The movie Enough, directed by Michael Apted, is a story of the struggle and triumph against all odds. We chose this fairytale movie to deconstruct gendered roles and stereotypes in our patriarchal society since it is such a common theme in our everyday lives . The movie stars Slim (Jennifer Lopez) as a working class waitress who marries an upper-class contractor named Mitch Hiller(Billy Campbell). Their marriage, including the birth of their daughter, is seemingly peaceful for five years, until Slim catches Mitch having an affair. After confronting him, she realizes that he insists on using violence against her and refuses to let her go. Slim finally flees with their daughter and after attempting to hide from Mitch, Slim realizes that the only way she will live in peace is by confronting him. With the help of her long-lost tycoon father named Jupiter, she trains to attack her husband on his own terms- to “fight like a man”, in order to protect herself and her offspring. After a climactic battle in his own home, Slim is successful in killing Mitch and ensuring safety for her and her child. While it may seem that women have the ability to overcome domestic violence, this film adher

Slim wears a ring around her neck that symbolizes her need for a father figure and her dependency on a strong, protective man. Earlier in her life she had attempted to make Jupiter a part of her life by writing letters, but he always denied her. When Slim goes to him for protection, he refuses to help her. He maintains a “don’t blame me” attitude. Slim asks him for help because she knows the only way she can survive and escape from her husband is with money. In our society, money is associated with power. Jupiter is a rich man; however, he will not help his daughter until he is threatened by Mitch’s henchmen. The relationship between Jupiter and Mitch demonstrates Allan Johnson’s definition of patriarchy as a dynamic between control and fear. Mitch believes that by instilling fear in Jupiter he will convince him not to help Slim. However, Jupiter refuses to lose control. He will not tolerate being threatened by another man; he will not be put beneath anyone else.

In contrast to the unwavering, however doubtful, support from Ginny, Slim is sorely disappointed when it comes to her mother-in-law, Mrs. Hiller. Mrs. Hiller shows no support or compassion for Slim when she gets abused, instead she asks what Slim did to provoke the physical abuse from Mitch. Also, when Slim calls Mrs. Hiller to let her know that they are safe, Mrs. Hiller insists that they must call Mitch because Slim is depriving hi of his rights “as a father” Of course, the mother-in-law must be loyal to her son, but she must either really not comprehend the severity of Mitch’s abuse or be scared out her mind when she interacts with Slim. She might be afraid that Mitch will come after her, probably because she can guess what he is capable of. She would rather Slim give up her freedom and comply with Mitch’s standards of marriage, most likely following the path of least resistance.

We have been told all our lives that we do not have to “take” domestic violence; however, we realize that since we come from a privileged class, we are fortunate enough to have the resources to protect ourselves as Slim does in the movie; however, if we were from a lower class or different ethnic group we would not . Naturally, we root for Slim. However, she has a lot of help from men and money to survive, something that less fortunate women would never have. If she had fled from an inner-city ghetto, this spectacular fairy tale of self-defense would have looked a lot different. A challenge to the makers of the movie would be to place the story in a different setting, one where Slim is poor and has no rich friends, or where Mitch is not a successful businessman, and instead unemployed and bitter. It would be a lot less glamorous but more related to the real-life situations of women of lower classes. It might examine why it is that this spectacular self-defense only happens to the strongest of women; as a police officer puts it to Slim at the end of the film: “You’re one of the lucky ones.”

What is the appeal of this movie? It would most likely be characterized as a “chick flick” which in itself is a gendered statement, implying that some men might not be able to watch this movie comfortably, because of the guilt feelings or frustration at Mitch, who could possibly represent all men, appearing evil. The movie focuses on is Mitch’s violence as an individual. The other men in the movie have potential for violence, but they choose not to wield it because they are sane. The message that this gives us is that Mitch is crazy, and not that the system that the characters are part of is flawed or even to blame. Women, however, might feel a rush of empowerment because the beginning of the story is one that we know all too well, and the ending shows a super woman defending herself with success.

The ideals of “gender�

Some topics in this essay:
Mitch Slim, Slim Gracie, Slim Mitch, Allan Johnson, Slim Jupiter, Mitch Ginny, Slim Ginny, HillerBilly Campbell, Michael Apted, Allan Johnson’s, mitch slim, domestic violence, fairy tale, control mitch, confront mitch, lower classes, power jupiter, jupiter holds, help daughter, slim help,