Enemy
(Denis Villeneuve)
There are a few instances when you watch a film, then the credits roll and you sit back and wonder what the hell just happened. Enemy, upon first glance would indicate this, but in reality, it's pretty straight forward. Gyllenhaal, who plays a college professor rents a movie based on a recommendation from a colleague. While watching it he spots a man, who looks exactly like him. He looks him up online and rents two more of his films. He believes he's found his doppelganger and becomes obsessed with finding out who he is and why such a thing exists. Based on José Saramago's The Double.
In this Kafka-esque psychological thriller, Villeneuve plays with the audience and expectation. The film unravels at a relatively slow pace, purposely mind you and engages the viewer to ask questions about the images depicted on the screen. Villeneuve doesn't give answers, he throws jigsaw puzzle pieces at the screen and asks the viewer to put them together. The question of "are there really two of them?" creeps into the back of your mind as you watch this dream like story unfold. Maybe they are two sides to one subconscious? Giant spiders make you question the sanity of characters and blurs the line of what we are to believe.
Enemy is reminiscent of David Lynch, in tone, pacing, ambiguous imagery and dark characters. Gyllenhaal has made a name for himself as a serious actor, no longer the pretty boy for disaster flicks (Day After Tomorrow) or generic rom-coms (Love and Other Drugs) he's finding a niche that suits him perfectly (Enemy, Nightcrawler, Prisoners, Nocturnal Animals) and I look forward to more chances to go down the rabbit hole with him.
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