No, “I Am Sam” is not based on a true story. However, the film takes inspiration from real-life situations and explores the challenges faced by individuals with developmental disabilities.
Synopsis. Sam Dawson (Sean Penn), a mentally challenged man with a mind of a child, is living in Los Angeles and is single-handedly raising his daughter Lucy (Dakota Fanning), whom he fathered from a homeless woman who wanted nothing to do with Lucy and left him the day of her birth.
When it comes to researching films about autism, 'I Am Sam' is rarely mentioned. His intellectual disability is not specifically labelled in the film, but much of Sam's traits are consistent with autism- his poor coordination, repetitive behaviours, echolalia, OCD and poor eye contact.
After having a one-night stand with a woman, Sam becomes the single father of a little girl (Dakota Fanning, Man on Fire). (The girl is named Lucy Diamond Dawson, after the Beatles' song.) The woman abandons the two immediately after the girl's birth and disappears.
The beautiful actress confirmed reports that the sex scene between their characters Rita Harrison and Sam Dawson had been left on the cutting room floor - which she blames on nervous male movie executives.
His neighbor Annie who experiences agoraphobia and will not leave her apartment,agrees to babysit and care for Lucy while teaching Sam the basics to parenting.
The final scene depicts a soccer game, in which Sam referees and Lucy participates as a player. In attendance are Lucy's former foster family, Sam's friend group, and a newly single Rita with her son.
What did Rita Sam's lawyer learn from Sam about parenting?
5. What did Rita, Sam's lawyer, learn from Sam about parenting? Sam Dawson shows his lawyer Rita Harrison Williams How to truly love your child and how to show that you love them a lot.
Sam's mental impairments are autistic tendencies and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Sam's moderate obsessive-compulsive disorder interferes with social and occupational activities and only when he is surrounded by his “mentally challenged” friends or people who he trusts, then his anxiety level decreases.
The mother disappeared right after giving birth (her farewell words: "All I wanted was a place to sleep"), and now Sam is doing his best to cope, although sometimes Lucy has to help him with her homework. Eventually Lucy decides to stop learning so she won't get ahead of her dad.
An intellectually disabled man fights for custody of his 7-year-old daughter and in the process teaches his cold-hearted lawyer the value of love and family.
Great, incredibly moving movie. Starts off slowly, and confusingly, but gets better and better, and more emotional, as it goes on. Ending feels a bit rushed, but that would be the only criticism. Sean Penn gives a superb performance as the mentally challenged Sam.
The lesson "I Am Sam" wants to teach us is, "All you need is love." This is not quite strictly true. Sam loves his daughter more than anyone else, and she loves him, but it will take more than love for him to see her through grade school and adolescence and out into the world.
Sam exhibits several characteristics of ASD which are manifested in his communication, behaviors, and social interactions throughout the movie. In preparing for his role in 'I Am Sam', the actor, Sean Penn spent many hours listening to the different prosodic abnormalities of individuals with ASD.
Hannah Dakota Fanning (born February 23, 1994) is an American actress. She rose to prominence at the age of seven for playing the daughter of an intellectually challenged man in the drama film I Am Sam (2001), for which she received a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination, making her the youngest nominee in SAG history.
Sam had not understood that he was being solicited by a prostitute and was arrested. He was later released when it was determined that he did not have the capacity to understand the situation.
They take Lucy away from Sam. Sam meets a rich lawyer named Rita Harrison, played by Michelle Pfeiffer. He's inspired to hire her by the Beatles song about “lovely Rita, meter maid” and because her last name is Harrison, like the Beatle guitarist George Harrison, but Rita the lawyer wants nothing to do with Sam's case.
This is one film that can tug your heart strings and have your eyes flooded with tears. It's powered by the performances of Sean Penn, Michelle Pfeiffer and Dakota Fanning. Dakota has an innate ability to use her big beautiful eyes to induce crying.
Finally reaching Sam's devastated apartment, Will sees a note left by Sam with an address to a cabin. At the cabin, Will finds Sam with Jeremiah, a neighbor from the apartment building.
Document Information. This document provides a movie diagnosis review of "I Am Sam" which portrays a middle-aged man named Sam living with Autism Spectrum Disorder. It summarizes Sam's symptoms such as rigid routines and pragmatic language difficulties.
I am Sam is a movie about a mentally disabled man trying to get custody of his child. I thought the movie was incredibly moving and heartwarming. There are some emotionally intense scenes when Sam and his daughter are being forced apart, and some scenes in the court room that are intense during the custody hearing.
Sean Penn's portrayal in this movie is priceless... It moves you to the bone, although it can be uninteresting to see if you lack empathy. Nevertheless, Sean Penn's performance deserves to be seen. This is a sad, poignant and thought provoking watch.
Sam is eventually arrested for an innocent mistake, but the arrest springs child protective services into action. Lucy is removed from Sam's custody and placed with a foster family. Sam works to convince the judge that he is a capable father, while Lucy's foster family desires to adopt her.
