Adult Adam isn’t there for young Adam, he
just needs to treat his wound before going to
look for his wife (Zoe Saldaña). The older self
is dismissive, the younger one is desperate
to know when he’ll start getting ripped and
having luck with girls. Reynolds and Scobell are
a good match.
And of course adult Adam is on a journey
to make peace with his younger self and his
parents — Mom takes five minutes at a bar (it’s
a good scene) and Dad takes the rest of the
film. This is ultimately a film about boys and
their dads.
Levy is a director who has found a successful
lane in studio-made crowd pleasers like “Date
Night,” “Night at the Museum” and “Free Guy,”
which also starred Reynolds. While they might
not be the kind of things that are taught
in film school, they do have their place as
uncynical, nostalgic and rewatchable popcorn
fare (even Amblin-esque, if we must) with just
enough heart to make you feel like you haven’t
consumed junk food.
But nostalgia can be a tricky game for people
outside of the dominant group and “The Adam
Project” filmmakers could benefit from a little
post-game introspection about the fact that
they’ve made a loving film about family and
forgiveness and made the villain a highly
successful businesswoman (Catherine Keener)
whose origin story stems from her bitterness
about having no husband or children because
she devoted her life to work.
Keener looks like she’s having enough fun
among the special effects and a de-aged version
of herself. But it’s hard to shake the feeling that