I Am Sam is one of those films that you will love for so many reasons and find infuriating at the same time. It is by far one of the best examples of acting talent across the board and evokes such levels of emotion that one is drawn deeply into the story. But, it makes a statement so one-sided and irresponsible that you cannot help but feel like you have just eaten a huge meal of empty calories by the time it is done.
The basic premise behind the film is that love is all that one needs in order to raise a child. It does so by showing Sean Penn's character -- a mentally handicapped man -- trying to raise his daughter on his own and having various officials coming down on him to "take his daughter away from him". It is a sad reality that is faced by some mentally handicapped parents, and one can't help but feel sorry for the situation.
Personally, I have a hard time accepting a film that ignores the reality of severely mentally handicapped caregivers. While they are indeed fully capable of giving as much love as anyone else, it is an unfortunate truth that some lack the mental facilities to properly raise children. I personally knew a mentally disabled person whose mental age was beyond that demonstrated by the character of Sam, and she had a difficult time raising a cat without injuring it regularly. Though she was repeatedly told by her veterinarian what she needed to do, she simply could not keep up to the ever changing demands of raising a living creature.
To put it in perspective, imagine Sean Penn replaced by Haley Joel Osment (at his age in the Sixth Sense) and having him take care of Dakota Fanning's character. In fact, that is still an over-exaggeration because Haley's mental age would still have been more than that of the character of Sam. Because we see Sean Penn physically as an adult, we don't question his abilities and we are more likely to feel sorry for him. But one has to look at the mental facilities and give it a likely comparison. We would never leave a 6 year old girl in the care of an 8 year old boy. In the same way, we can't automatically give the care of a 6 year old girl to a physically mature man with the mental facilities of a 8 year old.
While there cannot be a perfect parallel between all situations, certainly there must be some semblance of logic applied instead of just presenting heart-tugging sentiment such as what this film prefers to present. I find it irresponsible of the filmmakers to simply ignore the reality of the situation in order for it to hit home emotionally alone.
The film could have been equally effective had they simply acknowledged the fact that Sam really did not have the ability to take care of his daughter on his own and explored the emotional consequences of the situation he finds himself. It is tragic, but it is a fact that must be dealt with. And for the creators of this film to suggest the only gauge to deal with this situation is to ask how sorry you feel for the main character is condescending at best.
Beneath the emotional surface and the performances, this film is intellectually empty. A movie for the heart, not for the mind.
The basic premise behind the film is that love is all that one needs in order to raise a child. It does so by showing Sean Penn's character -- a mentally handicapped man -- trying to raise his daughter on his own and having various officials coming down on him to "take his daughter away from him". It is a sad reality that is faced by some mentally handicapped parents, and one can't help but feel sorry for the situation.
Personally, I have a hard time accepting a film that ignores the reality of severely mentally handicapped caregivers. While they are indeed fully capable of giving as much love as anyone else, it is an unfortunate truth that some lack the mental facilities to properly raise children. I personally knew a mentally disabled person whose mental age was beyond that demonstrated by the character of Sam, and she had a difficult time raising a cat without injuring it regularly. Though she was repeatedly told by her veterinarian what she needed to do, she simply could not keep up to the ever changing demands of raising a living creature.
To put it in perspective, imagine Sean Penn replaced by Haley Joel Osment (at his age in the Sixth Sense) and having him take care of Dakota Fanning's character. In fact, that is still an over-exaggeration because Haley's mental age would still have been more than that of the character of Sam. Because we see Sean Penn physically as an adult, we don't question his abilities and we are more likely to feel sorry for him. But one has to look at the mental facilities and give it a likely comparison. We would never leave a 6 year old girl in the care of an 8 year old boy. In the same way, we can't automatically give the care of a 6 year old girl to a physically mature man with the mental facilities of a 8 year old.
While there cannot be a perfect parallel between all situations, certainly there must be some semblance of logic applied instead of just presenting heart-tugging sentiment such as what this film prefers to present. I find it irresponsible of the filmmakers to simply ignore the reality of the situation in order for it to hit home emotionally alone.
The film could have been equally effective had they simply acknowledged the fact that Sam really did not have the ability to take care of his daughter on his own and explored the emotional consequences of the situation he finds himself. It is tragic, but it is a fact that must be dealt with. And for the creators of this film to suggest the only gauge to deal with this situation is to ask how sorry you feel for the main character is condescending at best.
Beneath the emotional surface and the performances, this film is intellectually empty. A movie for the heart, not for the mind.