Movie Review - Adam (2009)

Adam
Starring Hugh Dancy, Rose Byrne, Peter Gallagher, and Amy Irving
Directed by Max Mayer

This is a simple love story that if I really want to be critical isn't all that good. Somehow, though, this tale of two unlikely friends and lovers won me over. While it's nowhere near perfect, Adam is a pleasant 90 minutes with some nice performances by the two leads.

As the film opens, the title character's father has just died and the twenty-nine year-old Adam (Dancy) is left parentless. While that would certainly be a difficult situation for anyone, Adam has Asperger's Syndrome (a moderate, more functional form of autism) and he finds anything outside of his strict daily routine to be very uncomfortable. When the charming Beth (Byrne) moves into his building, the two strike up an unusual friendship. Despite his quirks, Beth begins to fall for Adam, much to the chagrin of her father (Gallagher).

While I'm sure people with Asperger's Syndrome can fall in love and get married (in fact, that's line from Beth in the film -- "People with Asperger's can fall in love, get married, and have kids" -- oh, did my eyes roll), it's a difficult task taken on by writer-director Max Mayer to make this odd couple relationship not seem fake and forced. In most respects, he succeeds. While the film takes a slightly wrong turn towards the end focusing on Beth's parents and their shaky relationship, when Mayer stays with Adam and Beth, one can't help but feel something for these characters.

That's a testament to Rose Byrne and Hugh Dancy. Dancy's Adam could've been a caricature, but he crafts an understated performance that felt fully realized. The nervous nature on display always seemed authentic and never over-the-top. He's matched by the graceful Rose Byrne (rebounding from a godawful performance in Knowing) who essentially plays the role of the audience here, trying to get the bottom of all of Adam's issues. She questions him, pushing him to the limit of who he thinks he can be. She wants Adam to succeed and we want him to be successful, too. Plus, both Dancy and Byrne's respective English and (super-strong) Irish accents never once are on display.

I would completely understand if someone watched Adam and just rolled their eyes all the way through. To me, it worked as a quaint, simple romance with an ending that doesn't necessarily follow the typical Hollywood outline.

The RyMickey Rating: B-