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Written by Gregg Shapiro
Apr 22, 2010
Matthew McNulty and Robert Pattinson in “Little Ashes”
“Adam” (Fox Searchlight)
The titular character of the non-traditional love story “Adam” (hot Hugh Dancy) is an electronics engineer at toy company called Replay Inc. He has just lost his father, with whom he shared an apartment in New York. Adam possesses nearly infinite knowledge of outer space, but what he doesn’t have are social skills. We see this firsthand when Adam, who has Asperger’s Disorder, meets schoolteacher Beth (Rose Byrne), his new neighbor.
A romantic attraction develops between the two, and soon we are watching the latest in a series of unconventional love stories, including 2009’s “Away We Go” and “(500) Days of Summer.” Beth’s father Marty (Peter Gallagher, whose eyebrows are under control, even if his acting isn’t) points out that Adam’s “not prime relationship material,” but he’s one to talk. He’s a financier who’s about to be indicted and is getting busted for being unfaithful to his wife.
The interesting story of Adam and Beth almost gets derailed by the one about her family, but in the end it triumphs. DVD bonus features include a writer/director commentary, an alternate ending, alternate and deleted scenes and more.
“Little Ashes” (E1/Regent)
A breeze was blowing through Spain in 1922, signaling the socio-political changes to come. At the student residence in Madrid, poet Federico Garcia Lorca (Javier Beltrán) and future filmmaker Luis Buñuel (Matthew McNulty) befriend eccentric new arrival Salvador Dali (Robert Pattinson). “Little Ashes” is Paul Morrison’s cinematic depiction of their tempestuous association.
Bisexual Lorca is immediately drawn to Dali, and the feeling is obviously mutual, although the socially awkward Dali is unsure how to proceed. Meanwhile the virulently homophobic Buñuel is both intrigued and repelled by Dali.
The chameleon-like Dali soon transforms himself into a more acceptable member of the student body, as well as a genuine object of desire. As the relationship between Lorca and Dali develops, Buñuel grows more suspicious and begins to distance himself from the pair. He also finds a way to come between them by encouraging Dali to abandon provincial Madrid for Paris.
Dali’s departure almost destroys Lorca, but the duo is reunited a few more times, including when Lorca travels to Paris and meets Gala (Arly Jover), Dali’s wife (who encourages her husband’s fluid sexuality). Tragically, Lorca’s outspokenness in terms of his politics eventually catches up with him, cutting his promising life short.
Pattinson, star of the “Twilight” series, shines here. His depiction of Dali contains just the right flourishes of surrealism. Beltrán is also exceptional, effortlessly capturing the poetic sensitivity necessary to honor Lorca’s legacy. DVD bonus features include interviews with the cast and director.
