Fridae

Some of you younger readers may not know who Mike Nichols is. Way
back in the 1960s and 1970s, he blazed a trail in the American consciousness
with his ground-breaking sex dramas like Who's Afraid Of Virginia
Woolf? (with Elizabeth Taylor, 1966), The Graduate
(which made Dustin Hoffman an star overnight, 1967) and Carnal
Knowledge (with Jack Nicholson, 1971).

Since then, Mike has also made extraordinary films about the working
class like Silkwood (with Meryl Streep, 1986) and Working
Girls (with Melanie Griffith, 1988). Last year, he made the
acclaimed TV series Angels In America, which chronicle
the lives of gay men affected by AIDS when the disease first arrived
in the 1980s and no one was sure what it was.

And now, he gives you Closer, a powerfully-written, superbly-acted
drama about two men and two women who play the dangerous game of
seduction, hurt and rejection with one another. The sterling cast
comprises Julia Roberts, Natalie Portman, Jude Law and Clive Owen
— each one giving a high-voltage performance that makes this
sharp and elegant drama work.

Both Natalie and Clive have received Oscar nominations for their
supporting roles.