Adam

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source: Adam

The movie was very well written and the acting was wonderful but I cannot get over the fact that the Beth character was quite possibly the most selfish character ever written. She "knew" what she was getting into from the beginning when she asked her friend about the illness then picked up that book and read all about it yet she still continued on as if everything he did was a surprise. Even he explained the illness to her. The end of the movie proved just how selfish she was. This movie was very frustrating and honestly I just wanted to kick her! What ever happened to the good old days of boy meets girl, boy gets girl, boy girl live happily ever after? Overall the movie had some wonderful and emotional scenes. Acting was superb, writing was outstanding and the interpretation of Aspergers was dead on. Very good movie but yes, very frustrating at times but then again, I am a parent of a blind Aspergers child so I am a bit sensitive to the storyline.

For me, the best thing about this film was the ending, because it avoided any clichéd and formulaic reunion. I don't know much about aspergers so can't comment on the accuracy of the portrayal, but I came out feeling that I'd learnt something about the condition, and felt both touched and moved by Hugh Dancy's depiction. The other lead, Rose Byrne, behaved convincingly as if she was in a relationship with him, and highlighted the old dilemma that to differing degrees, we all make our choices in this life in the knowledge that we can't have it all. For Beth, she would have had the stability and security she craved in a relationship, but the lack of reciprocated empathy proved a bridge too far. I could see why the father-daughter sub-plot was integral to the story, from a 'nobody's perfect' sense of comparison...although I found myself a little irritated by it, as it detracted from the main themes and took up too much air time. The film has all the ingredients of a commercial success, and I left the cinema thinking 'tender but unremarkable'. 6/10.

Adam is part of an unfortunate trend I'm starting to notice from Hollywood - the trend of the unhappy ending. It is one of those failed romance movies. A movie about a "romance" that ultimately leaves us all alone. It tries miserably to buy us off at the end with the ex-girlfriend sending the ex-boyfriend a book for a present, which he sits and reads all alone on a park bench, with all indications being that he will live and dies all alone, too, because some bad writing in a couple of crucial scenes all but destroyed what will probably be the single chance at companionship this "unattractively" quirky guy gets in his entire life. The movie makes a passing remark about how many people with asperger's DO get married and have their happily ever after. Why in god's name didn't they make a movie about one of THOSE couples? I normally try to avoid rubbish like this, but due to some misleading advertising, I was under the impression it gave asperger's a chance to show off it's interesting characteristic and to receive a little love from the universe. I was under the impression that for once, a shy guy without that George Clooney-esque cockiness would get the girl of his dreams. I wound up watching it, and without researching it on Wikipedia first. Both these things were huge mistakes. The movie sets you up only to knock you down. It warms your heart only so you don't see the sucker punch waiting for it. I'd like to make a plea not just to the makers of this movie, but to all of Hollywood. We don't need you to make us miserable, break our hearts and tear down our hopes. That's what real life is for. We come to you for happiness and comfort. We come to you to inspire us, to help us believe that good things can come true - that we can overcome our obstacles and find what it is we're looking for and have it to keep for the rest of our lives. We don't need you to tell us that the universe severely punishes the weird, for being weird. We don't need you to tell us that the losers are gonna lose. Most of us know all that. And most of us want to be able to believe in a better world. Please, give us that much. You get our $15 for the tickets either way.

This is your typical love story but with a decidedly interesting twist. Adam and Rose meet and start to fall in love, working through normal relationship struggles but some of their struggles are magnified because of Adam having Asperger's Syndrome. When they reach a breaking point, Rose receives some poignant advice from her mother that succinctly sums up the theme of the film and reverberates into the viewer's life as well. "To feel love is important, but to love, my dear, that is essential." This was one of my favorite Sundance films this year, and I was excited to hear that it was picked up by Fox Searchlight. Look for it in a theater near you; you won't be disappointed!

I had the privilege of viewing this movie on Tues. night. I was in eager anticipation, as the subject of mental health is a passion of mine. For me, the movie was bittersweet. We see how Adam grows from a lonely introvert to a sensitive and serious man, who experiences love in spite of his challenges. Whether or not this love works out, is not the issue; it's what Adam learns along the way about life that I feel is beautiful. The portrayal of Rose's father is so important to the film, in my opinion. We find this so called "normal" person who epitomizes those who are still in fear of a person with mental illness. Buchwald only sees the outside of a person and doesn't really give Adam a chance to show his inner self, talents and strengths. How ironic it is that Mr. Buchwald turns out to be the true "mentally ill" person in the film! Unfortunately, many people in our society still have similar beliefs about those who are "different". By educating people about those who are "challenged", hopefully the stigma of mental illness can be lifted. This film made me laugh, made me cry and made me think! As far as I am concerned, when a movie has those characteristics, it has been a huge success. I don't know any movie that has moved me like this in a long, long time!

Fresh and tangy, "Adam" is not your typical summer romance. The comedy emerges naturally from the situations that surround two appealing characters who develop a sweet, slightly complicated relationship. The acting is strong, especially Hugh Dancy's characterization of the title character. Rose Byrn as Beth is as easy to watch as she is easy to like. I liked writer and director Max Mayer's ideas. Other people might have used a broader brush, but Mayer's narrative develops a simple momentum and a believable conclusion. Mayer avoids deliberate gags or gag-reflex resolution, and creates a film that is tender and very pretty. Adding to "Adam"'s appeal was the astronomy motif with its layers of stars, planets and pulsars. I thought the metaphor linking the the universe's creation to the distance that separates objects in space was particularly resonant, and I encourage people to pay attention to shooting stars.

The chances of you seeing this movie on the big screen are close to zilch since it's had such a limited cinematic release, so be sure to catch it on television or DVD because it is a rom-com with a special edge. Although the couple are young Americans in New York City, it is the British Hugh Dancy who gives an excellent performance as the eponymous IT professional and amateur stargazer who suffers badly from Asperger's Syndrome, while it is the Australian actress Rose Byrne who is delightful as the young woman willing to make the effort to understand him. The treatment of AS is handled sensitively, but not without humour, and the ending avoids the temptation to be trite. A real accomplishment then for the American Max Meyer who both wrote and directed and whose previous writing and directing has been almost entirely for the theatre

Having a son-in-law that has Aspergers symptoms, I found the movie to be quite realistic in a non-Hollywood way. It didn't stoop to many of the clichés that several movies trying to tackle this subject fell into. The lead actor did a great job portraying the attitude and personality of someone with Aspergers. His portrayal was quite well done, and accurate to real life situations He obviously did his homework when researching the character and the side effects of Aspergers syndrome. Unfortunately, I found the lead female character (and the script components related to this character) to be less than believable. My personal opinion is that people with Aspergers syndrome tend to have a lack of empathy for other people (as portrayed in this movie), so it requires someone with extra empathy and forgiveness to be able to understand and relate to them (unless of course the partner has Aspergers themselves, which helps them understand and relate to the other person). She didn't portray herself as an overly empathetic person, especially when dealing with her father's problems. Most children would be empathetic to their own parents first and foremost. She seemed to be forgiving of the lead characters flaws, but didn't really show a lot of emotion during the tense situations and unusual circumstances that cropped up. Other than that, I thought it was a very good movie touching on this subject. If it weren't for the weak script and the issues with the lead female characterization, I would have given it a 10.