Enemy, the glorious head-scratcher from French Canadian director Denis Villeneuve (Prisoners, Incendies, Sicario, the upcoming Story of Your Life and Blade Runner 2), is a twisted mystery with all sorts of philosophically loaded implications. Is it the slyest version of Invasion of the Body Snatchers that’s ever been pulled off? Is it a metaphysical exploration of divided souls hovering in a unique state of otherworldly stasis? Is it the simple yet complex story of one many having a nervous breakdown? Or is it none of those things and something completely different? That’s the brilliance of this tricky, multi-layered, and extra-creepy piece of work, which features an on-fire Jake Gyllenhaal in dual performances. One version of Jake is a regular office dweller, repressed and atypical, going about his daily routine without much in the way of surprise, and the other Jake is the ultimate version of himself, what we project ourselves to be: Commanding, sexy, dangerous, and strong. When the two of these entities “meet,” the film becomes a mind-twisting exploration of identity and fate, all filtered through the always intriguing notion of the doppelganger. Based on Jose Saramago’s novel The Double, Villeneuve shoots in Fincher-esque pea-soup green and piss-stained yellow, giving the film an ominous visual sheen that’s both highly sketchy and ugly-slick. Each shot is perfectly designed, and I’m sure a frame-by-frame analysis of this film would be immensely rewarding. And then there’s the film’s final shot, which is a massive doozy, a true show-stopper, a legit candidate for the most WTF moment of any cinematic year. Actually, make that the film’s last TWO shots. It’ll create the impulse to hit the rewind button on your Blu-ray remote, as the stunned look on your face quickly gives way to nervous laughter, and then full on dread, followed by a discussion with yourself or the person(s) you’re watching it with. This is a hot-blooded mental-mind-fuck that will play twister with your brain.
Podcasting Them Softly 