‘Adam’: Good Intentions; Mediocre Results
Director: Max Mayer
Running Time: 99 Minutes
Rated: PG-13
For: Those looking for a typical romance film with a bit of a twist
Not For: Those seeking a deep, romance film
The romantic genre has evolved into several forms in its varied history as it tried to attract audiences in various ways. Some films went for the immensely quirky while others turned to more comedic situations as its big bullet point. Adam follows another trend of promoting the awareness of a lesser known symptom, disease, or condition to the public through mass media, much like moves as I Am Sam. The biggest problem these films have, though, is balancing out how to spread the word about the said topic versus still engaging the audience in the narrative. Mayer’s Adam does not completely fall into this trap yet although it has some high moments, this film becomes intertwined by the common conventions of the romance genre and odd directorial decisions.
Adam is about a brilliant young man (Hugh Dancy) with Asperger’s Syndrome, an autism disorder, exhibiting social awkwardness and lack of empathy with other people around him. Living alone in his apartment with the recent death of his father and only having the comfort of a good friend, Harlan (Frankie Faison), Adam seems to be at one of the lower moments of his life until he runs into a new neighbor, Beth (Rose Byrne), a chirpy and excited school teacher ready to live in a brand new area. The two soon interact and fall in love but what await them are trials between family members, friends, and themselves.
Where Director Mayer most succeeds in his vision is bringing Asperger’s Syndrome to the forefront of the mainstream media, supported by some other strong aspects as well. Adam never completely falls into the trap of becoming too preachy or too involved with its hook. Although it becomes a focal point in many of the scenes and to the movie itself, Mayer smartly maneuvers the film around possible situations that those with the syndrome might go through and then moves to evoke a tangible emotion that is relatable to the audience. This is all juxtaposed with some informative scenes about the brilliance and human qualities that people with Asperger’s possesses and so balance out the more educated scenes versus the romantic plot. This pairing works as well, due in part to Dancy’s performance as Adam. Although sometimes a bit too dramatic and sporadic, he gives the character a nice sense of humanity and an interesting persona behind him. It is probably not going to win him a nomination with the Academy but is a high point for the film.
Wrapping this package together is some slick cinematography in which New York City is beautifully captured in its winter solace. The scenery feels like it comes alive and becomes part of the movie and an important note as several of the plot points revolve around this and the relationship between Adam and Beth. Finally, several narrative points have to be noted for giving the film an original twist, especially the ending which brings the film oddly together and does not cheat the audience with a conventional conclusion.
This, however, is all brought heavily down by a lack of creativity and originality in the rest of the narrative and dialogue. Mayer and his team stick so close to romance genre conventions that most of the film is easily predictable to be taken as seriously as the film was intended to be. Some melodrama is understandably necessary in this film, yet instead, dialogue that was supposed made have tears coming out of the audience members instead make people confused over odd plot holes or awkward moments. Alongside this, typical stereotypes can be found all over the film that reinforces how narrow minded the film is. Not helping at all is the bombastic soundtrack, which much like the direction, sticks to heavy flourishes and preempting situations. Although it is a design decision, the large sound of the brass and the strings simply create an even more corny and unrealistic scenery for the film, completely opposite to the realism the film attempts to evoke.
Another problematic area is the rest of supporting cast who cannot provide much weight or interest behind their roles as Dancy does, although the fault seems to lie more in the direction than purely on the actors’ shoulders. Yet blame needs to still be placed where it is as these actors seem to fit what stereotype they are given and although may be at least two-dimensional, are still predictable and not-so-interesting characters. The pacing is one last area that hinders Adam. The already flimsy and conventional plot becomes even harder to swallow when the film rushes through most of the scenes, especially between Beth and Adam and as it reaches the conclusion. Characters motivations to key narrative points make little sense in the dash and when Adam reaches its ending, as heartwarming as some may feel, any depth that Mayer tried to leave the film at will not linger.
Adam is a somewhat touching romantic film that is backed by a noble cause of bringing Asperger’s Syndrome to the forefront, which works on an aesthetic level, coupled with some good cinematography and excellent performance from Hugh Dancy. However, when one digs a bit deeper, ‘Adam’ becomes nothing more than another typical romantic film filled with overly melodramatic moments, an overpowering and bombastic soundtrack, and misguided direction. It almost seems as if the film needed another hard look during its pre-production process and in the end, will most likely suffer as being forgotten among the many, better romance films…a shame since its premise held much more promise than it let on.
The Wie muses **½ out of *****
Ratings:
*****: Excellent
**** to ****½: Great
*** to ***½: Good
** to **½: Mediocre
* to *½: Bad
0 to ½: Terrible
