“The Adam Project” was recently released on Netflix in 2022 and was directed by Shawn Levy. It stars Ryan Reynolds, Walker Scobell, Jennifer Garner, Mark Ruffalo, and Zoe Zaldaña.

It tells the story of a time-traveling pilot from the future named Adam, played by Reynolds, who accidentally travels to 2022 where he meets his 12-year-old self. With the help of his younger self, Adam embarks on a daring mission to change the future and to stop future abusers of time travel.

To start, the chemistry between all the actors is fantastic, whether it is both versions of Adam interacting, or his father, played by Ruffalo, talking with his mother, played by Garner. Ruffalo and Garner carry on their chemistry that was present in the 2004 film “13 Going on 30,” in which they also played a couple.

The acting is very fun and appropriate for the tone this movie wants to have. This film is not meant to be a purely realistic take on time travel and is more focused on greatly entertaining the audience, in which it succeeds quite well.

The action scenes are filmed in a very fresh and interesting way, with the camera soaring through the scene as if it is an interactive element of the story. With it being a sci-fi action film, there are many opportunities for creative weapons and technologies to be used in these action scenes.

The visual effects are exceptionally good and believable for the most part.

However, in the final act of the film, the visual effects are far more noticeable than the rest of the film. As a result, it slightly takes viewers out of the movie because it becomes apparent that it is not a real environment that we are seeing.

Nevertheless, what is most notable about this film is the emotional and endearing scenes between the characters.

With the older version of Adam growing to regret certain decisions he made in the past, he is given the opportunity to help the younger version of himself avoid the same mistakes. This helps gives the audience a more personal connection to Adam’s character and the decisions he makes throughout the film.

In terms of what this film lacks, I would say that the younger version of Adam is slightly underutilized when compared to the older version.

Young Adam, played by Scobell, gives a very impressive performance, and matches Ryan Reynold’s energy well, resulting in great banter between the two. However, it feels as though Reynolds takes a little too much of the spotlight in moments of the film.

In the end, “The Adam Project” delivers a satisfying and action-packed sci-fi film that develops its characters strongly with emotional scenes.

My overall rating: 3.5/5.

Drew Coffey is a freshman television and video production major. He can be reached at 581-2812 or at akcoffey@eiu.edu