- published: 16 May 2016
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Close My Eyes is a 1991 film written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff and starring Alan Rickman, Clive Owen and Saskia Reeves as well as Lesley Sharp and Karl Johnson. Music was by Michael Gibbs (who also did the music for Poliakoff's next film Century) and the film was produced for Beambright and Film Four International by Therese Pickard.
The film won the Evening Standard film award for best picture in 1991.
The film opens in 1985. Town planning student Richard Gillespie (Clive Owen) walks through a scene of tower-blocks en-route to visit his older sister Natalie (Saskia Reeves), whom he is not very close to since they each grew up with a different parent after their parents divorced. Natalie has recently bought a fairly noisy apartment with her lover only to have him leave her within two months. She is also unhappy in her job as a buyer. On Richard's insistence, they go for a late-night walk and Natalie seems to cheer up, but on waking in the middle of the night, due to loud music from the neighboring apartment, Richard finds Natalie still awake and still extremely depressed. Richard's attempts to lighten the mood are ended when Natalie pulls him into a somewhat passionate embrace, although she immediately apologizes and makes the excuse she just wanted someone to hug. Richard does not seem to have a reaction.
Nothing can save me now.
I'm not quite sure if it's as real as it feels right,
but things will change,
and change for the worse tonight.
..and if tomorrow ever comes, it will be too soon because
it's over and nothing can save us now.
Soon you will know.
I thought I'd breathe somehow.
..but nothing can save me now.
Should I just close my eyes, pretending not to see the
faded color of your tattooed memory?
Please try and read between the lines.
Maybe everything will work out fine.
Maybe is still maybe.
I didn't plan on this..a chance missed to haunt my past.
What you took from me, I don't think is coming back.
This skin - deep smile, to no avail..
This skin - deep smile, it won't save me.
..keep smiling...
I'll keep dying.
This pain I'm not surviving.
I'm not surviving alone.
I can't do this on my own.