Movie review and actors/director interviews: Adam

by Alex Bentley

In most romantic comedies, the biggest problem the main characters have to deal with is, say, a misunderstanding about a relationship with another person or the swirling love/hate feelings between the two of them. Most of them tend to shy away from serious issues like life and death or human disorders, since those kind of things aren't normally prime fodder for movie-going enjoyment.

Which goes to show you that Adam is not your normal romantic comedy. (The fact that it's an independent film should be your first clue.) We meet Adam (Hugh Dancy) at the funeral of his father. Coming home to an empty apartment, Adam seems to retreat inward. Every interaction he has with another person appears forced and awkward, especially when he meets Beth (Rose Byrne), a girl who just moved in to his building.

It's not until their third or fourth meeting that we learn the real reason for Adam's social unease: He has Asperger's Syndrome, a form of autism that causes him to not understand many of the everyday social interactions that other people take for granted. Though initially wary of becoming involved with Adam on any level, Beth eventually finds herself gravitating toward him. She does so because, one, he won't leave her alone, but also because she's dealing with the dual stresses of having just moved to New York City and worrying about her father (Peter Gallagher), who's dealing with mysterious legal trouble.

Adam thinks a little differently than most people.

What follows is a strange but wonderful exploration of Adam and Beth's budding relationship and Adam's life in general. He is obsessed with all things involving space (as in outer) and has a talent toward engineering, but his condition has so far not let him advance very far in the professional world. Writer/director Max Mayer, making only his second feature film after a handful of TV directing credits, does a terrific job of showcasing the kind of person Adam is without ever disparaging him or playing his condition for sympathy. He's clear about showing not only Beth's doubts about what she's doing, but those of her parents and friends.

Of course, he's helped greatly in this matter by Dancy and Byrne. Dancy, a Brit, has previously not strayed very far from roles right in his wheelhouse (i.e. suave and debonair Brits). He breaks out of that mold in a big way here, not only acing the American accent, but imbuing Adam with such a believability that one could be forgiven if you thought he actually had Asperger's. In fact, it's an all foreign affair, as Byrne (probably best known for her role in the TV series Damages) is Australian. She, likewise, has no trouble with the accent, and the mixed emotions Beth experiences throughout the film show up loud and clear through Byrne's acting.

Adam should be celebrated for being an honest, forthright look at the challenges of love, challenges that, in this case, just happen to include that Adam has Asperger's. Along with (500) Days of Summer, it looks like the independent film world is leading the way in delivering new takes on the romantic comedy.

Adam interview: Stars Hugh Dancy and Rose Byrne

I sat in on two separate round table interviews with director Max Mayer and stars Hugh Dancy and Rose Byrne. Both interviews discuss the movie at length, so they're full of spoilers. Listen to the two 20-minute interviews for the following highlights:

Dancy and Byrne:

* What the stars thought about the ending of the film

* Whether either Dancy or Byrne had any experience with Asperger's prior to the film

* How each star dealt with the American accents

* How real people with experience with Asperger's have reacted to the film

* How Adam "tinkers" with romantic comedy conventions

* A little insight on Byrne's role in Damages