Netflix’s original documentary, The Adam Project, tells the story of a soccer player named Adam Henning. It’s an in-depth and heartbreaking look into the life of a grieving teenager who is forced to become an adult far before he was ready to do so.
What’s It’s About?
The film takes place over six months and follows Adam as he copes with the loss of his mother. The movie starts off with audio clips of his mother talking about her childhood and then following her death, as well as glimpses into their life together: going on family vacations, making breakfast while they both chat away, and watching TV under a blanket in bed together.
The movie alternates between Adam’s perspective and his mother’s. He talks about how he misses her, even though she is no longer physically with him (this is an important moment in the movie as Adam has to let go and accept that she’s gone). His father talks about their bonding over soccer – which they played together on the same team – and how they talk through their emotions while they’re on the field. His father also talks about his time in the military, during which time he experienced some intense losses, but that it helped him grow up and “mature” so that he could be a good husband and father.
The film then shifts back to Adam, who has a difficult time dealing with his mother’s death. He misses her and can’t stop thinking about her. He can’t settle down with the grief he feels and believes that it’s too late to be sad. Adam thinks that the only way they could “have it all” would be if she were still with him, but she isn’t there. That leaves him alone in a world without his mother in it.
Watch It Or Not?
The movie chronicles Adam’s unraveling as he struggles to come to terms with the loss of his mother, while also trying to understand what happened at the house where she died. The movie shows him finding out more information and piecing together the facts of what happened, while also fixating on the terrifying image of her lying in a pool of blood. He tries to piece together exactly what happened, and then tries to understand why it happened.
You can’t help but root for Adam in this film. He’s relatable as he struggles with everything he’s going through, and you find yourself trying to think of ways you could be able to help him. So yes, it is a must watch.
The Adam Project does an excellent job showing Adam’s journey from a boy dealing with the loss of his mother to an adult who has to deal with what he finds out at the house where she died.
