Ryan Reynolds continues to take over Netflix. After 6 Underground and Red Notice, the actor starred in a new time travel action film, The Adam Project. Almost until its release, the film was a dark horse – the streaming service scored completely with advertising, but in vain. I managed to see the project and am ready to share my impressions.
What is “Project Adam” about?
Adam Reid is a time travel pilot. Escaping from the year 2050, he mistakenly ends up in the year 2022. A man (of school age) finds himself in the past and talks about the purpose of the trip – to find his mysteriously disappeared wife.
Now our hero, in the person of two people, must simultaneously unravel the events of the past, uncover a conspiracy and at the same time come to terms with the loss of his father, who died in an accident.
Netflix movies have never had overly twisted plots. Project Adam is no exception. You should not expect any special intrigue, and they are not trying to create it. We are quickly introduced to a villain whose motives almost exactly copy Biff’s idea from Back to the Future. The film runs a little under two hours, so the characters don’t have time to think about what happened.
Unexpectedly, it turned out that the film with Reynolds was not just another story about Deadpool. The director of the picture, who already worked with the actor on Free Guy, showed that he can perfectly combine light comedy with a million references to modern culture and serious dramatic themes. The formula also works successfully with “Adam”.
The film is perfectly fine with humor – the jokes are not vulgar and only in the right places. The fights segue seamlessly into philosophical discussions about the “butterfly effect,” and the second nature of the story is offset by a more personal and down-to-earth presentation.
A distinctive feature of the picture was an unusual approach to the essence of temporary movements. A trained observer is used to the fact that two identical people should never overlap. In this case, they spit on all the rules from the first minutes. It’s nice that the film gives explanations as to why nothing terrible will happen. This concept is rarely found in well-known works and therefore seems fresh.
Characters and actors
The chemistry between the characters is the best part of the picture. It was particularly successful in showing Adam in different time periods. It’s hard to expect incredible drama from Ryan Reynolds, but here he pleasantly surprised. The image of a ___y but sad and tired man of 40 suits the famous joker no less than Deadpool’s red mask.
Not far behind the older friend and a young actor – Walker Scobell (Walker Scobell). His Adam successfully combines the naivety of a child with the seriousness of a man who has survived a family tragedy. Usually, children in such projects are either annoying or become the butt of jokes. A good balance was found in the film, so it is interesting to see the tandem of a boy and a man united by a grief.
Reynolds managed not only to play the character, but also to make the characters of young and adult Adams the same. This is not just a relationship between a pilot from the future and a schoolboy, but literally a hero who is amused and annoyed by the same things.
Both versions go their own path of development and rethink some of the views and beliefs. Self-talk has never been more thoughtful – we’re seeing “talking to your inner child” in real life.
The supporting characters are also gone. They are shown schematically, but they are remembered and look alive. I would like to say a few words about Father Adam. He is played by the much loved Mark Ruffalo. Surprisingly, this character also has his own solid storyline.
It seems that the director was much more interested in accurately showing the relationship between father and son rather than a hurricane action film, which is more of a plus in this case.
Villainy of Catherine Keener (Catherine Keener) does not cause any special emotions. As I wrote above, their motivation is obvious. Adam claims that in the future a woman will hold the whole world under her heel, but we are not shown this. It is strange that such an influential person catches a dangerous traitor with only a detachment of soldiers.
The missing woman is played by Zoe Saldana-Perego. There is very little of her in the film and all explanations are spoilers. Gamora keeps the overall high level of performance within reasonable limits and thus becomes a pleasant addition to the powerful cast.
Mark Ruffalo and Zoe Saldana are A-list stars who have agreed to work with Netflix. If “Project Adam” is successful, and judging by the reviews from critics and viewers, we should expect a few in other films.
Do you like Ryan Reynolds as an actor?
Of course, he looks great in his roles.
