Adam Raki (Hugh Dancy) lives alone in a spacious New York City apartment; his father has just died. This young man has Asperger's Syndrome, a developmental disorder that is a form of autism. It is characterized by an unusual preoccupation with certain subjects to the exclusion of other activities, repetitive routines and rituals, socially inappropriate behavior, lack of emotional reciprocity, restricted or improper use of gestures and facial expressions, and having a hard time "reading" what people are thinking. Adam, who works as an electronic engineer, is regularly visited by Harlan (Frankie Faison), a close friend of his father's who provides wise counsel on a variety of matters.
One day on the stoop of his building, he meets Beth Buchwald (Rose Byrne), a school teacher who is just moving in. She is a naturally friendly person and initiates a conversation with Adam, but he is put off-balance by her questions. Beth is just rebounding from a romantic relationship in which she was betrayed by her lover. When Adam shows her his own personal planetarium in his apartment and gives her a brilliant and detailed lecture on stars and the evolution of the universe, she is both impressed and a bit bewildered. Likewise, when he ignores her completely as she is struggling on the steps with a large and heavy cart of groceries.
Adam finally tells her that he has Asperger's Syndrome. She is surprised to learn that other "Aspies" have included Albert Einstein, Amadeus Mozart, Isaac Newton, and James Joyce. In one of the most enchanting and delightful scenes, Adam takes her out one evening to Central Park where they watch a family of raccoons. Beth loves his childlike playfulness and expressions of wonder, qualities sorely lacking in other men she has dated.
Max Mayer has written and directed this touching romantic drama that explores the intimate relationship that develops between Adam and Beth. When they meet her parents (Peter Gallagher and Amy Irving) at an off-Broadway play, Adam stuns them all with a lengthy and arcane lecture on the theater and all the controversial plays that have been performed there over the years. Their blooming affair is soon challenged by her controlling father who has his own ideas about whom his only child should date and marry. Beth is later unnerved when her dad, an accountant, has to stand trial for some wrong-doing with a corporation's books. Adam's equilibrium is shattered when he loses his job and is forced to find another one quickly. These developments put additional strains on Adam and Beth's relationship.
In a voiceover at the opening of the film, Beth shares that her favorite book when she was young was The Little Prince. It is about a pilot whose plane crashes in the desert; he meets a tiny prince who teaches him the secrets of life. Beth always thought that she would be the sagacious little prince when she grew up but now it strikes her that she has become the pilot. Or as Max Meyer said in an interview: "They each find something liberating in the other. For Adam, Beth is like a graduate course in Human Relations, he learns so much about how to deal with the world from her. For Beth, Adam shows her how to freely express herself, how to live honestly, how to be true to who she is."
How true! Adam, with its tender and touching characters, shows us that those we love are our best spiritual teachers.
