LIGHTENING ROUND 1: Adam (2009)

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9.5 out of 10: Must See!!!

Director: Max Mayer

Stars: Hugh Dancy and Rose Byrn

Adam is a love-struck drama of an unlikely couple. Adam (Hugh Dancy) is just an odd guy who obsesses over space and it's history and physics. When Beth (Rose Byrn), a cute girl, moves into his apartment building, both find love in each other. But when Adam reveals the secret to his awkwardness, the relationship becomes a little more complicated than they imagined.

WARNING: the following contains spoilers: please don't read this if you don't want it to be spoiled!!!

So, yes. I did give this movie a 9.5 out of 10. Seriously. And yes again. This movie deserves it's grade.

So let's get started with the actors and actresses.

I want to start with Rose Byrn. So, the first time I saw her act was in the sci-fi horror "28 Weeks Later." I thought she was very pretty, and a surprisingly okay actress. Not the best, but average. Next, she was the female interest in the sci-fi drama "Sunshine" (directed by the fabulous Danny Boyle)... she was fantastic! So good in a fantastic movie. The only other movie I know people might recognize her from was the sci-fi horror movie "Knowing" (acting alongside Nicholas "i'm terrifying" Cage). Do you catch the grift....? If you're tired, or just not so much of a sharp tool (like I often am), Rose Byrn is not really a romantic-drama actress, but more of a creepy movie scifi thriller actress. with a cute face.

But in this movie, she plays an only child, working for a school to help her write her first children's book. And surprisingly, with a girl who has a VERY tough relationship in this movie, she plays the most incredibly common-female: something that is VERY RARELY touched on in movies now-a-days. Now, it's all Big-tits, hot ass (coughMEGANFOXcoughcough). Girls that would never hook up with the guys they chase after. But with Rose, she is average looking, very normal, and actually responds in a true way. For example, after meeting Adam in her apartment, she doesn't just bust in and make out with him (like megan fox would. or would she just shake her ass in his face? i dunno, i never saw transformers). Rose has a conversation with her father which includes, and I quote, "this really cute guy lives in my apartment building." How many times have you heard that in a movie? Like none, right? Yeah, but it's something that pretty much every girl says! Kudos for the realism!!! And nothing is more adorable than her relationship with Adam. She is really nervous, but understanding when she first finds out about his syndrome, and then she begins to tire from it and kind of let her guard down when he can't have that. Very real situations. I really thought that they couldn't have picked a better female for this part. And she was so wonderful!

Now for Hugh Dancy. I will admit that I went to see the movie not only because of its story, but because of the most-hottest Hugh Dancy. Known for playing pretty-boy in romantic comedies: Ella Enchanted, and the recent Confessions Of A Shopaholic, Hugh Dancy is the dreamboat of this year. And let me tell you something, he is pretty much the most amazing actor ever after watching this movie!!!

So first off, he plays Adam. Yes, titled-after-main-character Adam. He's the space-obsessed neighbor who is just too loveable to be normal. However, here's the huge spoiler, there's something about Adam that makes him so special: He has Asperger's Syndrome. For those of you who don't know what that is, it's a form of autism that expresses a significant difficulty in social interaction, thought process, and difference in patterns. Hugh Dancy, the pretty boy, now plays an autistic adult, and he is wonderful. Incessintly going on and on and on about space, Adam tends to inform everyone about everything he knows without a filter. And it's difficult in this relationship because, as he describes, he cannot understand what people are thinking. A huge issue that comes up in this relationship is that Beth is worried she'll never feel love because he can never look in her eyes and feel the way she does about him. He'd never understand. And Hugh Dancy is so believable that I almost never want to see him in another role. That's how fantastic it was!

So let's get a little deeper. The whole story is this: Adam's father has just died. And now he has to rely on his father's old war buddy to help him cope in society, which is just not close enough for comfort. So when he meets Beth, who is having troubles of her own, he sees a caretaker that is beautiful and in love with him. But doesn't understand what is going on in her life. See, her father was accused of doing something very bad in his company and was approaching a trial and possible jail-date. So Beth's stress is not only based on her father's issues, but on the difficulty of the relationship between Adam and her. As Adam gets a new job, and true, hard facts come out about her father, Beth questions what she should do with her future: be there for her mother, or be there for Adam.

This movie is very complicated, but is so sweet and sad that it keeps you hooked. To be honest, I was tearing up pretty much the entire movie for so many scenes that I can't even imagine how I didn't cry!!! Specifically one scene hit me pretty hard. So, Adam just lost his job, and he is uncomfortable going out with Beth (by the way, this is pre-relationship). He ends up going out to a party with her because she wants him to eat more than macaroni-and-cheese. Seeing he's obviously uncomfortable, she orders the nice dinner to go and takes him to his favorite place: central park. As they sit on the lawn, he opens his fancy food and realizes that "penne with fettecini and melted cheese" is basically fancy macaroni-and-cheese, he's already gleeful. She watches him carefully and then finally gives him a book. He opens it and reads the title: "How to get a job with asperger's syndrome." That look he gives makes the audience uncomfortable, like he's offended, and so does Beth. She feels sad, like she totally offended him, until he leans over and kisses her right on the lips. "Thank you" he stutters, and I could practically feel the audience begin to cry. SO CUTE!

And that's just one example! Wait until you get to the part where he reads her book! I seriously don't know how I kept my composure! The movie was emotional, beautiful, and just plain wonderful.

I would also suggest getting the soundtrack. Full of alternative, acoustic goodness, it could put you to sleep at night!

Overall, this movie can easily be rated top three best of movies of the year, and I hope that people see it.... even if it's MY movie :D (and T... SORRY. COULDN'T HELP IT. IT HURT TO KEEP THIS IN!!!)