Rain Man versus I am Sam

Rain Man and I am Sam are two films in which the main characters are autistic. Both movies are about relation between autistic and non-autistic people and in both it is demonstrated that these people in spite of having difficulties in relationships they are able to do much better than we think.

In both films there is a problem between two family member who cannot stay together. In both cases the older member has a mental disorder, Sam and Raymond, who are autistic and have problems to be “normal”. And the younger, Lucy and Charlie can act in a normal way. The head of the families, Raymond and Sam, have money problems but for very different reasons.

In I am Sam the relationship is between a father and a daughter, and in Rain Man it is between two brothers. Both have problems to stay together, but there is a big difference: In I am Sam Lucy and Sam want to remain together, but on the other hand, in Rain Man Raymond does not want to stay with Charlie and wants to go back to his residence where he has lived for over twenty years. Charlie neither wants to stay with Charlie for family purposes, he only needs Raymond to get half of his dead father’s inheritance. Charlie needs money to rescue his car business and Sam needs it to pay Rita Harrison, his lawyer, although finally she works for free, because she gets in trouble during a celebration and says in public she will help Sam for free. In I am Sam  a family problem creates a money problem, whereas in Rain Man a money problem creates a family problem. Sam does not need extra-money until he needs to hire a lawyer and Charlie is not interested in Raymond until he realizes Raymond has received the inheritance. Furthermore Raymond, despite of being great with numbers, does not understand the concept of money so he wont use the $3millions.

In both films the big problem lies with main characters; Raymond and Charlie, and Sam and Lucy; have a problem to stay together because of the disabilities and difficulties to interact with people.

In Rain Man  the custody battle starts with a money problem and in I am Sam because at Lucy's seventh birthday party, friends from school are invited and several mock Sam and Lucy. Seeing Lucy hurt and angry, Sam justifiably punishes the offending child. The child's parents' already uncomfortable with Sam, target him an unfit father. Sam gets in trouble and Lucy is placed under a court protection. Luckily Sam is encouraged by his friends, his neighbour Annie and his lawyer Rita. Rita’s support is very important because Sam almost quits in his fight to recover Lucy, but Rita manages to change his mind when she goes to his apartment and destroys the door with a kick. On the other hand, in Rain Man, Charlie is not encouraged by anyone and in addition Susana breaks with him because of the way he treats his brother Raymond.

Sam and Raymond are autistic and have some problems to interact with nervous people. Both get nervous with stress: Sam preparing coffees and Raymond when Raymond shouts at him or when he stops in the middle of the road when the traffic light says “don’t walk”. Because of their mental disorders they have problems to interact with people from the other sex. As the movies progress, both improve, Sam obtains lots of confidence with Rita and Raymond kisses a woman for the first time. A good characteristic of Sam and Raymond is that they cannot tell lies, they are very honest and frank. Everything that they say is what they think. Further more both had problems with their parents: Sam was educated in a special school and Raymond was sent to the residence when he almost burnt Charlie when he was two. Sam and Raymond like most of mentally disabled people, have to follow a routine.

The big difference between Sam and Raymond is their lifestyle. Raymond lives in a special residence where there are doctors taking care of him. On the other hand, Sam lives a normal life and has to work to obtain money, has a daughter, an apartment… Raymond does not have any responsibility and Sam has to take care of Lucy. Raymond has to follow a very strict routine: he has to do always the same at the same time. Also he has learnt some things that he cannot do, for example flying in planes or going out when it is raining. This becomes a problem for Charlie who has to be more flexible and adapts himself. Instead of that, Sam also has to follow a routine but it is not the most important thing of his life, although if the routine changes he gets nervous. For example, one day Lucy wants to have breakfast in a different place, finally Sam agrees but when he is asked about what he wants and the waitress cannot bring his order he becomes mad. Although he has changed since the beginning of the movie and it is possible to realized it when a Thursday night he stays with Rita instead of going with his friends to watch a movie.

Rain Man and  I am Sam teach us that people with mental problems are not less qualified to maintain a relationship. The relationship may be different because they are different, but actually no relationship can be catalogued as normal. People like them may have some difficulties about money or how people spend their time. But they also, and this is their best quality, cannot tell a lie so they are great people to have at your side. Because of their personality they can change people around. Raymond changes Charlie and Sam changes Rita. In Rain Man, at the beginning Charlie only wants to stay with Raymond because of money but he has a change of heart during the movie. Charlie at the beginning is very undemonstrative but little by little he starts to open his mind with Raymond and at the end he loves Raymond like a brother and no matters his problems. Further more, in I am Sam, at the beginning Sam is treated by Rita like a subnormal and she thinks that in any way Sam could be a good father. Through the story Rita realized Sam is a better parent than she is and also Sam helps Rita in the decision of breaking down her marriage. In some cases disabled people are better than “normal” people.