Plot: What’s it about?
Slim (Jennifer Lopez) is a laid back, working class waitress, but when she finds her dream man, she thinks life will become paradise. She plans to have a child soon and with her new husband Mitch (Bill Campbell), she dreams of a family of her very own, complete with happiness and satisfaction. But Mitch is not the perfect man she envisioned, as once their first child is born, a new and darker side is exposed. He begins to show his true colors, which means bitter jealousy, paranoia, controlling tendencies, and before too long, outright physical abuse. Of course, she leaves with their daughter and tries to escape to a new life, but around every corner, Mitch awaits to cause her more pain and torment. She looks to her ex-husband for assistance, finding only more abuse from Mitch as a result, leaving her little choice but to depend on the law. But as it turns out, her lawyer insists Mitch will not punished for his actions and this triggers something inside of Slim, as she realizes if she wants Mitch gone, only she can make it happen…
This one is bad, but then again, anyone could tell that from the trailers, which were downright hilarious in their own right. But not only is Enough bad, it is destined to become a camp classic, one of those movies that is so bad, it lives in cult status forever. The movie has a bankable star in Jennifer Lopez, a solid premise in modern times, and a gifted director in Michael Apted (Enigma, The World is Not Enough), but nothing seems to go right, leaving Enough as a total comedy of errors. The issues involved include domestic abuse and stalking, which need to be handled in a serious fashion here, but even with such heavy subject matter, you can’t help but chuckle here. I mean, Lopez seems to think she’s in the most important role of all time, which adds a lot of humor, while the writing varies from solid to simply awful. The mix is a volatile one, as lots of movies have suffered from these mistakes, but Enough does so with gusto, which leads me to believe it should become a camp classic for years to come. I more than recommend this to fans of bad cinema, but with a rumored Special Edition on the horizon, a rental should suffice until then.
As I mentioned above, the subjects dealt with in Enough are very serious, but even so, its obvious Jennifer Lopez tries a little hard to be serious here. I mean, I’m surprised the cast can keep a straight face at times, let alone give the dead serious effort Lopez does. She seems to believe this role is the one that will bring her piles of awards, even when the writing tanks into the deep, she continues with her approach. This style works when the material is superb, but the material here often stinks and by turn, it just makes Lopez’s performance laughable. But I am glad she chose this method, as it makes Enough a highly entertaining picture. Other films with Lopez include Anaconda, Angel Eyes, Out of Sight, The Wedding Planner, and The Cell. The cast also includes Bill Campbell (The Rocketeer, Menno’s Mind), Juliette Lewis (Natural Born Killers, From Dusk Til Dawn), and Dan Futterman (Urbania, The Birdcage).
Video: How does it look?
Enough is presented in a 2.40:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, with a pan & scan edition also included on this dual layered disc. This is a solid looking visual effort, but not up to the usual level of excellent from Columbia’s new releases. Although sharpness is keen, a more than acceptable amount of edge enhancement is obvious here, which really shows up if you watch the film on a larger television. This doesn’t ruin the experience, but it does lessen the impact of the visuals and that’s bad news. I found colors to be well presented, true to the film’s muted visual scheme, while contrast is even handed throughout. Not quite the dynamic presentation I had expected, but still a more than solid overall treatment.
Audio: How does it sound?
The included Dolby Digital 5.1 mix is good, but lacks the depth I expected, since this kind of thriller can really benefit from dynamic presence. I expected the tension to be enhanced by the audio, but aside from the musical score, the surrounds remain dormant in most scenes. A few sequences wake up the speakers a little, but on the whole, this is a plain old, basic treatment. It sounds good enough though, as dialogue is clean and well balanced, while sound effects come through well, just without much punch. This disc also includes a French language option, as well as subtitles in English and French.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc includes a Jennifer Lopez music video, as well as the film’s theatrical trailer.
