ENOUGH SAID (2013)
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
A masseuse by trade, Eva (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) is a single mom raising a smart, thoughtful daughter who is ready to go to college. Eva has her friends, including Sarah (Toni Collette), who has issues with her Hispanic maid, and Will (Ben Falcone) who seems to question every phrase uttered by Sarah. When Eva meets the gregarious Albert (James Gandolfini) at a party (he works at a cultural museum of TV history), he also questions every phrase uttered by Eva after they start dating. The difference is that Albert has ample charm and a big heart, despite being divorced with a teenager who is also going away to college. At the party, Eva also meets a self-absorbed poet (Catherine Keener) who happens to know Joni Mitchell and hardly anybody else. Eva agrees to massage Marianne and, in a strange coincidence, discovers that Marianne was married to Albert - the clue has to do with Albert's need to remove onions from guacamole (which are essential to its divine taste, but never mind). So Eva has a dilemma since she chooses not to reveal to Marianne that she knows her ex, and does not reveal to Albert that she knows his ex.
Some viewers may scoff and poo-poo this sophisticated and sly romantic comedy, mainly because it deals with people who have jobs, drive hybrid cars, have money to send their daughters off to college and are mostly concerned with having a significant other. This is an L.A story about the middle class though I think it is not intended to be a liberal film from La-La Land. "Enough Said" is a sweet film with a sweet roster of actors, and in no great hurry to tell its simple story. It is about love for others, despite creating complications that could hinder relationships. Eva is the one who creates the unneeded complications but without them, the movie would not work as well. In a subtle way that slowly reveals itself in short strokes of brilliance thanks to Dreyfus's performance and the humanistic and witty script by writer-director Nicole Holofcener, we discover that Eva may be a little unhappy and uncertain of a life where she lives alone. It threatens her existence, especially her daughter leaving for the East Coast and we see why she warms up to her daughter's best friend. Without spelling it out in exclamation marks, Eva also needs Albert for his kindness and his humor - they are a perfect fit as a couple despite her remarks about his weight.
Between Gandolfini's change-of-pace role as a man as huggable as a teddy bear (shame it is one of his last two roles before his passing) and Dreyfus's wily demeanor, "Enough Said" is an understated emotional experience. I'd give Dreyfus a big hug and an Oscar alone for the cliched airport scene where her daughter departs - Dreyfus brings such warmth and pathos to it, including the other actors, that it feels new again. "Enough Said" is not a movie enamored with itself. It is a movie enamored with being enamored. Nuff said.
