If you were flicking through your TV guide in March you might have come across a film on BBC2 called About Adam. Described as a romantic comedy featuring Kate Hudson, I figured it was my kind of thing so I recorded it for later viewing.
The following afternoon I was at a loose end so I settled down on the sofa and started to watch the film.
The film started off so well - it made me think "Yes, this is my kind of film" and "Ooh I'd marry him if he did that". Later I wanted to kick the screen, more specifically Townsend's character, Adam.
THE PLOT
Dublin girl Lucy Owens (Kate Hudson) works in a restaurant where she meets her latest conquest, a quiet seemingly shy man called Adam. Frustrated with waiting for him to make a move, Lucy asks to see him again. Adam (Stuart Townsend) is unlike anyone Lucy has dated - he is shy, doesn't push her for sex and incredibly romantic. He gets on well with her family and even offers to babysit for her sister Alice (Charlotte Bradley)'s baby. Lucy soon finds herself falling in love with romantic & charming Adam so when she is singing at the restaurant on her mother's birthday she takes the opportunity to propose to Adam.
Up until this point I really liked the film, but from here we side an entirely different side to Adam, from the perspective of each of Lucy's relatives.
First of all we see his interactions with Lucy's brainy but "plain" sister, Laura (Frances O'Connor). He charms her (and admittedly, me) with his knowledge of Christina Rossetti and subsequently begins to appear wherever she is. They embark on a passionate affair, despite Adam's relationship with Lucy. Laura is completely transformed from a plain studious girl into a passionate, wild, lively woman through her sexual relationship with Adam.
Adam also attempts to seduce eldest sister, Alice through his ploy of babysitting. With Alice's drunken husband, Martin, bundled up in bed, Adam makes a pass at Alice. Alice is incredibly flattered but rejects Adam's advances. We think that Alice has morals and wouldn't do such a terrible thing to her sister, but later she regrets this decision and dashes to Adam's flat where she has to hide behind a car to avoid bumping into Laura & Adam. Alice knows what Adam is up to and yet she doesn't condemn it. Alice's husband is also interested in Adam - but only for his car!
Next we hear from Lucy's brother David (Alan Maher), who admits that he gets an erection from Adam! There is a hint of gay attraction before Adam instead sleeps with David's virgin girlfriend, Karen on the sofa. Karen (Cathleen Bradley) is likewise transformed from frigid virgin into nymphet, immediately wishing to bed David before the sofa is cold!
Will Alice tell Lucy what Adam is up to? Will Laura's affair with Adam end? Will Lucy go through with the wedding? I'm not going to spoil it for you, but I will say that I wasn't satisfied with the ending. I really wanted to strangle Adam by the end of this film.
MAIN CHARCTERS/ACTORS
* Lucy Owens/Kate Hudson Kate Hudson does a fairly credible Dublin accent but occasionally slips into an English accent. It's not as bad As Brad Pitt's accent in The Devil's Own or Tom Cruise's attempt at an Irish accent, but it is by no means authentic. Hudson plays an incredibly sweet and likeable character. She is beautiful, blonde, giggly and down-to-earth. She is not afraid of her sexuality but she is by no means intelligent.
Kate Hudson is of course Goldie Hawn's daughter with Rock Hudson. She has been in a few films including Almost Famous.
* Laura Owens/ Frances O'Connor I felt extremely angry with Laura in her betrayal of her sister so Frances O'Connor must be a good actress. Her transformation was fairly believable - Laura is won over by Adam's poetic/sensitive act, which excites her pity. She wants to look after him at first and have a romantic relationship with him but through their sexual relationship she realises that it is ok for women to have sex without love.
You may recognise Frances O'Connor from Bedazzled, in which she was Brendan Frasier's pretty workmate and object of his affections.
* Adam/ Stuart Townsend Adam was a charming man - attentive, telling people what they really wanted to hear. He was even fairy attractive, but his behaviour really turned me off. I couldn't believe how blind/foolish the women could be to succumb to him. I found him arrogant and smarmy rather than charming & alluring. Stuart Townsend does act well in this film, but I wasn't seduced.
Irish born Stuart Townsend has also been in Queen of the Damned. He is thought of as a bit of a sex god but he does nothing for me, I'm afraid.
* Alice/Charlotte Bradley The sensible, older sister and a likeable character, Alice can see through Adam but she is also flattered by his attention after beginning to regret her marriage. I really wanted Alice to reject Adam or reveal his behaviour to Lucy, but did she? Charlotte Bradley is a convincing older sister figure, sensible yet a little bit frivolous when attention is lavished upon her. Overall I liked her character.
Charlotte Bradley has also been in Irish movie The Van, Moll Flanders and numerous television shows.
* Peggy Owens/Rosaleen Linehan She doesn't have a big part in the film, but Adam also 'seduces' Peggy. She finds him charming because there are too many boring men in the world. Peggy firmly approves of Lucy's decision to marry Adam, but she later warns him not to marry Lucy unless she knows what it means.
Rosaleen Linehan has also been in Mad About Mambo and The Butcher Boy, both of which are Irish films.
OVERALL
Considering this was supposedly a comedy, it isn’t actually funny, apart from David's embarrassment at being aroused by Adam. Lucy is really likeable, and the mother, Peggy is amusing, but it's not an amazing film. It is some consolation that the movie is only 97 minutes long, therefore not a huge waste of your time. If you're a man this film may well be your ideal fantasy - a beautiful woman and her two lovely sisters. It just left me feeling cold.
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Soundtrack
Unmemorable
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About Adam [2001]
Directed by playwright Gerard Stembridge, About Adam is a charmingly funny romantic comedy
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set against an unusually trendy Dublin backdrop. Adam (Stuart Townsend) is the sweetly bashful young man for whom singing bistro waitress Lucy (Kate Hudson) fall...
![About Adam [2001]](http://picnic.ciao.com/uk/65510434.jpg)
