Adam

Adam (Hugh Dancy), a young man with Asperger’s syndrome (a high-functioning autism characterized by a lack of empathy and social skills), becomes attracted to the new neighbor in his apartment building (Rose Byrne); she’s coming off a bad breakup and finds Adam drawing her out of her shell as much as she draws him out of his. Writer-director Max Mayer’s film takes turns as unexpected for the audience as they are for the characters; Mayer plays against our romantic-comedy expectations without cheating (actually, meeting them would be the cheat). The romance is uncertain and tentative, but the movie is confident and sure-footed, with the sweet, rueful ring of truth. Mayer gets fine work from his cast, including Frankie Faison as Adam’s only friend and Peter Gallagher and Amy Irving as Byrne’s parents.