Netflix's newest hit, The Adam Project, is full of a wild cast of characters, all with their own quirks and admirable qualities. The heroes are not just strong or good with weapons but full of heart and nerdy skills.
It is hard to easily summarize any well-written character, but filmmakers do throw in some great lines that let the audiences know exactly what kind of person they're dealing with. From villain speeches to heroic catchphrases, quotes can become defining parts of a character to the audience. For The Adam Project, in particular, there are quotes from each character that help the audiences get to know them, their habits, and their views of the world better.
This one is a little bit of a cheat because it's not said by the character himself, but is instead said by Adult Adam about him. However, Christos has so few lines in the movie, it's difficult to find any that sum him up well.
Christos is Sorian's stooge, doing her dirty work for her. He has a name and a few appearances where audiences learn how unpleasant he is, but that's about all there is to this character. Christos seems competent at his job, but since the audience knows so little about him, most of his personality is just confirming what Adam says about him.
Audiences know less about Younger Sorian than her grown counterpart, but they do quickly get the impression that she is no-nonsense through this line. She is ruthless in a business sense and is easily frustrated by those who are unwilling to do as she expects.
However, she is nowhere near as cutthroat as Grown Sorian is, and this quote shows that too. Her threat is that the person on the other end of the phone will be left in the past if they don't support her. It isn't anything like killing the person or their loved ones, which seems to be her go-to once she turns into the monster she is in the future.
While the Adams and their father are the main characters of the movie, Ellie Reed is The Adam Project's most likable character. She is put forward as a struggling single mother, desperate to understand and care for her son, despite him frequently disrespecting her in return.
While this quote was said jokingly when she is talking to her husband, it is the most accurate summation of the character. It would be difficult to find a reason to dislike Ellie, and the story is written in such a way that audiences will instantly connect with and want the best for her.
While she was sharp-tongued in her past, Sorian is a menace when she has grown up and is willing to do anything and everything to make sure she gets what she wants. She killed Louis to get sole control over time travel, sabotaged Laura, killed Laura, and attempted to kill Adam all to keep the power she fought so hard to get.
This quote is a perfect breakdown of her character because it is both a threat and a reveal since Adam didn't know until this moment that Laura was dead. Sorian cuts deep with her words and actions, and will always go to the most extreme possible option to make sure she gets her way.
A big part of this movie was about showing the power of intelligence when set against cruel ambition. Louis is definitely the smartest character in the film, but his intelligence isn't cold and calculating like Sorian's. Louis, like his son, is a proper nerd and finds the fact that time travel works thrilling, even if he is overly concerned with following the rules.
This quote comes after Louis and his sons win the day, simply by relying on the electromagnet to take out their opponent. Although the movie had plenty of traditional action sequences, the climax comes from a nerd knowing how science works better than his former partner.
Laura is the most badass character in the film, and her introduction certainly communicates that fact. It also sums up the vast majority of personality that the audience gets from her. Laura is an interesting character, but unfortunately not one that the audience learns very much about.
It seems as though Laura saving Adam happens a lot, which helps to explain their dynamic a little bit. She can be sentimental, but for the most part, her job in this movie is to be powerful and save Adam from the problems he finds himself in. Between surviving her first assassination attempt, saving Adam here, and serving as the decoy until Adam got away, Laura is summed up best by announcing that she is there to save the day and then providing useful information.
Young Adam spends a great deal of time griping about how he is so useless in comparison to his adult self, so the way he sees himself can be easily summed up as being a nerd with an inhaler who gets beaten up frequently. However, him being a nerd is not necessarily a bad thing, particularly not in this movie. Young Adam makes some of the best pop culture references in The Adam Project, and that love for pop culture heroes is part of what inspires him to do the great things he describes.
Young Adam is the underdog with big dreams, and he gets the chance to see both that he can achieve his dreams and that his nerdiness has value over the course of the movie.
Adult Adam might not be quite as quick-witted as his younger self, but he can be defined by two clear traits, both of which are displayed here: insulting his adversaries and running into dangerous situations without a plan. He tries to insult his younger self, who he finds annoying at this point in the movie, and tries to hold the intellectual high ground before having to admit that he doesn't actually have a plan for what they're going to do.
His tendency to run toward danger without a plan makes him a charming but frustrating protagonist, leading to the need for him to acquire help from his younger self and his father. If he were more self-sufficient, he might be able to get out of trouble before making everything worse.
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