Reuniting with the director of the financially successful, but creatively bankrupt, Free Guy, director Shawn Levy, leading man Ryan Reynolds has chosen yet another starring vehicle that relies heavily on his wise-cracking bravado that’s become all-too-familiar since the success of Deadpool 1&2. This film, heavily influenced by the works of Steven Spielberg, Robert Zemekis and the Amblin formula that dominates Hollywood’s current obsession with nostalgia, has a strong hook and a sturdy cast that does most of the heavy lifting for its disjointed, generic approach.
Adam (Walker Scobell) is having a hard go at life at just 12 years old. He and his mom (Jennifer Garner) are still coping with the loss of Adam’s dad (Mark Ruffalo, reuniting with Garner, his 13 Going on 30 co-star). Mom is working all the time and Adam keeps getting in fights as school due to his wise-cracking mouth. One night, a space ship crash lands in Adam’s backyard. The pilot is none other than Adam, himself (Ryan Reynolds), from 30 years in the future. It just so happens future Adam is on a mission to save the world and he needs the help of his younger self.
It’s a killer concept, and the script, credited to Jonathan Tropper, T.S. Nowlin, Jennifer Flackett and Mark Levin, gets quite a bit of mileage out of the premise. We see the future Adam help get back at the school bully, give advice on girls and both Reynolds and Scobell play off each other well enough. Scobell imitates the now-typical Reynolds schtick effectively, but the two performers never have the believable bond to really sell the dynamic.
Levy can replicate the Amblin style with sufficient craft, but he lacks the soul and overall inventiveness. This is a filmmaker whose best film is still the 2002 Frankie Muniz/Amanda Bynes-starring Big Fat Liar. The action sequences are clumsily edited and the sci-fi elements of the film are flavorless and painfully generic. It often comes across like a c-level riff of JJ Abrams.
The film also feels like two dueling films battling for relevance. We have the sci-fi time travel film that unfortunately dominates the runtime, and we have the more affecting family drama at the films core. The other side of The Adam Project manages to deftly tug at the heartstrings. The script hits the expected emotional beats and it works, thanks in large part to the cast which brings some much-needed authenticity to the material.
When he’s not mugging for the camera with the same quippy demeanor he’s allowed his career to turn into, Ryan Reynolds brings a welcoming vulnerability to the role. The most interesting dynamic is when the film pairs the Reynolds Adam and Mark Ruffalo as the previously deceased father via time travel. Not only is this when The Adam Project hits its clearest stride, but it allows Reynolds and Ruffalo to deliver layered performances in the kind of film that normally doesn’t allow for it. Jennifer Garner, once again tapping into the same motherly warmth found in Love, Simon, also gives credibility to the film in a nuanced turn. The less said the better about a clearly disinterested Catherine Keener as the film’s big baddie.
The Adam Project has shades of a great, affecting drama with a sci-fi twist located within. It’s unfortunately paired with a dull, uninteresting sci-fi actioner that overpowers its runtime.
On some website I have already read almost the same selection of disk imaging, but thanks anyway.