52 Pick-Up # 38 – Enemy (2013)

Oh. Hey there.

What do you mean what am I doing? I'm working on this week's write up.

No, I didn't post it already. How could I post it already if I'm still working on it?

You saw me post the link? Okay, that's just not possible. Again, how could I link it if I'm still working on--

Okay, I'd be tempted to see how much further I could take this joke, but I feel like it would start becoming convoluted quickly and eventually lead to me making two different posts for this movie that would try to intersect and mostly just turn into a mess.

Was at least worth the set-up.

With that said, welcome back to 52 Pick Up. For those just joining in, this makes month 9 of a year long project to get in 52 first time watches and logging initial impressions of them as a way to keep up writing.

For this week, I'm continuing to dovetail off of two points from last week's entry. The first of these being that this is another title that was chosen as part of an intention to fill the gaps in a particular director's filmography. In this case, this makes a second gap filled in the work of Denis Villeneuve with his 2013 psychological thriller, Enemy.

As a pitch goes, this feels a bit more straightforward than the previous Villeneuve movie, which is funny given the actual execution is more elaborate, but I digress. Enemy starts by introducing us to Adam Bell (Jake Gyllenhaal, in one of two roles), a history professor in a fairly routine life. One day, a colleague making small talk recommends a movie to him. Despite saying he's not normally one for movies, Adam takes up the suggestion. As he watches, he becomes struck by the fact that one of the supporting actors looks like him. Exactly like him. What starts as a curiosity soon becomes an obsession as Adam soon finds himself trying to first find, then meet the actor (Anthony, again, also played by Gyllenhall.) Anthony is initially confused and repulsed by Adam, until he finally meets him face to face and the uncanny resemblance becomes too much to deny. Especially as the two seem to start feeling as though their existences may be overlapping.

Okay, maybe not AS straightforward as I was saying, but a doppleganger reveal is easier to sum up without giving too much way than the events of Incendies.

So, some of you may now be wondering what the other point mentioned above was for dovetailing off of last time. In this case, I'm now two for two on movies I've come away from feeling like I may need more time than the allotted week or so to really work out how I felt on this one. Just as a first impression goes, there's a lot I liked here: Villeneuve has a good sense of tone here, a strong cast (especially, again, Gyllenhaal on double duty), and there's a number of stylistic flourishes I respected from a presentation standpoint. I think part of what I'm still mulling over/unpacking with this goes to the ambiguity on display in the movie. 

Going off of the above mentioned style flourishes, there's a fair amount about this that is left unsaid. There are multiple ways one could read, for example, the mystery of Adam/Anthony, two individuals so physically similar as to even share certain scars. Further, there's a question of if there are truly two individuals or the single man living a double life. Adding to this is some of the striking visuals the movie employs with spiders and spider-like imagery around these two men (or possibly one man) lending some further food for thought that, I have to admit, I'm still turning over. In general, I rather like the fact the movie doesn't spell this out and leaves it as something to turn over. But, as I said, it also means I'm still gonna be thinking on this one for a bit past this general first impression.

As it is now, it's not the best I've seen from Villeneuve, but hey, in general I haven't seen him miss so far, so that's still not a bad place to be.

But, even as I let this one keep rolling in my brain, the project goes on. With one week left, September has one more title on deck, and once again, I'm addressing a gap in a director's work. This time, I'm addressing a loose end of Yorgos Lanthimos as I close out September with The Killing of a Sacred Deer.

From all reports, this also will help serve as a lead-in to October, and having rolled that one up? Ooooh, this has potential to be a fun month.

But, let's not get too far ahead.

Till next time with The Killing of a Sacred Deer.