Beneath its flashy sci-fi, time-traveling premise, The Adam Project is all about how a boy should wear his father’s legacy.
The Adam Project Synopsis
As a kid, did you dream of meeting your adult self? If that happens, how would you react if your adult self is a gutsy time-traveller, just as snarky as you? 12-year-old Adam, who recently lost his father and is the victim of frequent bullying in school, discovers the experience is as liberating as it is enlightening.
Snappy Review
This Netflix exclusive didn’t catch my attention till I came across the cheeky Adam meets Adam trailer on the streaming platform itself. After which, I couldn’t stop watching, or grinning. I found it such a zesty, indulgent, and thoughtful ride.
Yeah, this was truly an entertaining and meaningful watch, beginning with how derisive the show is about its bonkers time-traveling premise, or characters. Director Shawn Levy expectedly draws heavily from his wildly successful Stranger Things formula too. While there’s no ensemble of intrepid kids and pop-culture nostalgia isn’t a heavy theme, this is still a feel-good child’s adventure the likes of Levy’s hit series. A voyage that is the theatrical fruition of a kid’s growing pains.
What’s more, it is family drama, and by this I’m of course referring to the humourous interactions between older and younger Adam, and their dad. Middle-age, time-traveling Adam is obviously a jaded, older version of his pre-pubescent self. But at times, he morphs into a paternal figure that’s just perfect for his embattled young version. Is this the movie’s way of saying Adam would ultimately grow into the father he yearns to have, that he needed to have, given the right life experiences?
Snarky Young adam is himself clearly influenced by his dad in more ways than one. Referencing his dad’s physics lecture in which the older man states a physicist’s work will never be completed in his lifetime, what is the underlying message here for parenting? Is Louis a good or bad father?
Lots of food for thought here, with the dazzling sci-fi action the sides rather than the main dish. Also, a movie great for watching alone or with one’s kids. Oh wait, perhaps not so much with one’s kids. You might not want your child to start saying, hey dad, you made me talk like you!
Coming to the acting, 13-year-old Walker Scobell absolutely steals the show with every scene he’s in. He’s every bit Ryan Reynolds’ mirror and equal whether in charm or wit. Hey, I think he’s even a match for that other renowned Reynolds persona. You know, Deadpool?
Reynolds himself glows with his usual slick charisma, a projection that would be to some viewers, but a small variation of his older movie roles. On this, I don’t feel it’s necessarily a flaw. After all, the show is meant to be likeable and familiar. Familiarity, in turn, breeds finesse and comfort.
The final appeal of which is ice-cold orange juice on a dreamy summer’s day, that you can’t stop sipping.
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