This was the most intense movie I've ever seen. I was seriously on the edge of my seat the whole time. The creators of this film did an astounding job.
No, This is Patrick I know and the spider at the end made me scream like a bitch. I thought I wasn’t scared of spiders for a while but this brought it back lma
I really obssessed of enemy , I read and watched too many reviews and explainations , but this one is very good that it covers more than one possibility , most of the others were talking about cheating and guilt.
Thanks for the review. My take on the spiders is a bit different, though. To me they don't represent women in general - or lust for that matter - but rather motherhood. To emphasise this the scene with the mother is followed by a shot of an enormous spider towering over Toronto - the biggest spider in the film. When a female spider gets impregnated it will often devour the male. In order to provide and care for his unborn child the protagonist has to give up the romantic and hedonistic ways of Anthony, to become the responsible and sympathetic, yet passive Adam. For the protagonist this denouncement of individuality is comparable to living under a benevolent form of dictatorship. The woman in the opening scene, representing lust, is threatening to squash a spider. In the end scene Adam/Anthony's pregnant wife turns in to a giant, scared spider before his eyes. The protagonist's yearning, in this case for other women, is a threat to the maternity of his wife. She fears being squashed, just like the spider in the opening scene.
This makes sense. I think Helen being a giant frightened spider in the end foreshadows the damage Anthony will do to his wife and child through his infidelity in a future we don't see in the movie.
To also add onto this I believe Adam's believe that parenthood and being a provider being the totalitarian regime and choosing to denounce those notions with Anthony is misplaced. In reality Anthony unknowingly represents totalitarian ideologies; his acting career to distract the masses, him no longer being a professor and in turn no longer educating the people. The cycle repeats.
You are a genius. I have a deep philosophical and psychological view of things, but still it took me a while to understand it. I see, how more and more movie directors are so proficient in showing philosophical points through their movies. I would like to be a part of this whole thing, if I could. I truly appreciate your effort, decency and intelligence. Keep it up, in the future, these videos are going to be ranked higher and watched more than they are now as it takes time for greater wisdom and knowledge to permeate.
As someone who has the book and seen the film, they, I believe, are about two different things. In the book, for example, the whole 'spider' concept is absent and it deals with the idea of History and totalitarism much more thoroughly; whereas the film deals much more with Adam/Anthony's personal sexual conflicts. Although both are enigmatic, they also have different solutions for different puzzles.
I watched Chris Stickman's review before I saw this - very fascinating to sit through after hearing both interpretations, especially the interplay between women, spiders, desire, and totalitarianism.
I’ve scoured the internet for an explanation to a scene early on. In Gyllenhall’s character is grading papers with what is clearly a red felt tipped pen. Then there’s a cut to him actually writing on the paper and he’s using some sort of fancy metal ball-point pen with black ink. Knowing Denis’ attention to detail I’m almost certain this is not a continuity error. Any guesses to what it means?
Great analysis. I read the film and the spider thing the same way. Watching a second time the meaning is quite clear. I'm not a big fan of the spider though (I think visual symbolisms are great when they are inserted seamlessly in the narrative, not as an odd pushed "hey look at this! now think about it" kind of thing. A symbolism thrown this way is usually quite silly). And I'm totally ok about the movie being only inspired by the book and not actually adapting it (I'm always in favour of freedom creativity regarding film adaptations), but I think the book is better in many aspects. One is the search for his double...the book is set at a period where we didn't have internet, so the character has a REALLY hard time looking for the guy...like months and months...and he goes literally insane. In the movie he just google it and there he is (again, I'm ok with it taking some creative liberties, though I think in this case it doesn't help us to buy the psyche of the character); And specially, the end: in the book, he kills his double with a gunshot, thinks he'll have some peace of mind, and then receives a call from a man saying that he instead is his doppelganger. The book ends with him putting another bullet in the revolver. A loop of doppelgangers is a much clever and interesting idea than a bizarre appearance of a giant spider claiming it MEANS something....
I definitely agree with you that the spider web is symbolic of his subconscious desires and inability to break away from his lust. It seems like his creating a whole new persona was his way of trying to escape the web, but it just complicated and added to the web he was already in. My rough interpretation of this movie is that life is a series of dictatorships for each of us, and the dictatorship that Adam was in was a web of sexual desire, guilt, wanting to still be relevant and youthful, but then having to accept his role as a husband as well. Ultimately I think it was his wife's pregnancy that killed off the "actor" side of him. The baby represents forced responsibility that he had no choice but to concede to. At the end his only little escape and indulgence in his taboo sexual desires was the sex club. I think it's interesting also that all the men at the club look like overworked, middle aged businessmen who have also been crushed under the weight of responsibility and routine. Adam keeps resisting this happening to him in the movie, but I think his wife being a giant spider in the end shows that he will always seek to run away from responsibility and follow his subconscious urges, thereby being under the regime of his own "id" which is his dictator.
Nah, like 'Denny' but with the emphasis on the second syllable and ville-neuve, 'ville' like the first syllable of villain. English doesn't have the vowel in 'neuve', but it's close to the vowel in 'burn'.
I find it amusing how many different interpretations have been given of this film online - including (but not limited to) the impressive variety of them in this one review... As a fan of ambiguity (who seeks it out wherever I can), I'm more inclined to be impressed by the wonderful ambiguity of the film. I can't pretend to have worked through all the various interpretations to test them for their internal coherence, but it seems to me that Enemy has been crafted to allow and encourage multiple defensible interpretations - while also (mischievously?) throwing down hidden and not-so-hidden clues throughout that suggest there IS a single "correct" deciphering of what's "actually" happening... My other take is that while Enemy is certainly a "cerebral" film (worthy of the best of Nolan), my own reaction to it was overwhelmingly emotional: I have seldom felt - while watching a film - that this is what it must feel like to fall into madness... I didn't like the feeling one bit but couldn't stop from watching the film to the end. Its overall emotional "gut punch" was what I retained even more than the "mind fuck" many reviewers have reported, but there's no doubt that a movie that inflicts BOTH those things is worth remembering. A number of Villeneuve's films have had this double-whammy impact on me: Incendies above all, but also Arrival and to a lesser extent Bladerunner 2049, Sicario and even Prisoners...
I think you are right about the majority of the analysis the both of two characters is are living in the same body, mother and wife they are the real, his subconscious creates other characters, for example look at his girlfriend she wear in the movie only one black dress, never change it same acts having sex over and over again, all happened in his mind, he created new character as he not married not has any commitments, when his subcutaneous Mary starts to push him away, he starts to reveal the truth stating with look for himself again step by step, maybe his mother has small talk in the movie but it is one of a few real happen conversations in the movie, that scene explains the movie,. Thanks
i just finished this movie and it honestly made me feel so confused ahahaha however i understand the theory where desire for females correlates to the spiders. totally cool
Am I the only one who thinks color coding in movies is usually kinda lame. I mean it can be a subtle effective nuance but when they dunk the film in toner you might aswell just type the emotion you're after in big letters across the screen.
+Nurg0 i agree with you partially on this. while i do believe that color coding is often misused and overused in movies, it does hold some artistic weight to it. on the other hand, you're right: overdoing a certain color does remove it of its subtly. it sort of screams "look! symbolism!" - however, there are a few occasions in which i've been able to appreciate color grading... albeit, very very few times.
Jarrett Mallory I disagree because it's the same principle with color use in paintings and photography, the color it's a huge element. Otherwise everything would look the same besides it's not like eeverything is the same color all the time.
That assumes having a color by itself serves as the only way to use it. How frequently we see the color, when we see it, who or what the color is tied to, not to mention the shade or intenisty of the color, can add all sorts of nuance to what's being conveyed. A dark, rich red appearing frequently could tie in to the color quality of blood, and the varying associations that could have. Or maybe it resembles a rose, to represent beauty. A blaring, bright red could signify anger or danger, and having that red appear, even subtly, in a handful of short and seemingly pleasant scenes can give new context and meaning. Yes, there's plenty of filmmakers who probably use color as symbolism in a very cliche, lazy, uninterestimg way but writing off its use entirely is a disservice to those who use it well.
What does he want nothing to do with when they meet. How did the married one end up with the other ones girl friend, was that the plan or did he find her on his own. Did the unmarried one seek out the wife. I really didn't wanna watch the movie but one minute in to this review and now I either have to find another review or watch a movie I'm not that interested in, thanks.
This was the most intense movie I've ever seen. I was seriously on the edge of my seat the whole time. The creators of this film did an astounding job.
No, This is Patrick I know and the spider at the end made me scream like a bitch. I thought I wasn’t scared of spiders for a while but this brought it back lma
The car window in the car crash looks like a spiderweb too at 8:05
I really obssessed of enemy , I read and watched too many reviews and explainations , but this one is very good that it covers more than one possibility , most of the others were talking about cheating and guilt.
Thanks for the review. My take on the spiders is a bit different, though. To me they don't represent women in general - or lust for that matter - but rather motherhood. To emphasise this the scene with the mother is followed by a shot of an enormous spider towering over Toronto - the biggest spider in the film. When a female spider gets impregnated it will often devour the male. In order to provide and care for his unborn child the protagonist has to give up the romantic and hedonistic ways of Anthony, to become the responsible and sympathetic, yet passive Adam. For the protagonist this denouncement of individuality is comparable to living under a benevolent form of dictatorship. The woman in the opening scene, representing lust, is threatening to squash a spider. In the end scene Adam/Anthony's pregnant wife turns in to a giant, scared spider before his eyes. The protagonist's yearning, in this case for other women, is a threat to the maternity of his wife. She fears being squashed, just like the spider in the opening scene.
that actually makes a lot of sense!
This makes sense. I think Helen being a giant frightened spider in the end foreshadows the damage Anthony will do to his wife and child through his infidelity in a future we don't see in the movie.
Will inevitably do through his extramarital sexual activities*
I think both readings can be applied. I really like both
To also add onto this I believe Adam's believe that parenthood and being a provider being the totalitarian regime and choosing to denounce those notions with Anthony is misplaced. In reality Anthony unknowingly represents totalitarian ideologies; his acting career to distract the masses, him no longer being a professor and in turn no longer educating the people. The cycle repeats.
You are a genius. I have a deep philosophical and psychological view of things, but still it took me a while to understand it. I see, how more and more movie directors are so proficient in showing philosophical points through their movies. I would like to be a part of this whole thing, if I could. I truly appreciate your effort, decency and intelligence. Keep it up, in the future, these videos are going to be ranked higher and watched more than they are now as it takes time for greater wisdom and knowledge to permeate.
José Saramago is portuguese, so the pronunciacion is different of the spanish "J", the portuguese one is more like a "G"
As someone who has the book and seen the film, they, I believe, are about two different things. In the book, for example, the whole 'spider' concept is absent and it deals with the idea of History and totalitarism much more thoroughly; whereas the film deals much more with Adam/Anthony's personal sexual conflicts. Although both are enigmatic, they also have different solutions for different puzzles.
I watched Chris Stickman's review before I saw this - very fascinating to sit through after hearing both interpretations, especially the interplay between women, spiders, desire, and totalitarianism.
+Chaosian01 you should check out YMS, He has an interesting analysis as well.
+winnerami Hey, I'll be sure to do that. Thanks for the pointer.
great film, fantastic video, this was a very interesting watch. love your longer videos.
Thank you so very much for touching on this film man
I’ve scoured the internet for an explanation to a scene early on. In Gyllenhall’s character is grading papers with what is clearly a red felt tipped pen. Then there’s a cut to him actually writing on the paper and he’s using some sort of fancy metal ball-point pen with black ink. Knowing Denis’ attention to detail I’m almost certain this is not a continuity error. Any guesses to what it means?
Great analysis. I read the film and the spider thing the same way. Watching a second time the meaning is quite clear. I'm not a big fan of the spider though (I think visual symbolisms are great when they are inserted seamlessly in the narrative, not as an odd pushed "hey look at this! now think about it" kind of thing. A symbolism thrown this way is usually quite silly).
And I'm totally ok about the movie being only inspired by the book and not actually adapting it (I'm always in favour of freedom creativity regarding film adaptations), but I think the book is better in many aspects. One is the search for his double...the book is set at a period where we didn't have internet, so the character has a REALLY hard time looking for the guy...like months and months...and he goes literally insane. In the movie he just google it and there he is (again, I'm ok with it taking some creative liberties, though I think in this case it doesn't help us to buy the psyche of the character); And specially, the end: in the book, he kills his double with a gunshot, thinks he'll have some peace of mind, and then receives a call from a man saying that he instead is his doppelganger. The book ends with him putting another bullet in the revolver.
A loop of doppelgangers is a much clever and interesting idea than a bizarre appearance of a giant spider claiming it MEANS something....
I definitely agree with you that the spider web is symbolic of his subconscious desires and inability to break away from his lust. It seems like his creating a whole new persona was his way of trying to escape the web, but it just complicated and added to the web he was already in. My rough interpretation of this movie is that life is a series of dictatorships for each of us, and the dictatorship that Adam was in was a web of sexual desire, guilt, wanting to still be relevant and youthful, but then having to accept his role as a husband as well. Ultimately I think it was his wife's pregnancy that killed off the "actor" side of him. The baby represents forced responsibility that he had no choice but to concede to. At the end his only little escape and indulgence in his taboo sexual desires was the sex club. I think it's interesting also that all the men at the club look like overworked, middle aged businessmen who have also been crushed under the weight of responsibility and routine. Adam keeps resisting this happening to him in the movie, but I think his wife being a giant spider in the end shows that he will always seek to run away from responsibility and follow his subconscious urges, thereby being under the regime of his own "id" which is his dictator.
Such an excellent analysis! This is a very underrated movie.
Denis Villeneuve is pronounced Denny Vill in oove
Nah, like 'Denny' but with the emphasis on the second syllable and
ville-neuve, 'ville' like the first syllable of villain. English doesn't have the vowel in 'neuve', but it's close to the vowel in 'burn'.
@@hannahg6405 You are absolutely right (some french dude)
My theory is that the movie is actually set in Ottawa, which explains the spiders pretty well.
one of my favorites. Thank you.
This is a fantastic film I feel as though there is no definitive answer.
the director said "its a battle between both sides of my self conscience"
I find it amusing how many different interpretations have been given of this film online - including (but not limited to) the impressive variety of them in this one review...
As a fan of ambiguity (who seeks it out wherever I can), I'm more inclined to be impressed by the wonderful ambiguity of the film. I can't pretend to have worked through all the various interpretations to test them for their internal coherence, but it seems to me that Enemy has been crafted to allow and encourage multiple defensible interpretations - while also (mischievously?) throwing down hidden and not-so-hidden clues throughout that suggest there IS a single "correct" deciphering of what's "actually" happening...
My other take is that while Enemy is certainly a "cerebral" film (worthy of the best of Nolan), my own reaction to it was overwhelmingly emotional: I have seldom felt - while watching a film - that this is what it must feel like to fall into madness... I didn't like the feeling one bit but couldn't stop from watching the film to the end. Its overall emotional "gut punch" was what I retained even more than the "mind fuck" many reviewers have reported, but there's no doubt that a movie that inflicts BOTH those things is worth remembering.
A number of Villeneuve's films have had this double-whammy impact on me: Incendies above all, but also Arrival and to a lesser extent Bladerunner 2049, Sicario and even Prisoners...
I think you are right about the majority of the analysis the both of two characters is are living in the same body, mother and wife they are the real, his subconscious creates other characters, for example look at his girlfriend she wear in the movie only one black dress, never change it same acts having sex over and over again, all happened in his mind, he created new character as he not married not has any commitments, when his subcutaneous Mary starts to push him away, he starts to reveal the truth stating with look for himself again step by step, maybe his mother has small talk in the movie but it is one of a few real happen conversations in the movie, that scene explains the movie,. Thanks
That ending makes me jump.
i just finished this movie and it honestly made me feel so confused ahahaha however i understand the theory where desire for females correlates to the spiders. totally cool
You should do an analysis of Ben Wheatley's High-Rise
Jack M I would prefer he just looked into the original novel by Ballard. I think it has a bit more depth.
Very good !
Thanks for your reviews always insightful.
Does this show the spider scene in it anywhere? Just the giant spider one because it really scares me lol.
It did, and I almost dropped my coffee. I'd love to see this movie, but with that many spiders.. I can't.
whats the name of the song that the video opens with?
I'm sorry, but I don't remember. I made this about five years ago.
good to realize that even the wife become another frame of another woman
Car crash never happened...it was happening in Jake's mind....
I thought the spiders represented women.
They represent control and commintment I think
Am I the only one who thinks color coding in movies is usually kinda lame. I mean it can be a subtle effective nuance but when they dunk the film in toner you might aswell just type the emotion you're after in big letters across the screen.
No.
+Nurg0 i agree with you partially on this. while i do believe that color coding is often misused and overused in movies, it does hold some artistic weight to it. on the other hand, you're right: overdoing a certain color does remove it of its subtly. it sort of screams "look! symbolism!" - however, there are a few occasions in which i've been able to appreciate color grading... albeit, very very few times.
Jarrett Mallory
I disagree because it's the same principle with color use in paintings and photography, the color it's a huge element. Otherwise everything would look the same besides it's not like eeverything is the same color all the time.
That assumes having a color by itself serves as the only way to use it. How frequently we see the color, when we see it, who or what the color is tied to, not to mention the shade or intenisty of the color, can add all sorts of nuance to what's being conveyed.
A dark, rich red appearing frequently could tie in to the color quality of blood, and the varying associations that could have. Or maybe it resembles a rose, to represent beauty. A blaring, bright red could signify anger or danger, and having that red appear, even subtly, in a handful of short and seemingly pleasant scenes can give new context and meaning.
Yes, there's plenty of filmmakers who probably use color as symbolism in a very cliche, lazy, uninterestimg way but writing off its use entirely is a disservice to those who use it well.
What does he want nothing to do with when they meet. How did the married one end up with the other ones girl friend, was that the plan or did he find her on his own. Did the unmarried one seek out the wife.
I really didn't wanna watch the movie but one minute in to this review and now I either have to find another review or watch a movie I'm not that interested in, thanks.