I Am Sam

I Am Sam (2001)

  • 34% of critics liked it
    (143 reviews)

  • 87% of users liked it
    (277,330 ratings)

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… More

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PG-13, 2 hr. 12 min.
Directed By
Jessie Nelson
Written By
Kristine Johnson, Jessie Nelson
Genres
Drama
In Theaters
Dec 28, 2001 Wide
On DVD
Jun 18, 2002
New Line Cinema

Critic Reviews

  • Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune

    Penn repeatedly hits the ball out of the park, but the rest of the team never gets past first base.

  • Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune

    It's a sensational performance, and [Penn] illumines a movie that sometimes seems in danger of descending into modish Hollywood political correctness.

  • David Edelstein, Slate

    On one level, I Am Sam is a crock, but on another, more vital one, it's very, very sweet.

  • Bill Muller, Arizona Republic

    Plays out in such a conventional manner that it feels like a TV movie of the week from the '70s.

  • Desson Thomson, Washington Post

    For a movie that probes the sensitive issue of living with reduced mental capacity, are the creators of Bambi the obvious choice?

Read all 15 critic reviews

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

  • Lucas M


    I Am Sam presents great actings of the cast and bring a cute, confused and nice story. But the strong sentimentalism, don't save the film. Rotten.

  • Joe M


    After this movie you'll see why you should never go full retard.

  • Jeff "


    I Am Sam is a wonderful drama film. Director Jessie Nelson directs this story about a mentally disabled adult named Sam. Sam has the mental capacity of a child and he has a daughter named Lucy. Unfortunately, Lucy is growing in intellectual capacity, and it's raising important… More

  • Chris W


    This film, upon its release reeked of Oscar bait. Ten years later, that smell still lingers. I mean, how could it not? It's about a well meaning developmentally disabled man struggling to reclaim custody of his daughter, and prove that he is capable of raising her, even though… More

  • erika b


    This is a story a father named Sam that is mentally retarded. He is raising his kid at the best of his ability by him self and with the help of friends. One-day social workers decide to take Fanning away from Sam. That causes Sam to go a lawyer that only cares about money but over… More

Read all 20 featured audience ratings

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