Adam

Adam is a strong film that is tough to watch. I continuously felt sorry for the main character, Adam, who has Asperger's Syndrome. But, feeling sorry for Adam is part of the story...the script is written so that we do feel bad for him. The film opens with his father passing away and he now lives alone, which is new territory for Adam. Asperger's, which is a form of autism, prevents him from living a so-called normal life...he has few, if any, friends and he lives his life through habits he knows. When he meets a new neighbor, Beth, his insulated world threatens to either unravel or expand to include her. A touching, sweet film, Adam is part love story and part drama, but no matter which part you prefer, you will admire the strong performances here by both Hugh Dancy, who plays Adam and Rose Byrne as Beth. Dancy's Adam has more of an edge than other mentally challenged characters of late (Sean Penn in I Am Sam and Cuba Gooding Jr. in Radio). Adam is a hard person to get to know, be involved with, and especially to love and I feel Dancy conveys that difficulty to the audience through his stellar performance. Over-all, it is worth all of the uncomfortability for this one...it's a great film.