While Hollywood is content to churn out sappy romance flicks starring attractive twenty- and thirty-somethings every year, it’s rare to comes across a film that explores the perils of dating for middle-aged folks. Nicole Holofcener’s Enough Said wades confidently into these waters without hesitation, resulting in an incredibly honest and believable tale about trying to find love, and serving as a beautiful swan song for the late James Gandolfini.
Eva (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) is a divorced single mother, making her living as a masseuse while trying to cope with her daughter’s imminent departure for college. Albert (Gandolfini) is a sweet teddy bear of a guy, whose own daughter is bound for school, and the attraction is both immediate and mutual. But Eva’s past heartbreaks have left her overly cautious, and when she stumbles onto the fact that one of her clients (Catherine Keener) is Albert’s ex-wife, she opts to keep her mouth shut while making a mental list of everything the ex hated about her new beau.
Holofcener’s script gets right to the heart of the doubts and insecurities that often plague divorced people trying to get back into the dating scene, and also paints a vivid portrait of two damaged people that still believe in finding love. The chemistry between the two leads struck an immediate chord with me, and I was reminded of the early days when my father and stepmother first began courting. In fact, Gandolfini’s characterization of Albert is so similar to my father that I found myself blinking back tears on more than a few occasions, and after viewing the film I called the old man to let him know that I missed him.
Enough Said is a truly wonderful film, offering a remarkable chance for its two leads to explore uncommon territory. Louis-Dreyfus sets aside her trademark comedic confidence in exchange for loneliness and vulnerability, and never has Gandolfini been so tender or endearing. It’s a shame that one of the best performances of his career became one of his last, and the film also serves as a melancholy reminder of the talent we’ve lost.
