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Jennifer Lopez (Out of Sight, Selena) plays Slim. Here, Lopez has created a very engaging character. Looking around the theatre while Slim was trying to deal with her husbands’ newfound attributes, I saw at least five heads nodding in agreement with her frustrations. Lopez does an exceptional job at making those terrible moments real, with layers of disbelief and resignation overriding anger. Lopez makes Slim a strong woman, refusing to stay in a bad marriage, taking her daughter to (she hopes) something better. I think a large part of Lopez’ appeal lies in the fact that she is so instantly likeable that she makes the audience want to help her, and be friends with her. A very sympathetic performance. Bill Campbell (The Rocketeer, Bram Stoker’s Dracula) plays Slim’s abusive husband Mitch. He has done an eerily good job. After all, Campbell has got such an innocent face, that were you to pass him on the street, you might simply assume that he was a grown up Gerber baby food model. It is not only his acting talents, but also the fact that he looks like the sweetest man alive that makes him so effective in this role. His swift transition from loving partner to sadistic twerp makes him all the more terrifying, making the point that his type of behaviour could be hiding behind anyone. (Rows of people were actually pushing themselves backwards in their chairs to obtain the maximum allowable distance from Campbell.) The thing that I don’t get, is though the role of Mitch is a bold career move for this actor, his fan base is composed almost entirely of women who love him as the sweetheart. When Campbell’s fans think of him, most generally they have fleeting images of him with a rocket pack strapped to him, or have thoughts of his amorous role on Once and Again spring to mind. He has done such an effective job here as the creep that those who love him as the ardent suitor may think twice about indulging in his next outing.
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Enough
tells the story of Slim, a waitress who thinks she’ll never fall in love.
Until a chivalrous act leads her to Mitch, a knight in shining armour.
But all is not as it seems, as one discovery after another leads her to
realize just how little she knows about her husband/father of her child.
To say nothing of his dangerous, darker side.
The
thing that differentiates Enough from most of the revenge movies
out there is it’s frank examination of the darker side of the psyche, just
how far you’ll go when pushed. I am all for that. After all, it’s the movies
that make you think, that keep you talking, that turn into classics of
their genre. The problem here is that for the self examination to work
Enough
also needed to blaze another beacon; that of “Violence is NOT a superb
problem solving method.” It doesn’t. Enough spends it’s first hour
and a half setting up the characters of Slim and Mitch as Good vs Evil.
Slim is trying to escape this awful man, and save her daughter from a terrible
life. Then, as she realizes that she can’t outrun him, she begins training
in self defence for his eventual arrival. Again, great. I am also all for
movies that shout out “Stand up for yourself!!” which is something that
Enough
is truly trying to say. The first hour and a half made Slim into an admirable
character. She was brave, strong and smart. She would have had to have
been to survive with a maniac like Mitch on her tail. The first hour and
a half sets her up as a character to root for. I found myself thinking
“FANTASTIC!! A movie with a woman who’s going to refuse to be a damsel
in distress.” I think training to defend yourself in case of psychopath
(as she did) is a good idea. However, all this excellent set up is lost
in the final act of the film. (Have no fear, I’m not about to give away
anything not seen in the trailers.) The final act of the film does not
feature Mitch breaking into Slim’s home and endangering her as the tagline
would suggest, it in fact has Slim stalking Mitch, breaking into his home,
waiting for him to return from work, and then attacking him. This in my
opinion, lowers her character to the level of his. What makes her following
him any different from him pursuing her? They both had the same intentions;
to kill the other. Enough’s tag line boasts proudly that “self defence
is not murder,” then proceeds to show it’s heroine committing the first
degree version of same. Some people have stated that
Enough is a
message movie, designed to get across the hope for the eradication of violence
against women. I think that’s a mighty idea. I too am hopeful that violence
against women can be eliminated. But, while I am hopeful of that, I am
also hopeful that all violence can be done away with completely as
a method of dealing with issues, and unfortunately the only moral message
that this movie delivers with any smack (if you’ll pardon the pun) at all
is that in order to get what you want, go beat the tar out of someone.
If only this movie had seen the set up through to it’s inevitable conclusion
it would have been a ridiculously frightening thriller. By missing the
point it’s lowered to the level of offensive. What a waste of fine actors.