taking his picture for the dust jacket. An odd occurrence causes Daniel to introduce Anna to Larry, a dermatologist, at the local aquarium. It's based on a play by Patrick Marber, and is so real and revealing about love and sex that it's painful.

Why I Like It:
I think my love for documentaries makes me love this movie. As I said, it's very real and very revealing, like most documentaries. Julia Roberts and Clive Owen are two of my favorites, and Jude Law and Natalie Portman gained lots of respect from me. The movie is captivating, which is a testament to all four of their talents because not much happens. It's mostly talk, so to be so engaging really speaks wonders for them! Don't expect a feel good movie here, but for some reason, after watching it, I always feel closer to some ascertainable truth.

I Bet You Didn't Know:
Anna's exhibition is the only time all four characters are in the same room.

The play has a very different ending than the movie. If you want to know what it is, highlight the text in between the arrows. >> (The play closed with Dan and Anna speaking briefly on a park bench, several years after Alice and Dan's breakup. Dan tells her that Alice had been hit by a car in New York City and had died, and that he was the only one authorities could find to identify her body. However, the film closes showing Alice alive, well and confidently walking the streets of Manhattan. The very last shot as she's walking across a road in Manhattan is a pan/tilt up to a red "DON'T WALK" signal, thus hinting at the her fate as it is in the play.) <<

Memorable Moments:
The opening sequence with Damien Rice in the background is beautiful.
"I love everything about you that hurts."
"Dan: Everybody wants to be happy.
Larry: Depressives don't. They want to be unhappy to confirm they're depressed. If they were happy they couldn't be depressed anymore. They'd have to go out into the world and live. Which can be depressing. "
"It's a lie. It's a bunch of sad strangers photographed beautifully, and... all the glittering assholes who appreciate art say it's beautiful 'cause that's what they wanna see. But the people in the photos are sad, and alone... But the pictures make the world seem beautiful, so... the exhibition is reassuring which makes it a lie, and everyone loves a big fat lie."
"I would have loved you forever."

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