Movie of the Week 70

Enough Said   2013   romance, comedy

James Gandolfini, in one of his last film roles, co-stars with Julia Louis-Dreyfus in this low budget, indie film written and directed by Nicole Holofcener. This is by far Holofcener’s best work to date.  The supporting cast is solid with Catherine Keener (a usual player in Holofcener's movies), Toni Collette and Ben Falcone. I was hooked when I saw the photo on the DVD jacket – Tony Soprano dating goofy Elaine from Seinfeld. I had to give it a try, so I popped the library rental into the player and watched with my wife, who is a big rom-com fan.

This is one of Gandolfini's best and most likable movie performances and Louis-Dreyfus has never been better. Julia Louis-Dreyfus plays Eva, a divorced, massage therapist who is not looking forward to her daughter going away to college. Eva meets a lot people in her business and gets invited to a party where she meets Albert (Gandolfini). Albert is a divorced father who is also soon to be an empty nester. Eva and Albert hit it off and begin dating. Later Eva becomes friends with Marianne, who happens to be Albert’s ex-wife. Marianne has no idea that Eva is dating Albert, and she is a motor mouth with plenty of negative stories about Albert. Sometimes it is really a small world, so the second part of the movie is about Eva’s dilemma of keeping her mouth shut and dealing with too much information on Albert. 

The film is amusing but not in a screwball, or slapstick way. It has a lot to say about second chance relationships, as well as family dynamics. Eva and Albert's characters drive the drama but it's the subtleties of the interactions between the two that makes it tangible & real and makes the whole film work. Albert lacks a polished veneer, but his honesty is refreshing and ultimately Eva sees him as a very caring and charming man. It's Louis-Dreyfus that really surprised me though. On 'Seinfeld' she was cast, like so many of the characters of that show, as a whiny, selfish, neurotic NYC Jew. I liked her better playing a normal, mature adult and considerate mother, and she helped make the movie true to life. Enough said.   

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