The Adam Project

The Adam Project, a 2022 science fiction film directed by Shawn Levy, tells the story of Adam Reed, a skilled time-traveling fighter pilot who finds himself in an unexpected predicament when his ship crashes in the present day, specifically in 2022. As Adam struggles to comprehend his surroundings and find a way back to his own time, he ultimately decides to seek assistance from an unlikely ally – his 12-year-old self, whom he encounters in this unfamiliar era. Upon crashing in 2022, Adam quickly realizes that the young boy standing before him is, in fact, his future self from 2044. Stunned, Adam navigates the immediate aftermath of their encounter, grappling with his new circumstances and his need for assistance. As fate would have it, the 12-year-old Adam, having witnessed the crash, invites the older, more seasoned version of himself into his household, where his supporting and caring family members provide vital care and support to their unexpected, injured guest. As the story unfolds, the two Adams begin to form a bond, despite their fundamental differences in age, experience, and perception. Older Adam finds himself increasingly frustrated by the younger Adam's naivety, whereas younger Adam is somewhat perplexed by the seemingly vastly different world that his adult self has come from. Each meets the other's expectations while gently educating each other, forging a tightly-knit relationship built on mutual understanding and trust. Their friendship soon evolves into a dynamic duo upon discovering a means of time travel through an abandoned portal in the woods, which the older Adam – having brought a smart device – is able to configure and operate by reversing the operation and ultimately, deactivating it so they won't inadvertently open any temporal gates. Equipped with a clear purpose, their mission becomes focused on correcting past choices made by older Adam and his mother, which they recognize could drastically impact the future to their detriment. Their concerted efforts begin when the two Adams devise a plan to prevent the series of pivotal decisions made by the time-traveler, older Adam, which he realized put the fate of humanity at significant risk. The plan requires them to accompany the young Adam to different events throughout his childhood and revisit past encounters that shape their collective destiny. Throughout the journey, the Adam Project vividly explores personal growth, interfamily relationships, and, most compellingly, the complexities and unpredictable outcomes of the human decision-making process. By experiencing their timeline unfolding at an accelerated pace, Adam begins to comprehend how the repercussions of even the smallest actions ripple outward to shape our collective future. As their quest reaches a poignant conclusion, the two Adams face a critical test: that of saving the future while ultimately unraveling the central thread of their family's tortured and fragmented history. Old Adam finds redemption and closes the loop when, upon time travel, he successfully alters course to strengthen the relationships he developed with his mother, ultimately allowing a new wave of opportunity and unearthing hidden strengths within himself. They successfully prevent his mother's seemingly devastating loss, this time nurturing deeper and unadulterated bonds with family and embracing, for the first time, the power of genuine vulnerability in people close to him. The older Adam leaves 2022 and travels to his 2044 and sets new and unprecedented circumstances for future generations – that will foster better, healthier choices and finally healing within himself and the loving relationships that surrounded him, embracing their truest capacity. The movie smoothly and concisely reaches a climactic resolution as the two Adams, their bond strengthened by shared peril and intense personal growth, decide to part ways. Knowing the bond shared between them will always be unique and deep, they realize their missions became more, and the two Adrams take separate paths toward uplifting, not separate, unending temporal lineages for the benefit of human beings everywhere.