Review - Adam: a painfully inspiring story about finding one's true self
Initially released in 2021, Adam is a film based on the true story of a young trans man from Egypt seeking asylum in the UK. It was shown as part of the Scottish Refugee Festival at the Glasgow Film Theatre.
By Sorana Horsia
Language frames our reality. For someone like Adam, who lived for 19 years as a man in a female body, his native language was a constant reminder that he was seen as a woman. The movie Adam, starring Adam Kashmyri, begins with the explanation that in Arabic it is impossible to avoid someone's gender when addressing them. Expressions such as "I love you" are interlaced with the gender of the person on the receiving end.
This was only one of the reasons why the gender Adam was assigned at birth felt inescapable when he lived in Egypt. Accepting his identity as a transgender man in such a conservative society put Adam's life in danger and pushed him into the disgrace of his family.
When he found the courage to write in the search bar: ‘Can the soul of a man be trapped in the body of a woman?’, he found a virtual community of people like him. He finally felt like he existed. Holding on to that belief, he asked for British protection.
In the film, tormenting memories of Adam's life in Egypt resurface as he finds himself stuck in a loop, trying to prove to the British authorities that he is a man, while, in order to survive, he still had to hide his identity. The interrogator, played by Neshla Caplan, embodies the hostility of British immigration policies. Her questions are frustrating and violent, pushing Adam closer to the edge.
The minimalist, theatre-like setting gives the impression of entering Adam's mind, breaking any barrier between the audience and the raw thoughts racing through his mind while trapped in a room in Glasgow for two years, waiting to receive a positive answer to his asylum request. The cinematic element of the movie is used to offer a glimpse into the society's perception of Adam, as opposed to his own. His reflection occasionally changes into the face of the woman he appeared to be on the outside, played by Yasmin Al-Khudhairi.
Adam's interior conflict culminates with his dissociation into two different entities: his truthful self and his perceived self, questioning each other as he struggles to source and fund the hormone therapy he needs to prove once and for all that he is truly a man. Seeing the present-day Adam walking in the snow in the streets of Glasgow after finally getting his refugee status feels like the first breath after holding it for too long.
Whilst the film is visually conceptual, the fact that it is inspired from the real life experience of Adam Kashmyri must not be overlooked. With bravery and charm, Kashmyri, along with writer Frances Poet and directors Cora Bissett and Louise Lockwood, have turned a personal story into a relatable and intimate account of all the obstacles faced by transgender people on their journey towards embracing their identity.
The movie was screened in Glasgow, at the Glasgow Film Theatre, on the 19th of June, as part of the Refugee Festival Scotland. The film is also available on the website of the National Theatre of Scotland until Monday, the 27th of June, for a fee at viewers' discretion.
Refugee Festival Scotland runs from the 17th until the 26th of June, over 100 events will take place to celebrate the contribution of refugees and asylum seekers to the cultural diversity of Scotland. To read a round up of some of the events happening in the Southside, click here.