I have such precious little time to invest in movies, so I always try to pick one I’m pretty sure I’ll like. It’s a huge let down when I end up not liking the movie. Unfortunately, that was the case with Netflix’s The Adam Project.
It had great potential: an A-list cast, time travel, decent reviews.
But I didn’t like it. Not even a little.
Movie: The Adam Project
Description: The movie starts off about a year after Adam’s father dies. It’s just him and his mom (played by Jennifer Garner), and it’s clear they’re both having a rough time – Adam with the loss of his father, and the mom with being a single parent. Into this mix enters older Adam (played by Ryan Reynolds), who comes back in time to…fix stuff. I can’t really get into it, as it would ruin some of the plot.
Rating: PG-13
MyrmiGrade: 
The entire movie is about healing from the past. However, it’s handled incredibly poorly. I could go into lots of reasons why, such as bad screen writing, or rushed emotional scenes in order to fit in a somewhat convoluted plot…
However, I will limit myself to one thing: the treatment of younger Adam.
The Adults in Adam’s Life
I get it. Life’s hard, and teenagers suck. But the egregious negligence every single one of the adults in his life displays is absolutely appalling.
First, WHY ISN’T HE IN COUNSELING?!?! The movie clearly states it takes place in 2022. Everyone’s in counseling in 2022. Not only has he lost his father, but the mom is clearly having trouble getting through to him. AND he’s being bullied in school. His mom should have put him in, or else the school should have.
Which leads me to my second objection: why does the school suspend him when he’s being bullied? Why do they punish the victim? And the movie clearly shows him as being the victim of physical violence – simply for “mouthing off.”
The entire school sequence is incredibly unrealistic, especially for this day and age. Bullying was beginning to be taken seriously when I was in school, but now it’s taken incredibly seriously – and rightfully so. There’s no way the bullies would have been able to do that. Basically, I felt the writers shoe-horned issues from their own school years into a modern movie, and it just didn’t fit.
Apparently they were working through daddy-issues, too. I don’t care what younger Adam tells older Adam, older Adam is right: his dad was absent and didn’t pay much attention to him. It’s even confirmed by the brief exchange Jennifer Garner and Mark Ruffalo have at one point (the Adams go back in time to see their dad for plot reasons). We see it first hand, too. When the dad meets the Adams from the future, he isn’t kind or reassuring – he’s angry and basically wants nothing to do with them. I get it, he thinks they’re disrupting the time continuum, or whatever. But if two different versions of your child come to you, you should at least hear them out.
The Worst Offender
Those are bad and negligent, but the way older Adam treated his younger self is just…There are no words. I’d say you have to see the movie, but don’t waste your time.
He is TERRIBLE to his younger self. He’s dismissive, condescending, verbally abusive, threatening, and allows him to get bullied. (Then older Adam grotesquely threatens one of the bullies…I don’t care if they are awful, an adult should not say those things to a child.)
First off…WHAT?!? What sort of person says he wants to hold his younger self under water “until the bubbles stop”? Who has that much disdain for their younger self? How can you not think back on your younger self and have compassion? It is simply appalling and completely unrealistic.
Also…WHY?!? The kid seemed kinda sweet. I actually found him rather endearing. He’s a teenager, and teens can be difficult…but teens are also going through SO MUCH. And this teen is navigating his grief on top of that. We are told he mouths off, but we never see anything worthy of the disdain and violence he experiences.
So Why is it 2 Shells?
Out of respect for the massive amounts of talent, I had to give it above a 1. Plus, the special effects were well done and the futuristic gadgets pretty cool. And the kid who played younger Adam did a perfect impression of what a younger Ryan Reynolds would be. I’m excited to see what he does in the new Percy Jackson series on Disney+.
What Would You Say?
I don’t really have a “seeking God” moment, and I’m not going to pull my hair out to find one. But it did make me think: if I went back in time, what would I say to my younger self?
Easy: I’d tell myself I have OCD. I’d tell myself OCD is an anxiety disorder characterized by repetitive and unwanted (therefore distressing) thoughts. I’d say I do have compulsions – but they are all mental, like avoidance and reassurance seeking. I would tell myself I’m not the monster I fear – that every single thought is actually a known variant of OCD and normal for people whose brains are wired that way.
And then I’d tell myself that OCD is just the drawback of how my mind is wired. The way I look at the world is different than others – and that’s ok. What’s more, it’s good.
The thing is, younger me wouldn’t believe me. Younger me would need “proof” (i.e. reassurance seeking). And proof was hard to come by then. Not only did we not have smartphones, but we also didn’t have access to all the mental health knowledge we have today.
But that’s ok. I’d do it anyway. Sometimes you need to do the right thing, regardless of whether people notice or respond.
What would you say to your younger self? (I bet it’s a far cry from holding yourself underwater until the bubbles stop…)
