I never watched The Sopranos (I know—gasp!), but all that I ever heard about Gandolfini’s character in that series has nothing to do with the adorably vulnerable Albert in Enough Said. And Julia Louis-Dreyfus’s Eva is simply charming to watch as she rejects relationships, discovers one, falls prey to society and others’ attitudes, and struggles with the vulnerability of the heart—especially after wrongly, perhaps, not giving it a chance to love. The warmth that these two bring to their roles comes out of the screen and gently hugs the audience.
Many (most) of us enter new relationships with colored views of others and ourselves, views created by what has happened in our past. Of course, we also listen too much to the negative views shared by others, often shared irresponsibly or, more dreadfully, from a place of jealously. Granted, the comical set-up of how Eva hears things about Albert is not likely, but the result is the same regretful outcome. It is that result that is often reached by direct and blatant talking by those around us who give a voice to insecurities about what others will think. Seeing it play out created some reflection in me as I question what is real attraction and what is a response to what we want others to think. Such is an interesting area on which to muse.
Perhaps the nicest thing for me in this romantic comedy is that it’s much more grown-up in its characters. This movie isn’t the “pretty people” in the romcoms about people in their late 20s—all in places in life that most 20-somethings never reach in that decade. No, this one is about people older, even if not completely wiser when dealing with matters of the heart, but with issues we relate to, with pasts, with feelings, with vulnerabilities, and with heart. As a comedy, the movie does make you laugh. But more so, it makes you smile—-inside. Yes, it felt that genuine.