Enemy, the second team up between director Dennis Villenueve and lead actor Jake Gyllenhaal to premiere this festival season, sends audiences through a mind-bending journey as two men discover that they are completely identical. History professor Adam Bell and little-known actor Anthony Claire (both played by Gyllenhaal) find that they not only have matching appearances, but matching scars and similar girlfriends.
Villenueve’s other film, Prisoners, already had critics raving with its twists and turns, and Enemy brings an even more challenging puzzle. Critics were left scratching their heads over what they saw when Enemy screened Wednesday morning, though most have praised the film regardless. At the same time, Rodrigo Perez of Indiewire warns that Enemy is the “more experimental and arty cousin” of Prisoners. Similarly, Deborah Young from The Hollywood Reporter worries that Enemy will be much more difficult to advertise, due to its unorthodox presentation, and may have difficulty appealing to a wider audience. Still, it sounds like viewers who manage to pick up on the clues dropped throughout will find another challenging and engaging thriller from Villenueve.
Melanie Laurent (Inglourious Basterds), Sarah Gadon (Cosmopolis), and Isabella Rossellini appear in supporting roles. As of Wednesday afternoon no distributor has been announced although The Wrap reports that A24, The Weinstein Co., and Focus are all interested.
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