Rating: 
Summary: Possibly The Best Film of the Year
Review: I'm not into watching a sweet little "awwwww!" movie, but this is worthy of your time. Many people have given a bad review. I think maybe that there wasn't enough language and sex to please this sick world's audiences. Frankly, i believe people just don't care to see a movie with a happy ending. Why? If you notice almost every Osacar winner has had a character that dies. Is that always pleasing? Just because some people think it's realistic. This movie is a definite must-see for anyone, especially if you're into the Beatles.(although they don't use the real song versions, it is still great) Sean Penn should win an Osacar for his performance; simply amazing! As far as what someone said about too many plugs by Starbucks and Pizza Hut, OK!?! All modern day movies have that stuff. Besides we can relate to those places. We eat there. It would make things different if he worked in some unknown place. Anyway, just see for yourself. As for Mr. Penn, "Job well done, once again!"
Rating: 
Summary: Unbeleivably Amazing Movie
Review: I think this movie shows the true insight of what a mentally challenge person feels. It shows how no matter who you are you can love someone or something. The most amazing thing about this movie is how not only does it tell a story about a mentally disabled man who wants custody of his daughter, but it also shows how some people can be to caught up in there work or own lives to be able to consider their child's life. The way they intertwine these two topics is incredible. Sean Penn is unbelievable in portraying a man with the mental capacity of a 7 year old, as well as Michelle Pfeiffer who is not use to playing an unlikable character, but of course you learn to love her throughout the film. Also featuring Dakota Fanning and Dianne Weist. Every person is incredible and deserves every award they are nominated for. Its an uplifting, moving, touching, and even a funny movie. It just reaches out to everyone in every way. I love this movie and believe everyone should go see it.
Rating: 
Summary: Shameless emotional manipulation of the audience
Review: An examination of the ability of a mentally handicapped adult to raise a mentally normal child seems a fair topic for a "60 Minutes" segment but certainly not a 133-minute film. And most definitely not as portrayed in I AM SAM.
Sean Penn plays Sam Dawson, a young man with the mental capacity of a 7-year old, who waits tables at an LA Starbuck's. In the film's opening 10 minutes, Sam rushes off to attend the birth of his daughter, Lucy. The mother, an anonymous homeless woman, deserts Sam and her offspring immediately upon being released from the hospital. Dawson, who loves his child immensely, is left to cope alone. Things go as well as can be expected until the girl turns seven. At that point, it's apparent that Lucy is mentally outstripping Old Dad. After Sam is picked up on Big Brother's radar after a ridiculous incident, his ability to raise his child is called into serious question by the local child protection agency and the court system. To demonstrate to colleagues that she really does have a heart, Dawson's case is taken on pro bono by Rita, a high octane Lawyer-With-An-Attitude played by Michelle Pfeiffer.Before I rant about all that's wrong with I AM SAM, let me say that I did like Pfeiffer's character. Rita's impassioned outburst on what life is really like for her "perfect" self is worth the price of admission. (That I think the actress is a Major Babe and I paid nothing to see the film are irrelevant.) But, beyond that one sparkle ... Sean Penn does a superb job portraying a man with the mind of a kid. However, the range of the role is so necessarily narrow that his performance becomes monotonous by the end of the film's way too long run time. And, because Sam exhibits no sexual self-awareness or sex drive whatsoever, the fact that he impregnated Lucy's biological mother beggars belief, especially since her only line in the film is her farewell to Sam, "I only wanted a place to sleep." I mean, how much encouragement could she have given him to consummate The Act? Lucy is fetchingly played by the adorable young actress, Dakota Fanning. But since the whole purpose of the script is to arouse the audience to a frenzy of sympathy for the underdog Sam, one wouldn't expect to see an ugly kid. There's one totally preposterous scene where a "John" is busted for soliciting a prostitute without any proposition being made or money changing hands! And this in a city where the working girls advertise on the Web? Oh, please! But my biggest objection to this unabashed tearjerker is the fact that, in their overwrought desire to whip up viewer compassion for Dawson, the screenwriters totally ignored any scenario that might have given credence to the eminently reasonable position that Sam was indeed too poorly equipped to raise Lucy, and therefore spoil a pre-ordained warm and fuzzy ending. Case in point. Laura Dern plays Randy, a loving and intelligent middle-class woman perfectly suited to be Lucy's foster mother. Even though Randy is married to a man that just might - surprise, surprise! - be capable of being a warm and caring foster father, that possibility is never explored because we never even see the Phantom Hubby except for a brief 10-second shot. The script was weighted in Sam's favor from the very beginning! Gee, let's not spoil a Tinseltown Two-Hankie Event with reality!
Rating: 
Summary: Talent In Top Form, Or Exploitation Of The Heart?
Review: Films that depict the life struggles of persons with mental or physical disabilities almost automatically tug on the heartstrings of any sensitive viewer. I AM SAM does no less, and it does so with the masterful talents of Sean Penn and Michelle Pfieffer and an amazingly talented little girl named Dakota Fanning (she has deep, incandescent blue eyes that evoke a talent far beyond her years). Sean Penn stars as Sam, a mentally-challenged Starbucks clerk who excitedly clings to the role of father when the homeless woman he gets pregnant skips out on him. Somehow (the movie never tells), he manages to display the skills to bring Lucy up to seven years old (when the narrative of the film swings into full play). The incredibly lovely Michelle Pfieffer does an admirable job pouring life into a vastly underwritten role. As a jetset lawyer, she's torn between her job, her role as a wife, and her role as a mother ... all of which she, arguably, is failing at. However, Ms. Pfeiffer manages to give her character, Rita Harrison, a sense of reality and a sense of history that lifts an otherwise secondary role into a more interesting person, one that the viewer wants to get to know. Sadly, the scenes of development with her husband and her son were either never written, never filmed, or left on the cutting room floor. Dakota Fanning, as Lucy, is simply marvelous. A true talent in the making, she manages to steal every scene she's in without a touch of mirth to her performance. Laura Dern pops up in the obligatory cameo-sized role, and, when her mother-wannabe sentiments forces her to face the bittersweet reality of choosing between breaks, the viewer feels her pain. All in all, I AM SAM is not a great picture, as it feels more like a big budget Lifetime or perhaps HBO-cable movie, but it's passable entertainment with some acting heavyweights showing their stuff.
Rating:
Summary: Great Group Of Talent 4.5 Stars
Review: My expectations for this movie were based on the people shown in the trailers I had seen. I also was looking forward to Dakota Fanning, as Lucy, who has been nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for her performance. When she is on screen she owns it. This young lady is clearly precocious, articulate, and well ahead of the few birthdays she has celebrated. She also has blue eyes that would require special effects to make them any more remarkable. And she has a sister Elle Fanning who played a younger version of Lucy for a few moments on screen, together with 6 other very young versions of Lucy including 2 pair of twins. Sean Penn was brilliant as Sam. It took a few moments to adjust to him in this character as it is so far away from his usual screen persona, and his notable private life. However, when reading Dr. Seuss to his daughter his tough guy image is gone, Sean is Sam. His character is not a version of, "Rainman", where savant abilities provide a distraction to his difficulties. This character is buried by his mental shortcomings; there are no side trips to Vegas in this film. Michelle Pfeiffer is a bit short changed in the role she was given, what should have been classic courtroom drama never quite reached the level of the spectacular. He character was often interrupted, and when she finally is given her soliloquy, the audience has not been given enough background to empathize for her character as much as the performance asks of the audience. I know this is cliché, but Michelle Pfeiffer is stunning on screen, and seems to become more beautiful even as the years pass. Then the list of pleasant surprises begins with a parade of performances by noted actors and actresses that the audience was not expecting to see. Dianne Wiest is wonderful as Sam's neighbor and mentor. Laura Dern appears as the foster mother, but she and the story steer clear of the expected clichés. Doug Hutchinson who was in, "The Green Mile", as the guard you wanted to see executed repeatedly, appears here as a mentally challenged friend of Sam's. As odious a character as he was in the aforementioned movie, here he plays a man that is as likable as he was obnoxious as the prison guard. There is also a brief performance from Mary Steenburgen, and a cameo from Brent Spiner that you will miss if you blink. I cannot say what specifically kept this from being a 5 star film for me without giving away a portion of the film. The film, taken as a whole is excellent, even if it is not a movie that will be nominated, much less walk away with a pile of Academy Awards.
Rating:
Summary: I Am Nauseated
Review: "I Am Sam" is one of those films that resemble Frankenstein. Not the movie "Frankenstein", but instead a movie made with parts of other movies. I will grant, that in this case, "Sam" acknowledges that it is inspired by a couple Hoffman films (take a wild guess what they are). This is a movie where everyone has a heart of gold; some just don't realize it yet. If only real-life was this convenient! By now, you should be familiar with the plot, so I won't break that down. The highlights in "Sam" are few. One is newcomer Dakota Fanning (Critic's Choice Award winner for Best Child Actor). She lends strong support as Lucy, Sam's 7 year old daughter who is surpassing him intellectually. Another highlight involves, simply, the soundtrack. Beatles songs (although covered by various artists, such as Eddie Vedder) pop up from time to time, because Sam is at least smart enough to realize the Beatles were a great band. The movie's hook line, of course, is "All You Need Is Love". A lot of people want to see Sean Penn recognized for his role as Sam. I say he needs to be recognized for a far-superior film in 2001: The Pledge. The Academy needs to nominate him for Best Director for that extrodinary film. After all, Penn's role of a lifetime came in 1995 for Dead Man Walking.
Rating:
Summary: Heart-wrenching!
Review: "I Am Sam" is one of my favorite films of 2001, despite what the critics have been saying. I really don't see how you could truly dislike this film. It's touching, meaningful, insightful, inspiring and boasts one of the best performances if the year by Sean Penn. I left the theater feeling rejuvenated and refreshed. "I Am Sam" also had the power to make me reexamine my own life and made me rethink some of my decisions. I learned a lot from "I Am Sam", it touched me in a way that not many movies do.
Mental retardation is a tough subject to work. It has often been glamorized or used in cheap ways to add emotion to a story. Director Jessie Nelson handles it beautifully, which makes "I Am Sam" a painfully honest and moving film. Mental retardation has never been properly represented, therefore giving many people a slanted view of it. This film changes it all! I went into "I Am Sam" expecting a "sap fest", if you may, but was pleasantly surprised not to see this. Simply put, I was blown away by Sean Penn! How often can a Hollywood bad boy pull off a role as a mentally retarded father? Penn didn't just "pull off" his role as Sam, he mastered it in the most convincing and heartfelt portrayal of mental retardation to date. Michelle Pfeiffer was wonderful as usual and I also enjoyed seeing Laura Dern again in a small role as Lucy's foster parents. Fans of the Beatles will enjoy the constant references to the band (Sam names his daughter Lucy in honor of the song 'Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds') as well as the consistency of old Beatles songs being played in the background.
Rating:
Summary: Poignant and uplifting...
Review: This movie gives a new impression of the disabled and mentally handicapped. In fact it can be applied to many situations in life. I Am Sam is a feel good movie, but getting there is very emotional. I highly recommend it!
Rating:
Summary: I Am Sam
Review: If you're looking for a movie with great substance, this is it! I left the theatre having had just about every emotion felt. The acting was phenomenal.
Rating:
Summary: I am Sam
Review: I really thought that Sean Penn acted out this role perfectly.
My sister works for assisted Adult living home.With People like sam and I have never been around more loving and apprecitive people.This movie showed that with truth ,determination & love that things will work out.I know that it was just a movie but I really think that it sheds a little light into these peoples life and what it is llike while they are growing up and while they are adults as well. Must see
Excellent movie
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