Rating: 
Summary: Somewhat pleased..mostly because of Dakota..
Review: I love Dakota Fanning, she's the cutest girl I've seen in movies..I was somewhat disappointed with her part in this movie, I don't think it was big enough. I'm glad that she was in the movie, though. Her acting outshined even Sean. I was hoping that at the end, Sean's character would hook up with Michelle Pfeiffer's, but that didn't happen. That was pretty disappointing as well. It's really not that bad of a movie, but it's not the best. If you really want to see Dakota shine, try watching Uptown Girls..great movie.
Rating: 
Summary: Great movie about another slice of life
Review: If I could give this movie a 4 ½ star rating, I would. This film has huge strengths in several areas. First, the acting is stellar. Sean Penn has received incredible accolades recently, and they are all deserved. Next, the plot is not sensationalized. It is steady and believable, and is not pushed "over the top" by the introduction of extreme plot twists. (For example, the little girl could have ended up in an abusive foster home....) My favorite strength is the way that the movie portrays the life of mentally challenged adults. Sean Penn and his buddies have carved out a life that is productive and fun for them. Finally, I like the positive resolution reached at the end that acknowledges that good, competent parents come in many forms. There are a few aspects of the film that are not so wonderful. First it is about a half and hour too long. The 3rd quarter of the story drags through the court hearings. Additionally, Michelle Pfeiffer's character did not always seem probable or even possible. She acted too horrible at the beginning and perhaps too good at the end. This is a 4 ½ star movie that is substantive, meaningful and entertaining.
Rating:
Summary: I Am Sam Review
Review: Hey, last year at about this time, i was in love with this movie. I can't tell you how many times i saw it. so anyway, my point is, i find that this movie is very very very touching (after all, it made me realize that people that are different, are people too, and we shouldn't be rude) But i also found that it copied one of my most favorite movies in a way, Rain Man (1988). In the beginning, Michelle Pfeiffer is exactly like Tom Cruise was. In Rain Man, Raymond (Dustin Hoffman) who is the autistic older brother Charlie (Tom Cruise)never knew about helps him go from being greedy and a hustler, to being sweet and sensitive. See, same story, the only difference is the different times!!
Rating: 
Summary: Dakota Fanning-Future Ruler of the Universe
Review: Dakota Fanning is brilliant in this film, her follow-up to her successful debut in "Harry Potter and The The". She is a ray of sunshine in an otherwise dreary and dull world. Too bad nine-year-olds cannot be President-I'd vote for her in a heartbeat! Is it possible that she is a visitor from another planet? Is she a living Powerpuff Girl? All I know is I dug her ripping guitar solo at the "Concert For George" during "It's A Small World"-Lindsay Lohan, eat your heart out! And so what if she recently lost her two front teeth? Now we know what to get her for Christmas! Dakota is God! UltraLord has spoken!
Rating:
Summary: Very Good Impression
Review: This Movie gave a very very good impression about the relationship between the father and his child whatever the mental differents are :)
Rating:
Summary: Wow, this is so good!
Review: Sean Penn was fantastic. Michelle Pfeiffer was just as Oscar worthy. Dakota Fanning is so mature for her age and could probably act circles around most adults. Richard Schiff was a great jerk of a lawyer, he has such a stern demeanor and visage. Laura Dern, making a sort of come back to the silver screen, was subtle yet as important as Sam. The story is easily conceivable, but the vigor and care with which the players deliver this story's touching story and inspiring words and outcome make it so enjoyable and so darn good. It's a great movie, and if you don't cry when Laura Dern gives Lucy (In The Sky With Diamonds) back, you're not human. It's like not crying at Fried Green Tomatoes or Steel Magnolias, you just have to cry. The soundtrack is great, Eddie Vedder is a perfect match for "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away." Amiee Mann and that other gentleman, I feel bad forgetting his name, are so melodic on "Two Of Us." All around, cinema, script, performances, score and soundtrack, this movie has it all: commercial appeal and critical success, even if I'm the only one that thinks so. It's great!
Rating:
Summary: Better have a box of Kleenex for this one.
Review: I saw this movie the same weekend that I saw John Q and I have to say that this was on the exact opposite end of the spectrum even though it's in the same genre! How is it on the opposite? Simply put, the emotions that it illicit are genuine. Just from reading the plot above, I think it's fair to say that that there is a high chance that this movie could be a simple sob story that goes for the cliche in order to get you to cry. That NEVER happens in this film. Every emotion, although sometimes gut wrenching, is elicited genuinely from the actors and the story. I should also mention that I grew up next door to a mentally challenged neighbor, so I have had experience with the subject. Although Sam is clearly at the upper end of the spectrum in terms of mental deficiency, Penn nails the role and I think it's one of the best performances of his life. Playing the role of a retarded person is not easy. It's not just a matter of talking funny, or acting stupid - Penn clearly illustrates that fact. Not to mention that he's able to hold the screen acting opposite a child and 5 dogs! In conjunction with Penn's performance, the writing is truly incredible. It's realistic and doesn't portray any of the characters as caricatures of themselves. Richard Schiff, for example, could have been portrayed as simply "the bad guy" in his role as Turner, State's Attorney. It would have been an easy choice for the writer's to make and unfortunately, it's a choice that many movies tend to make. Instead, Turner is portrayed as someone doing his job and looking out for the best interests of the child. Although it's one of the more minor roles of the film, the fact that none of characters were "throw away" just goes to how how well the script was written. One other element that is often overlooked is the cinematography. Elliot Davis really gives this movie a unique style and feel in his photography and actually plays a role in telling the story. As the color pallets change for the perspective it makes it easier to tell where the perspective has changed as well. One of my favorite scenes involves the Sam in the courtroom and Davis' use of 4 cameras to capture the scene coupled with Richard Chew's editing makes that scene so compelling. Lastly, I have to mention the performances given by the lead women in the cast. Michelle Pfeiffer, who plays Sam's lawyer Rita Harrison, gives one of her best performances in her career. The arc that she is able to take her character is not easy. She goes from being someone who has very little in the way of redeeming qualities to someone you can deeply care for. She really stretched herself in this role and took some chances that pay off in spades. And last, but not least, Dakota Fanning plays Sam's daughter Lucy. I haven't seen Dakota in any other films yet, but now I want to. Although playing a child, when you're a child isn't much of a stretch, having to play a child that understands the mentally challenged is. The script gives her everything she needs for the scene, but Dakota has to deliver it and she does. Her talent is well beyond her years and the emotion she is able to convey through her eyes and in her reactions to other characters is truly impressive. Her role could have been the weak link that brought the movie to a much lower level, but she proved to be one of it's anchors. Make no mistake about it, this is a tear jerker, but in the best sense of the word. It's an honest look at a unique situation that shows us many facets and pulls no punches.
Rating:
Summary: Dakota Fanning is the real star of this movie
Review: A Film by Jessie Nelson We are introduced to Sam Dawson (Sean Penn) at the very start of the movie. He is working in a Starbucks and his job is to make sure the cups are straight, that the salt/sugar packets are aligned, and to bring customers coffee. We learn without being directly told that Sam is mentally handicapped. Not long after this introduction, Sam is told "it is time." When he realizes that it is time, he hurries and walks very fast to a hospital, in time for his daughter to be born. Shortly after the birth as he is bringing the little girl home with the mother, the mother takes off and Sam never sees her again. Sam does not quite know what to do, but gets help from a neighbor. He finds a routine so that he can function and he does not deviate from it. The movie flashes forward several years so that Lucy (Dakota Fanning) is now 7 years old. She is the sweetest little girl and initially not much is wrong. Because of Lucy's age, Sam has a greater intellectual capacity and Lucy only notices that Sam is different. She loves him, though, so she doesn't let it bother her. As she gets a little bit older, she surpasses Sam intellectually and when she brings a friend home, the little boy calls asks Lucy if her father is "retarded". This point begins the downward spiral that ends when Lucy is taken away from Sam by the Police and Child Services. Sam had (unknowingly) made some mistakes that were misconstrued as being worse than they may have been. We are now introduced to lawyer Rita Harrison (Michelle Pfieffer). Rita is initially unwilling to take the case, but agrees to work pro bono. This point is about halfway through the movie and the rest of the movie is mostly the interaction between Rita, Sam, and Lucy (though Lucy is out of the movie for long stretches of time) and how Rita can possibly win Lucy back through court. The movie also addresses the question of whether or not a mentally handicapped man is physically capable of raising a child, and also if he should do so. Throughout the movie I was torn on that issue and I'm not positive that I came up with a good answer to that question. Sam has such a strong support system in place that his deficiencies are more than made up with his friends who love Lucy like their own. I was surprised by this movie. It was better than I expected after watching the trailer. Sean Penn gives a fine performance as Sam and Michelle Pfieffer is believable in her role as a lawyer who is falling apart in her personal life with her family. Everyone does a good job in their roles but the standout is little Dakota Fanning. She is absolutely perfect. She is so sweet, gentle and kind that you really want her life to turn out fine no matter all the troubles with her father, the court, and the foster family. I think that it is because of Fanning that this movie succeeds. You really start to care for Lucy and it is a credit to Dakota Fanning that any such connection is made. I Am Sam is a good movie with a great performance.
Rating:
Summary: Makes you laugh really hard
Review: It's really funny. Sam talks really funny. This is funnier than Saturday Night Live. Whoever played sam should start a career as a standup comedian. Man get it it made me laugh really hard.
Rating:
Summary: Simply awesome
Review: All I would like to say this movie is marvelous
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