Review: J-Lo Movie Is Good 'Enough'
Lopez Surprisingly Effective In Role
'Enough' (PG-13)
(out of four)
What would it take to push you over the limit? What if it involved the safety of your child? Jennifer Lopez faces these questions in her new movie "Enough."
I don't think I'm alone in saying that I figured I wouldn't have to even see this movie because it sounds too much like the 1991 Julia Roberts film "Sleeping With The Enemy."
Not only that, J-Lo has pretty much worn out her welcome for me when it comes to the entertainment business. Thank goodness for preview screenings, because I must say I was pleasantly surprised by this one - it's a combination of good acting, directing, and an emotion-driven story - makes this movie worthy "enough" to make a trip to the theatre.
The movie starts off quickly with a pretty waitress named Slim (Lopez) meeting Mitch, played by Billy Campbell. He swoops in to save the day after he sees a young man trying to pick Slim up on a dare, which is enough to make her instantly smitten by the dashing stranger.
The scene skips ahead to their wedding and we see that the two are already talking about starting a family. Within moments, we shift ahead to the happy couple during the birth their baby, Gracie, and then again quickly to a few years later when the little girl is about 5 years old. Everything appears to be perfect as the family seems to be surrounded in wealth and happiness.
Gradually, Slim starts to notice that Mitch is less affectionate and her worst fears are realized when she discovers his mistress trying to contact him on his pager. She confronts him, and although he is able to manipulate her the first time, Slim finally stands up to him and says that the cheating has to stop.
This is when we get our first glimpse of the violence that Mitch is capable of, as he repeatedly slaps her and tells her the "way it's going to be," including the facts that he always gets what he wants and it is now understood that he will have his mistress if he so pleases.
Slim's friends are frightened for her and Gracie's lives, and help to get her out of the house and far away from danger. She moves out to Seattle, and while staying with her friend and ex-boyfriend, Joe, realizes that escaping from Mitch will not be easy.
He sends three thugs, posing as FBI, to Joe's apartment and after narrowly escaping, the mother and daughter tandem are forced to leave everything behind them and attempt to start new lives elsewhere. Mitch has not given up though, and eventually he finds them again to stake claim to what he wants.
The ladies escape again, but this time Slim realizes that the only way to stop Mitch is by extreme measures. After sending Gracie off to safety and through training, she becomes a human weapon and goes to finish what Mitch started. But can she free herself and her daughter from the torment that Mitch has imposed?
Lopez does, dare I say, a great job of expressing the various emotions necessary for the portrayal of her character. Her performance reminded me that I enjoyed most of her previous work, namely "Out of Sight" and "The Cell," and maybe some box-office success will move her to work on her films more than music, however successful that avenue may be. I've seen both, and I like her as an actress more.
The two real stars of the movie, however, are Campbell and newcomer Tessa Allen as Gracie.
Campbell is dark and menacing, and had the women in the audience vocalizing their disapproval of his ways. This character is definitely the antithesis of what we saw from him on TV's "Once and Again" and "The Rocketeer." Allen is wonderful as the young daughter and showed more range than some of her adult co-stars, joining Dakota Fanning ("I Am Sam") as a potential rising star of Hollywood.
Supporting roles are also turned in by Juliette Lewis ("The Way of the Gun") as Slim's waitress friend and Dan Futterman, who you may remember as Robin Williams' son in "The Birdcage," as Joe. Also appearing is "ER" doctor Noah Wylie as a key figure in the plot, and although his screen time is limited, he makes a good showing.
Director Michael Apted does a great job of not making the time and location jumps seem choppy or hard to follow. The film grabs on to you a little and you end up getting wrapped up in some of the more heated moments. The added emotional aspect of the child helps to tug on heartstrings, and it brings one to wonder just how many women and children are dealing with the real-life terror of abuse. --Patrick Morgan
(out of four)
What would it take to push you over the limit? What if it involved the safety of your child? Jennifer Lopez faces these questions in her new movie "Enough."
I don't think I'm alone in saying that I figured I wouldn't have to even see this movie because it sounds too much like the 1991 Julia Roberts film "Sleeping With The Enemy."
Not only that, J-Lo has pretty much worn out her welcome for me when it comes to the entertainment business. Thank goodness for preview screenings, because I must say I was pleasantly surprised by this one - it's a combination of good acting, directing, and an emotion-driven story - makes this movie worthy "enough" to make a trip to the theatre.
The movie starts off quickly with a pretty waitress named Slim (Lopez) meeting Mitch, played by Billy Campbell. He swoops in to save the day after he sees a young man trying to pick Slim up on a dare, which is enough to make her instantly smitten by the dashing stranger.
The scene skips ahead to their wedding and we see that the two are already talking about starting a family. Within moments, we shift ahead to the happy couple during the birth their baby, Gracie, and then again quickly to a few years later when the little girl is about 5 years old. Everything appears to be perfect as the family seems to be surrounded in wealth and happiness.
Gradually, Slim starts to notice that Mitch is less affectionate and her worst fears are realized when she discovers his mistress trying to contact him on his pager. She confronts him, and although he is able to manipulate her the first time, Slim finally stands up to him and says that the cheating has to stop.
This is when we get our first glimpse of the violence that Mitch is capable of, as he repeatedly slaps her and tells her the "way it's going to be," including the facts that he always gets what he wants and it is now understood that he will have his mistress if he so pleases.
Slim's friends are frightened for her and Gracie's lives, and help to get her out of the house and far away from danger. She moves out to Seattle, and while staying with her friend and ex-boyfriend, Joe, realizes that escaping from Mitch will not be easy.
He sends three thugs, posing as FBI, to Joe's apartment and after narrowly escaping, the mother and daughter tandem are forced to leave everything behind them and attempt to start new lives elsewhere. Mitch has not given up though, and eventually he finds them again to stake claim to what he wants.
The ladies escape again, but this time Slim realizes that the only way to stop Mitch is by extreme measures. After sending Gracie off to safety and through training, she becomes a human weapon and goes to finish what Mitch started. But can she free herself and her daughter from the torment that Mitch has imposed?
Lopez does, dare I say, a great job of expressing the various emotions necessary for the portrayal of her character. Her performance reminded me that I enjoyed most of her previous work, namely "Out of Sight" and "The Cell," and maybe some box-office success will move her to work on her films more than music, however successful that avenue may be. I've seen both, and I like her as an actress more.
The two real stars of the movie, however, are Campbell and newcomer Tessa Allen as Gracie.
Campbell is dark and menacing, and had the women in the audience vocalizing their disapproval of his ways. This character is definitely the antithesis of what we saw from him on TV's "Once and Again" and "The Rocketeer." Allen is wonderful as the young daughter and showed more range than some of her adult co-stars, joining Dakota Fanning ("I Am Sam") as a potential rising star of Hollywood.
Supporting roles are also turned in by Juliette Lewis ("The Way of the Gun") as Slim's waitress friend and Dan Futterman, who you may remember as Robin Williams' son in "The Birdcage," as Joe. Also appearing is "ER" doctor Noah Wylie as a key figure in the plot, and although his screen time is limited, he makes a good showing.
Director Michael Apted does a great job of not making the time and location jumps seem choppy or hard to follow. The film grabs on to you a little and you end up getting wrapped up in some of the more heated moments. The added emotional aspect of the child helps to tug on heartstrings, and it brings one to wonder just how many women and children are dealing with the real-life terror of abuse. --Patrick Morgan
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