Adam's Song

A young musician on the cusp of releasing his new EP faces the crushing realism and lack of expectation from those around him, especially his father.

When we first meet Adam (Xia), he is interrupting the evening’s session of karaoke in his local bar to play a few songs for the crowd. His best friend, Marco (Padilla) is there for (very vocal) moral support, but sadly that’s about the best he can hope for, as nobody else is there to cheer him on.

Back at the family restaurant, Adam’s father (Dubois), aunt, and cousin, sit themselves around the table to enjoy some food after a busy day. His cousin has just graduated summa cum laude from university and is set for a promising career ahead of her. The pride, support, and encouragement she receives from Adam’s dad, as a respectable member of the family who is pushing forward into a respectable line of work, is in stark contrast to the constant beratement and disappointment which is pushed Adam’s way. It’s obvious that being a creative, with no discernible path for the future, holds no weight in his father’s estimations.

However, on the night of the eve of Adam’s newest EP release he’s back at the local nightspot, living it large with his pals and nonchalantly trying to forget about the ever-increasing crushing weight of expectation of how it might do. When even Marco brushes him off, Adam steps into the parking lot for a cigarette and runs into an old school flame who has blown back into town with her new boyfriend. The reveal of his chosen career path and news of his impending album drop are not received from them in the way he had hoped either, and so Adam spirals into a depression of self-loathing and malingering doubt, resulting in a confrontation with his father which he may never be able to come back from.

All the way through Adam’s Song, we are treated to some really effectual background music, along with the eponymous song of the title. These add no little atmosphere and context to the film, and greatly enhance the feeling of being involved in the various parts of Adam’s life. The upbeat mariachi music in the family restaurant, Wok-O-Taco, contrasts wildly with how Adam really feels, as his own music bleeds melancholy and inner-turmoil all over the microphone.

Similarly, the cinematography and colouring of the film casts a veil of muted optimism over the proceedings, whilst also luring us into the shady environments and backgrounds which surround Adam. There is an understanding that the bright lights and centre stage which Adam is aiming for may always be stuck somewhere in the rear-view mirror, and that without the support or validation that he craves from those closest to him, he may forever be fumbling in the shadows of an out-of-reach dream.

The script and subsequent direction from Xia himself, is modern, enigmatic, and funny at times, and he clearly shows that he knows what he’s doing behind the camera. The little interludes which punctuate the main story are welcome and refreshing, and are handled with no small amount of care, while the main themes of family dynamics and acceptance, especially from an American-Asian centric point-of-view, come across loud and clear. It is slightly unfortunate that the main trope of an angry, unsupportive, first-generation immigrant parent, is one that is so well-worn, but in this instance it’s obvious that there’s some truth behind the playing of the character.

There’s a lot to enjoy in the seventeen-minute runtime of Adam’s Song, with the technical aspects really standing out as being well handled. Nathan Xia is obviously a well backed filmmaker with skill and success at his fingertips, with this outing showing that he’s able to bring together a strong group of talent to help him realise his vision. Unfortunately, Adam’s Song is, in the end, actually quite light on statement and reasoned conflict resolution with everything that’s explored in the film staying firmly on the surface. Each relationship and interaction is easily identifiable and goes exactly where you expect it to, but with no real explanation for how we get to where we’re going in the denouement. Still, if you want to see another film about Chinese-American kids trying to make their non-demonstrable parents proud, you could do a lot worse than Adam’s Song.