ENOUGH SAID – The Review

All right you kids, get out of the pool! Time to give the adults a chance to have some fun! Now by “pool” I really mean movie romances, perhaps even the much maligned “rom-com”.  Middle aged folks can still meet cute and fall in love, right? Even if they’ve been down the aisle before. I mean, it’s possible. Just like in the old crooner standard “The Second Time Around”. That notion is explored in the new film from independent writer/director Nicole Holofcener. She’s made a name for herself over the last decade with her low-key character studies which always feature the talented actress Catherine Keener. Holofcener has also been prolific in television and has cast several TV stars in her last couple of features like Jennifer Aniston in FRIENDS WITH MONEY. Her new film casts two iconic tube actors in this tender love story with a rather offbeat title, ENOUGH SAID. Yeah, well it’s so wonderful I’ve got a bit more to say.

The film’s main focus is Eva (Julia Louis Dreyfus), a fifty-something divorced private masseuse, who is facing the dreaded empty nest as her only child, daughter Ellen (Tracey Fairaway), prepares to move away to college (all the way across the country!). Maybe Eva should re-enter the dating scene. Her best pals, psychiatrist Sarah (Toni Collette) and hubby Will (Ben Falcone), bring her along to a fancy party. There Eva meets celebrated poet Marianne (Keener), who wants to be her new massage client. Also at that party Eva meets a funny, soft-spoken, big bear of a guy, Albert (James Gandolfini) who also has a college-bound daughter. They seem to make a connection and when Will tells her that he wants to call her up for a date, she happily agrees. Even though he’s not her physical type, Eva is slowly drawn to the kind and gentle museum curator (it’s a place for folks to study old TV shows…cool!). And Eva acquires a new friend in Marianne as the two bond during the massage sessions. They talk about their previous marriages and Marianne tells several disparaging stories about her ex-husband and before she can speak his name Eva realizes she’s talking about Albert! What to do? Eva likes her, so maybe she can keep her secret. But the “loser” Albert stories continue. Will this poison her new romance?

The absolutely stellar supporting cast never hits a false note. Falcone is endearing as the loveable goofy (and often frisky) hubby who displays more down-to-earth “horse sense” in dealing with a slight home crisis (a bumbling housekeeper in a great sub-plot) than his more educated spouse. Said spouse, played by the always great Collette, is a great pal/sidekick to Dreyfus, often close to the Lucy/Ethel dynamic. She seems always on the verge of rolling her eyes at her apparently clueless husband, but can’t really hide her affection for him. Fairaway seems also embarrassed by her clinging mother and tries to push her away, but is really hurt when Mom spends time with Ellen’s younger, very clingy BFF Chloe (the very funny Tavi Gevenson). And then there’s the etherial nurturing Earth-mother Marianne played to the hilt by the always compelling Keener. Eva believes this poet-domestic goddess is perfect (“No cellulite! None!), but she (and the audience) sees her cruel, ugly side when she speaks about her far, far from perfect ex. It’s a different take on “the other woman” role in romantic films. She doesn’t want her ex back, but she may break up his new relationship without realizing it.

In the main leads, we see a very different side to these two actors we’ve enjoyed so much on the small screen. Ladies first: this film is the best big screen work we’ve seen from the once and future (in reruns) Elaine/”old” Christine/VP Selena Meyer. The awkward klutz/wisegal is there, but Eva’s closer to real adult than most of Dreyfus’s previous roles. She’s almost heart-broken that her baby is leaving for school, but knows that she has even more love to share with the right someone. Even when she thinks she’s found him, somehow she tries to wreck things. Kudos to Drefyus for taking on a character who is often not likeable. I was amazed at how fast the audience turned on her after a cruel comment during a disastrous dinner party scene. But then, a few scenes later, she got us back on her side and rooting for her to triumph. This makes her tearful comeuppance very powerful. Dreyfus has had a fantastic acting career, but this work proves, that her best may be yet to come.

I so, so wish I could say the same for her co-star. His role of Albert drives home the great loss from earlier this year with Gandolfini’s shocking death. We’ll only get one more big screen visit from him (next year in ANIMAL RESCUE), but it’s not nearly enough. The sweet, vulnerable, funny Albert is so different from the belligerent, bellowing Jersey mobster and most of his feature film work (KILLING THEM SOFTLY and NOT FADE AWAY were not that far from “big Tone”). This film would’ve opened up an even greater variety of roles for the gifted actor. Albert may be a bit hefty, but he’s the “good guy” that women claim to be trying to find. He’s a true romantic lead. But there will be no more leads like this. But the film is far from sad. It’s a celebration of his talents and a wonderful, almost final gift from this iconic actor.

But really, honestly, the film is very funny. The banter between the two leads seems so natural, the chemistry completely unforced. This may be the best adult movie romance, well since MURPHY’S ROMANCE (1985?C’mon!). There’s no exaggerated cartoonish characters here, even the exes are good people. Eva’s ex-husband is not a venal creep and his younger new wife is kind and understanding, not an empty-headed bimbo. This all comes from Holofcener’s finely tuned script. She directs it with a steady confident hand, and never telegraphs a punchline or an emotional moment. I think it’s her best work and it’s one of the very best films of the year. So, is this film really worth your time? Yes! It’s wonderful! ENOUGH SAID, indeed!

5 Out of 5 Stars

ENOUGH SAID screens exclusively in the St. Louis area at Landmark’s Tivoli and Plaza Frontenac cinemas