I Am Sam (2001)
Average Rating: 4.6/10
Reviews Counted: 143
Fresh: 49 | Rotten: 94
Not only does the manipulative I Am Sam oversimplify a complex issue, it drowns it in treacle.
Average Rating: 4.6/10
Critic Reviews: 40
Fresh: 14 | Rotten: 26
Not only does the manipulative I Am Sam oversimplify a complex issue, it drowns it in treacle.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.7/5
User Ratings: 277,330
My Rating
Movie Info
Sean Penn stars in this drama as Sam Dawson, a developmentally disabled adult who has been working at a coffee shop and raising his daughter Lucy (Dakota Fanning) for seven years. Sam receives help in his parenting duties from a circle of trusted confidantes, including his ADD-afflicted best friend Ifty (Doug Hutchison), the paranoid Robert (Stanley DeSantis), an agoraphobic neighbor (Dianne Wiest), and his other disabled pals, Brad and Joe (played by real-life developmentally challenged actors
Watch It Now
Cast
-
Sean Penn
Sam Dawson -
Michelle Pfeiffer
Rita Harrison -
Dakota Fanning
Lucy -
Dianne Wiest
Annie -
Loretta Devine
Margaret Calgrove -
Richard Schiff
Turner -
Laura Dern
Randy Carpenter -
Brad J. Silverman
Brad -
Joseph Rosenberg
Joe -
Stanley de Santis
Robert -
Doug Hutchison
Ifty -
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
ADVERTISEMENT
All Critics (156) | Top Critics (41) | Fresh (50) | Rotten (96) | DVD (25)
Penn repeatedly hits the ball out of the park, but the rest of the team never gets past first base.
Top CriticIt's a sensational performance, and [Penn] illumines a movie that sometimes seems in danger of descending into modish Hollywood political correctness.
On one level, I Am Sam is a crock, but on another, more vital one, it's very, very sweet.
Plays out in such a conventional manner that it feels like a TV movie of the week from the '70s.
For a movie that probes the sensitive issue of living with reduced mental capacity, are the creators of Bambi the obvious choice?
A well-intentioned but ludicrous tale.
Moving film with great acting seems too contrived.
Sean Penn gives the most professionally shameful, cruelly wrongheaded performance ever nominated for a Best Actor Oscar, while Jessie Nelson Kristine Johnson's script lives down to Penn's ugly ineptitude with idiotic catchphrases and product placement.
And I think I am sick.
an anorexic, cliché-ridden script that feels like an annoying cross between Rain Man and Mr. Mom
Just watching Penn and Fanning interact...is worth wading through the occasionally ankle-deep syrup.
This movie plays like an after-school special or a public service announcement.
This movie is every bit as painful as it sounds.
A fairly formulaic (and terribly overlong) tearjerker.
Audience Reviews for I Am Sam
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
Discussion Forum
| Topic | Last Post | Replies |
|---|---|---|
| Critics Ratings | 4 months ago | 0 |
Latest News on I Am Sam
October 25, 2007:
Dakota Fanning and Elle Fanning Teaming Up for My Sister's KeeperThey aren't even in high school yet, but the Fanning sisters are already grizzled Hollywood veterans...
What's Hot On RT
Bradley Cooper's Best Movies
Trailer for new Coen Bros movie
Fast & Furious cars gallery
Blockbusters ranked!
Featured on RT
- Total Recall: Bradley Cooper's Best Movies 6
- Parental Guidance: Epic and Beautiful Creatures 0
- Comic Book Movies You Can Watch Online 2
- In Pictures: The Cars of Fast & Furious 0
- Digital Multiplex: Warm Bodies and Aftershock 6
- Discover the Best-Reviewed Films in Summer Movie Scorecard 2013 0
- RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: The Last Stand and Side Effects 17
Top Headlines
-
Vin Diesel Says Fast & Furious 7 Will Take Place in L.A.
0
-
10 Things You (Probably) Don't Know About the Hangover Movies
1
-
Zack Snyder, Christopher Nolan, and David S. Goyer Talk Man of Steel
0
-
New Transporter Trilogy in the Works
0
-
Richard Linklater Plans "Spiritual Sequel" to Dazed and Confused
0
-
King of Kong Filmmaker Seeks Funding for Lost Limb Documentary
0
-
Which Film Franchise Has Been the Best for Female Characters?
6
Fresh Links
Featured
Star Trek Movies Ranked
HitFix offers their own take on the worst-to-best of the Enterprise crew's cinematic adventures.
Top 10 Star Trek Villains
Rolling Stone unveils the Enterprise's most irksome adversaries.
Celebrity Yearkbook Flashback
We'll bet you never realized how many stars were cheerleaders and high school athletes!
50 Most Classic Movie Moms
In celebration of Mother's Day, TimeOut offers up 50 iconic matriarchs from the big screen.
Weirdest Movie Siblings
From Twins to The Royal Tenenbaums, Moviefone explores cinema's oddest siblings.
Promos
Follow RT on Twitter!
Spice up your feed with hourly Tomatometer updates!
Foreign Titles
- Ich bin Sam (DE)
- Sam je suis sam (FR)
