The relationships of two couples become complicated and deceitful when the man from one couple meets the woman of the other.
Acting
Portman and Owen destroy absolutely everything.
Writing
Marber's play bleeds acid — every line cuts both ways.
Direction
Nichols makes a stage play cinematic through sheer brutality.
Director
Mike Nichols
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Natalie Portman was 22 and had already dropped out of Harvard; she fought for the role after seeing the London stage production. Clive Owen originated Larry on stage but nearly lost the film role to an American actor Nichols wanted.
The film revived the '00s trend of stage-to-screen adaptations that refused to open up the action — instead embracing theatrical claustrophobia as aesthetic choice, influencing everything from 'Carnage' to 'Ma Rainey'.
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