Search - Adam on DVD

A fascinating look inside an "Aspie" life

Sharon Isch | Washington, DC USA | 08/16/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The ability to empathize--or "walk in someone else's shoes," can be particularly difficult for people with Asperger's syndrome, an offshoot of autism. That may be at least partly because Aspies, as they call themselves, can't read the body language or other "social signals" that give the rest of us important clues about what's really going on with other people. It wouldn't occur to an Aspie to tell a white lie or dissemble; they take themselves and all else literally. "Adam" is a fictional look at the life of one such young man and how he comes to cope with and surmount this particular disorder--especially as applied to romance and career.



I wanted to see this movie because I'd heard such great things about Hugh Dancy's performance in it and because in the past few years I've gotten to know, slightly, two exceptionally interesting people with Asperger's syndrome and wanted to know more about it. Luckily, before I saw it, I happened upon a rave review written by an "Aspie" and was able to go into the movie armed with his assurance that the filmmakers mostly got it right.



So--accuracy aside--how is "Adam" as entertainment? Excellent, in my view. In short order our hero, a lifetime New Yorker, finds himself newly orphaned, attracted to a young woman who's just moved into his building, out of a job...and totally at sea about what to do about any of it. Hugh Dancy as "Adam" is every bit as terrific as the press he's getting. And he gets great support from his co-stars, director and a story that not only rings true but also has a great sense of humor and (most unusual for a rom-com) doesn't telegraph its ending and, when it gets there, opts for believability over mush.



Also recommended: "Parallel Play," Pulitzer Prize winner Tim Page's deeply personal account of growing up with undetected Asperger's. The book is available here. A shorter version under the same title appeared in the New Yorker on 8/20/07 and is available at their web site."

A SWEET FILM ABOUT A GENIUS WITH ASPERGER'S SYNDROME

David R. Eastwood | Long Island, NY | 01/08/2010

(3 out of 5 stars)

"ADAM has a nice low-keyed story to tell and does so in a touching and respectful way. Best of all, the people making it did not give it a phony pasted-on "happily ever after" ending.



We get to see Adam (Hugh Dancy) and Beth (Rose Bryne) getting to know and care about each other--and even briefly becoming lovers and potential spouses.



Part of the film is devoted to educating viewers about Asperger's Syndrome, which is what Adam suffers from: among other things, he takes literally whatever others say and is usually unable to imagine correctly what emotions others are having, despite cues from their facial expressions and even their words.



Adam's genius abilities in astronomy and engineering are brought out well, and Adam will probably remind many viewers of the forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance "Bones" Brennan (Emily Deschanel), another genius with Asperger's, who is the central character in the acclaimed TV series BONES.



Part of the back-story involves Beth herself getting a reality check about her own father, which appropriately reminds us that even "normal" people frequently misinterpret or misjudge what is going on, even with their own family members."