Adam is a simplistic story that succeeds thanks to two excellent lead performances. Sweet, well told, and refreshing uncynical. With the recent wave of crappy rom-coms, an actual good love story is more than welcomed.
The story revolves around a lonely man with Asperger’s Syndrome named Adam (Hugh Dancy). After the passing of his father, Adam becomes even more reclusive. But when a new neighbor moves in next store named Beth (Rose Byrne), Adam soon finds his first love. Beth at first is intrigued by Adam’s oddball persona and childlike wonder. Soon she finds out about Adam’s condition and she doesn’t mind. She’s fully enticed by Adam. Why shouldn’t she be? He’s a well hearted man that’s only well intention. Of course Adam feels the same way about Beth, who had the case of “love at first sight.” Beth may have to deal with the annoying opinion on the matter from her family, but her love for Adam renders their opinions useless.
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This film couldn’t work if the main emotional center wasn’t properly handled. Thankfully, writer/director Max Mayer handles the relationship between Adam and Beth perfectly. It never feels rushed or unconvincing. Adam and Beth first start off as hurt individuals, but their companionship makes them stronger. It’s easy to emotionally invest in this love story since it’s actually believable, unlike most love stories. Unfortunately, the film does divulges into predictability at times, settling for a few cliches here and there. Most of these tired moments comes from a subplot involving Beth’s father, played by Peter Gallagher. It’s quite obvious from his first moment on screen he’s what one would call, a slime ball. It’s obvious that he’s going to be against their relationship and another subplot about his business/personal affairs are handled in the way one would predict. There’s also moments of tension between Beth and Adam that come at the exact moment they are expected. Because of this, their fights don’t quite pack an emotional punch. There’s never a natural build up to these moments and they fall somewhat flat.
What this film purely hinges on is the performances and thankfully Dancy and Byrne deliver. Dancy creates a likable and charming character while also never over-acting or divulging into a caricature. Some actors would make this type of role feel more theatrical, but Dancy keeps it low key and never overplays it. Byrne unsurprisingly delivers another excellent performance. Beth is emotionally torn between her family and Adam, and Byrne makes it emotionally satisfying. Byrne has this sense of sweetness and elegance about her that makes her purely likable. Even when she yells at Adam she’s still understandable. The frustration Beth gets at times isn’t unbelievable nor unreasonable.
This is a good example of a love story that doesn’t feel contrived or manipulative. And while Adam does have its shortcomings, it’s still a bittersweet love story. With Adam and the even better 500 Days of Summer, they show not every love story nowadays is cringe inducing.