I recently watched Enemy, the 2013 Denis Villeneuve Hollywood movie starring Jake Gyllenhaal in not just one but two roles. The film is a psychological thriller where the psychological overshadows the thriller part. At least, this is what I feel about the Enemy movie.
Enemy is a good one-time watch piece of intense cinema, provided you can comprehend it. The film has some great acting, a decent background score, a couple of disturbing scenes, and a somewhat non-linear and deliberately baffling storyline. An Indian Cinema lover would find it extremely taxing to digest this masterpiece from Denis Villeneuve. Yes, you read it right! Enemy, although a turkey, is definitely one of the best psychological thrillers of the last decade. In fact, the film will definitely rank amongst Jake Gyllenhaal’s best performances.
The beauty of this film lies in the fact that till the very end, in fact, even after the end it gives you options to conclude it as per your understanding. The director has deliberately left much of the climax for the audience to work out. You never understand whether there were protagonists or just one living a double life.
Enemy 2013 Movie Storyline
Enemy is a movie that brilliantly plays with its melancholic landscape in increasingly tense ways throughout its short yet sluggish runtime. The film starts oddly. Adam Bell (Jake Gyllenhaal) watches a movie and finds that it has a person who looks exactly like him. It’s like he is his twin. After doing some research, Adam finds out that his name is Anthony Claire (Jake Gyllenhaal), a small-time actor. It is here that the confusing but interesting part starts for the audience. As Adam gets obsessed with Anthony, the difference between reality and imagination blurs. Adam is a college professor and lives a dull life, while Anthony has all the action in his life.
At first, we see how Adam is trying hard to be like Anthony. But as Anthony’s dark nature is revealed, Adam tries to stay away from him. Adam understands that it is difficult for him to be like Anthony, and he should focus on his own life instead of trying to become someone else.
The film closes with an open end where the audience is left puzzled. You fail to know who was real between these two men. Most likely the answer is only one man existed and the other one was simply nothing but a figment of his imagination (in Adam’s case his dark carnal desires). If you want to know more about the ending of Enemy movie, then check out our article here. In this article, I have explained all the possible endings of this 2013 masterclass from Denis Villeneuve.
The Rating and Conclusion
I will rate this film 8 out of 10. Jake Gyllenhaal’s acting is out of the world and knows no limits. He literally carries this 90 minutes film on his shoulders alone. Enemy is a good movie. However, don’t expect yourself to understand it after one watch. It took me time to understand the film, and I watched it twice before writing this review for you. The movie is currently available on Amazon Prime Video. I suggest if you want something difficult to understand, then this is for you. But if you don’t want to put pressure on your mind, skip this one. Watch it for the complexities and brilliance of cinema but don’t expect anything good from it to take home.
The World of Movies Rating: 8/10
Movie Title: Enemy
Directed by: Denis Villeneuve
Based on: The Double by José Saramago
Main Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal as Adam Bell and Anthony Claire, Mélanie Laurent as Mary, Sarah Gadon as Helen Claire, Isabella Rossellini as Mother.
Year of Release: 2013
Commercial Release: 2014
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Drama, Psychological
Country of Origin: Canada, Spain, France
Languages: English
Running Time: 90 minutes
Production Company: Pathé, Entertainment One
Image Source: Screenshots taken from the movie.