Review of Enid Is Sleeping

Nasty shrew Enid (marvelously essayed with lip-smacking venomous aplomb by Maureen Mueller) catches her long-suffering police officer husband Harry (a sound performance by the always engaging Judge Reinhold) doing just what you think with her sweet, ditsy sister June (a terrific portrayal by Elizabeth Perkins). June accidentally kills Enid in the ensuing fight. Harry and June try to cover up the murder and dispose of Enid's body, which proves to be easier said than done. Director/co-writer Maurice Phillips concocts a deliciously dry'n'deadpan black comedy riot that unfolds at a steady pace, offers a wealth of sidesplitting moments (June's loopy conversations with Enid's corpse are very funny and inspired), and boasts a handful of memorably eccentric secondary characters to keep things lively and enjoyable throughout. The excellent cast has a ball with the wacky material: Reinhold sweats and frets with exquisite eye-rolling panache, Perkins is a screwball treat as she endures one dreadful mishap after another and barely manages to keep hysteria at bay, Jeffrey Jones almost steals the whole show as Harry's eager beaver partner Floyd, Brion James has an uproariously raucous field day as a loutish and disgusting drunken truck driver, plus there are nifty bits by Rhea Perlman as snippy dispatcher Mavis, Michael J. Pollard as a flaky late-night motel manager, Charles Tyner as an ornery old coot, and Henry Jones as a doddery elderly gas station attendant. The New Mexico setting adds extra regional flavor to the infectiously kooky proceedings. Craig Safan's jaunty, twangy score likewise further enhances the quirkily macabre merriment. Alfonso Beato's crisp cinematography gives the picture an attractive bright look. A real hoot.