Enough

written by Nicholas Kazan

directed by Michael Apted

starring Jennifer Lopez, Billy Campbell, Noah Wyle

The last time I watched a film starring Jennifer Lopez I really did struggle to find anything positive to say about it – as you’ll see elsewhere on this site. She is a very pretty girl who has the kind of curves that seem to persuade men to watch her despite their opinion about her acting or singing talent. But I can’t help feeling that she is actually just a dancer who’s athletic ability makes for good music videos and millions of dollars in sales of personal merchandise. All that said, ‘Enough’ isn’t actually that bad.

Lopez plays the part of Slim, a beaten wife who eventually overcomes the pursuit of her husband after a failed attempt at running away. I would apologise for spoiling the ending by telling you all that, but it really is quite obvious from the start.

My initial fear was that with the accompaniment of Billy Campbell and Noah Wyle (he of ‘ER’ fame), Lopez would slip comfortably into a wishy-washy love story. There are elements of romance in the film and of course, the credits roll to a typically ‘happy-ending’ scene. I guess it would take too much for Hollywood to capture the reality that many women face where the beatings and brutality end in lifelong hurt and trauma. Indeed, that is an element that was available for this film to pick-up on but was ignored.

The bulk of the storyline is taken up with the run and chase of the mother and daughter from husband/father. This is meant to be a thriller and I suppose that for those who don’t consider the scene following on from that currently being played out, there might be one or two nervous moments, held breaths and gasps of horror. In fact, sat next to me, Simone experienced one or two of those herself.

My biggest problem with this film is the manner in which victory is finally won by wife over husband. No doubt many women will have taken great encouragement from seeing such a victory, but that is exactly where it is sadly, so very dangerous. Unlike Lopez’ character, Slim, most women would never be able to over-power the kind of brutal man who beats his wife. Despite the all too common failings of the legal system, it is crucial that domestic violence be reported to the police and dealt with properly. Personally won victory may make for a good storyline and cinematic tension but it’s probably not the most helpful thing for Hollywood to be suggesting to those who are already struggling to drum up courage to report the crimes committed against them.

The running time of just over two hours was perhaps more than was needed, but the characters were clear and strong and fairly well played out so that this may be a film you’d want to watch. The subject matter makes any reference to ‘enjoying’ this film rather inappropriate.