Closure

Closure (2007)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Alice (Gillian Anderson) is a successful business woman who has to attend a dinner for her work. She asks Adam (Danny Dyer) to take her to this party even though they've only known each other for a few minutes. The two attend the party and then on the way home they are attacked by three men. Adam is severely beaten and Alice is raped. The two of them suffer the mental strain of what happened and soon Alice thinks it would be best to get revenge on the attackers.

CLOSURE was originally titled STRAIGHTHEADS when it was released in Britain but when it came to America it was given a new title and went straight-to-DVD, which is understandable because there's really nothing here that demands for it to have been shown in a theater. The quality of the picture is also lacking and with the rather graphic story it's doubtful too many people would have lined up on a Friday night to check this thing out. Part of me wanted to enjoy this movie more than I actually did but there's just no way to get around the fact that there were all sorts of problems here.

As you can tell, this is yet another rape/revenge tale and there have been countless ones made over the past few decades. You've got trash like THE LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT and I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE as well as masterpieces like DEATH WISH. This film here doesn't really know if it wants to be a serious look at rape and its aftermath or if it just wants to be some sort of graphic revenge tale ala the remake of I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE. The film doesn't know what it wants to do so the viewer is pretty much just sitting there waiting for something to unfold and there were just too many logical issues that I had with the picture.

For starters, not for a second did I buy the relationship between Alice and Adam. The problem I had is that after the rape we pretty much jump a month ahead and the two are emotionally distraught from the ordeal. That is fine but the screenplay makes Adam a real mess of a character. Crying. Can't perform sexually. He really becomes a broken nut case. I understand he got beaten but at the same time I have a hard time believing he would be so connected to Alice, a woman he knew for a matter of hours before the attack. I've read reviews where people called Adam a baby and a whiner but I don't mind seeing a "weak" guy on screen but the problem is the screenplay just doesn't do the character or the situation any favors.

There's a twist that happens and some graphic violence that finally comes up. Both of these are handles quite well but at the same time it pretty much goes against what came before it. The film clocks in at a very brief 80-minutes, which is very short for a film from this period. There are some good moments here including the performances by the two leads. This is especially true for Anderson who was very believable in the role of the rape victim and I really loved the little touches she brought to the scenes right after the rape as well as her mental state throughout the entire film.

CLOSURE is an okay film but the flaws keep it from being anything better. As it stands, fans of the rape/revenge genre might want to check it out but others should probably start somewhere else.