I AM SAM

REVIEWED BY CHARITY BISHOP

Our rating: 3 out of 5

Because of: foul language

Rated:

Every now and again there comes a compelling film that is just as equally disturbing to watch. It came in the form of Forrest Gump in the early nineties, and this time in i am sam, a story about a mentally retarded man who is fighting for the right to raise his daughter. Whether or not by the end you agree with the result, you will have spent a heart-wrenching two hours dealing with raw human emotion and conflict.

Sam (Sean Penn) works at Starbucks Coffee clearing tables and lives alone. His mental capacity is that of a seven-year-old. He doesn't like change and loves children. And his life is about to change... the result of a one night stand has left him the father of a beautiful baby girl, whom he names Lucy Diamond (Dakota Fanning) after the Beatles song Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. The girl's mother, a homeless woman who refuses to accept responsibility, dumps the baby in his arms and leaves, never to be seen again. With the aid of his agoraphobic neighbor Annie (Dianne Wiest), Sam raises Lucy to be a beautiful and intelligent girl of six. Lucy knows that her father is different, and is forced to put up with the kids at school who call him a "retard."

But she loves him more than anything in the world, and her teachers are concerned that she's holding herself back in reading and mathematical skills so she "won't be smarter than daddy." Child services decides to pay a call... on the night of Lucy's surprise birthday party in which Sam gets a little too excited and one of the parents there starts a fight over the treatment of his son, who then spouts out that Lucy claims to have been adopted. This deeply wounds Sam and encourages the child service agent to remove Lucy from a "volatile and unstable home." The girl is taken from him and a court hearing set for a month away, in which he is encouraged to find legal help. Pushed by his friends, Sam goes to the highest-paid lawyer in the city... Rita Harrison (Michelle Pfeiffer), a workaholic with a volatile temper.

At first she brushes him off, giving him excuses as to why she can't handle it, falsely telling him that she'll call one of her friends who "handles these types of cases." But then in an effort to impress her collogues, she claims to have accepted the case pro bono and is forced to follow through with helping Sam reclaim his daughter. But none of his friends are mentally competent to testify on his behalf. The manager at Starbucks doesn't even trust him to make a cup of coffee, and Annie, his one true confidante, refuses to testify because it would mean leaving her apartment. The defense is anything but compassionate; they're determined to take this girl out of an environment which could ultimately result in her playing the parent. But the fact is, Lucy isn't happy anywhere else.. she loves her father too much to be ashamed of him. And this highly-intelligent little girl will suffer gravely if justice is not done.

This film is very well researched. It's a proven fact that those with lower than normal intelligence are often the most compassionate and caring of mankind. This would be Sam... naive, loving, and deeply emotional. In a moment of frustration, he cries out to Rita, "It's because I was born like this, and you were born perfect!" which results in a touching moment of confession. Rita isn't perfect. Just like all of us, she lives day to day, struggling just to make it. It's a prime example of a life without hope in Christ. There's also a vivid contrast between Sam's compassion for people and the way Rita uses witnesses to make a point, treating them cruelly if she has to. Twice people on the stand are brought to tears, once by herself and once by the prosecutor. Sam later chastises her for "making someone cry." It's a good grasp of the way the coldhearted side of humanity works; a world in which lawyers will do anything to win their case. "I have a problem with loosing," Rita sums up at one point. Yes, that she does... which is what makes her so human. 

It's nice to see the change in her by the end, when this is no longer a pro bono case... it's a mission that she believes in. That alone makes it a film worth watching at least once. It will be an emotional roller costar, but in the end will leave you with a lot to think about. I like films that make you think rather than simply entertain you. The acting in this production is beautiful... Sean Penn turns in the performance of a lifetime, and Michelle shines in her role as a high-wired top attorney. The little girl, Dakota Fanning, shows great talent as well; she may well become the next Haley Joel Osment.

The only thing that granted this film a PG13 rating is one use of the f-word by Rita, shamefully illustrating how sometimes she treats her son. She also gives GD a regular workout; but that's about the extent of problematic content. Occasional mild profanity and a glimpse at a hooker who tries to entice Sam back to her place. (Innocently, of course, he has no clue but is still arrested along with her.) Not perfect, and perhaps painful to those who have family members who are "challenged" in some way or another, i am sam is certainly different from standard fare.