2014 has been a big year for nefarious “double” movies what with Jesse Eisenberg battling himself in “The Double” and the superior indie-head-games of “The One I Love.” But both of those films had a comedic tone that is completely lacking in the moody existential thriller “Enemy,” where a very-serious professor (played by Jake Gyllenhaal) encounters a more aggressive man who looks identical to him. And somehow, someway, there’s some business with a giant spider walking nonchalantly through the city…
If that doesn’t sound like it makes a lot of sense, that’s because “Enemy” doesn’t make a lot of sense going purely off of what’s on-screen. It’s a film that only really works if you go look up the wikipedia page or get into a lengthy googling of the film’s themes, plus the book it’s based off of. And even then there are plenty of things that don’t make sense. [What’s up with Melanie Laurent’s girlfriend character? Why does Gyllenhaal One seem so curiously disconnected to her? And why are there selective differences in Gyllenhaal One and Two in temperament in some scenes, but not others? Are they exactly like each other or aren’t they?]
The convoluted messages about “the spider” of fascism weaving its web over an area before you even know you’re caught or fascism wiping out individual identity are interesting, but it would have been even more interesting if the film had wanted to have that conversation. This is one of the many examples where a book is probably infinitely better, and maybe doesn’t translate as well to a purely visual medium. Grade: C…Although Once I Looked It Up, It Became a B