Adam - Eine Geschichte über zwei Fremde. Einer etwas merkwürdiger als der Andere.

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.

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.

I've needed to see this movie ever since I heard about it's existence, unfortunately it was not given a proper release in the UK, so I had to wait for the US DVD to come out. It's a film about a relationship between a man with Asperger's Syndrome (Adam) and a young woman (Beth). As I have Asperger's Syndrome and I heard that this movie was well made I was understandably interested. I have tended in the past to find movies and TV shows portraying autism absurd. Fortunately this was not the case here.

The level of observation here was really very good, small things like how Adam doesn't look at people in the face, how he becomes agitated at work over comments that his boss makes that are meant to be humorous or confidence building (I am used to blank stares from my performance planner when I take things the wrong way).

At one point Adam trembles behind his bedroom door when he is being asked to come out to a social event from the other side, pretending he is not there. I've done that myself. He reminds me of me when I was at university. Food fads is another, Adam has Macaroni Cheese every night of the week. Currently I have a chicken Kiev with raw mushrooms and yellow peppers pretty much every night of the week.

Although he's very talented, he only managed to get the electrical engineering job he holds via his father convincing the boss to hire him. I was never able to convince anyone that I was worth hiring, even though I have a degree from Oxford. After several terrible years following university, I managed to get a job in an office where the head of the office was my brother-in-law. I can do the job well, and am even being promoted, getting in the door is the hard part. In the UK at least, employment rates for people with Asperger's Syndrome are upsettingly low. The idea of selling oneself in an interview doesn't work, and when you're up against people who will bend the truth to get ahead, it's really difficult. That's another good thing the film picked up on, honesty. If you're tired of guys lying to you ladies, pick up an Aspie.

I was personally moved a lot by the beginning of the movie and the end of the movie. There's an excellent introduction using the story of Le Petit Prince (The Little Prince) by Saint-Exupéry as a metaphor. I knew at this point that it was going to be a good movie, it is perhaps the most tactful and tender approach to the subject that there could be. I won't spoil the ending of the movie, but from reading what other people have said, it's very easy to mistake what is happening, obliquely, I will recommend that you concentrate on an incident concerning boxes.

I'm a few years older than Adam, and readier than he is, but love has never come my way, as there are not many Beths out there, and being 6ft 7 tall and also stocky I am not exactly of the "non-threatening male" physique typified by Hugh Dancy in this movie. My way of boring people to death with over detail is film, and even though I know that people don't want to know I will still start telling them about the history of film starting in 1888 (or if I'm feeling more loquacious, starting with Muybridge). The stupidest cosmological one I do (like Adam), is explain how novae happen in binary systems with a red giant and white dwarf. More recently I have started telling people why Sirius flickers ;) People think I am trying to make them feel stupid or inferior, which is absolutely not the case, but I still do it even though I know this, I just can't stop myself.

As an autistic, I felt that this movie was extremely tender, but also very educational and instructive, I felt almost like I was a chick being feathered off a tree limb for the first flight. "Adam" does not aim at staggering mise-en-scene, it is not an Antonioni movie, but it is possibly the worthiest film you can see. The worst thing about Asperger's is that there are many people who will tell you, even straight to your face, that it doesn't exist, even a doctor I knew was pretty much of that opinion. People associate mental disability with physical impairment, and because there is none with Asperger's (except sometimes clumsiness, or "gangliness"), for a lot of people it just doesn't register, even though there are defined and recognisable developmental symptoms. This film, in a way, is an acknowledgement that it does exist, and is proof if ever I was cynical enough to believe otherwise, that films can change the world.

I've been meaning to watch Adam for quite some time now and the film matched my expectations. The good thing about small independent films is that the stories are usually very personal and rich. That's the case with Adam, a film with substance and meaning. The film begins with the 29 year old Adam attending his father funeral and then returning to a lonely empty house. Beth, a writer damaged from a past relationship moves into the building where Adam lives and soon they meet. Adam is handsome but he's also odd and awkward. He suffers from Asperger syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder that causes difficulties in social interaction, along with restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior and interests. Despite this, Adam is very bright and Beth takes an interest in him. This leads to a relationship but, is it right? Are they fit for each other?... Adam is not so much a romantic comedy but more of a character study as it shows Adam and Beth learning and growing from each other and stepping into unfamiliar territory. Hugh Dancy is tremendous as the lead character Adam and his portrayal never appears as a caricature. Instead he relies on small gestures and certain facial expressions which results in a very moving and impressive performance. Rose Byrne was very good as Beth as well, although I wish her character had been better written. I say this because sometimes, she is extremely sensitive to Adam's condition but on a few occasions she almost seems to forget about it. Peter Gallagher, Rose Byrne and Amy Irving compose the supporting cast with Gallagher doing a terrific job (as usual) as Beth's father. Adam doesn't have the clichéd happy ending so usual in Hollywood, instead it presents us with an authentic and realistic conclusion that felt very satisfying. Adam is a breath of fresh air, it's a genuine film with a very moving and well written story.

8/10

Greetings again from the darkness. The first feature film from writer/director Max Mayer is terrific! It is what makes indie films such a treasure ... a small, little personal story that packs a wallop.

Many will remember Hugh Dancy from King Arthur and Jane Austen Book Club. In both, he was eye candy for the girls. Here he stretches his acting chops as Adam, who lives with Asperger's Syndrome. At first, he just strikes us as a guy with no real social skills. It's not until he meets his new neighbor (Rose Byrne) that we begin to understand why he's just not quite right.

Watching their relationship grown in a believable way is a tribute to both actors and a very solid script. A few sub-plots are juggled: death of a parent, living alone, loss of a job, etc, but the key to the film is the relationship and how it keys in our need to connect.

This is the type of film I wish more people would get a chance to see. It has so much more to offer than the over-hyped Hollywood junk that gets forced down our throats at the local megaplex. Adam won't crack the $200 million gross, but Adam will have an impact on you and create some interesting after-film discussion. Isn't that the real fun of movies anyway?