Nature Boy McGregor's character, Christian. Some of the film's premise was based on the lyrics, in particular the opening lines. The closing lyric, "The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return" is used throughout the film. While reviewing "Moulin Rouge!", Erickson noted that "[by] itself, ['Nature Boy'] redeems the wonderful idea behind Luhrmann's flawed but often wonderful movie." The song was performed by Rodrigo Santoro in the film "Heleno" (2012), during the radio interview when he asks if he could sing a song for his wife and son. Cole's version was again played at the
Nature Boy tune and lyrics feature prominently in the film "Untamed Heart" (1993), for which Cole's version was used during the closing credits, while a piano version by Roger Williams served as the opener for the film. The song was also played in intermediate scenes featuring the principal cast. Miles Davis' recording of "Nature Boy" was used in the film "The Talented Mr. Ripley" (1999). In the book "Music, Movies, Meanings, and Markets: Cinemajazzamatazz", author Morris Holbrook described the song as a "nondiegetic performance", exemplifying the plot development and sexual tension in the scene featuring Matt Damon and Jude Law play chess,