History Film / IAmSam

* EmotionallyTongueTied: In the heat of emotion during the trial, Sam finds himself unable to properly pronounce "irreplaceable" until he's corrected.

* AmbiguousDisorder: While Sam's disability is never outright specified, his highly methodical thoughts and actions, narrow-minded obsession with Music/TheBeatles, occasional struggles with verbalizing his thoughts, apparent sarcasm-blindness, poor responses to stress, and displays of stimming when emotionally overwhelmed imply that he is meant to be severely autistic. However, his characterization plays up so many stereotypes of the disorder that it veers heavily into HollywoodAutism territory.

* DidTheyOrDidntThey: After Rita has her breakdown in Sam's apartment and both hug, we cut to the next day where both meet and act slightly embarrassed. We don't learn if it was just because of Rita's meltdown or more. In the original screenplay, however, they did.

* BecauseISaidSo: When Lucy refuses to read the word "different", Sam replies to her that he's asking her to because he's her father.

* DidTheyOrDidntThey: After Rita has her breakdown in Sam's apartment and both hug, we cut to the next day where both meet and act slightly embarrassed. We don't learn if it was just because of Rita's meltdown or more.

Sam, a mentally handicapped man, meets a woman and the two have sex (apparently so she, who's homeless, could have a place to stay). Nine months later, she drops a baby girl off and vanishes into the night. Though he's not able to understand all the implications of this, Sam does his best to raise the girl, whom he names Lucy, with the help of some friends.

* JukeboxMusical: Sort of, as the soundtrack consists of cover versions of songs by Music/TheBeatles.

* CrusadingLawyer: Rita. She is not in for the money, in fact, she decides to work ''pro bono'' after some heartwarming moments with Sam.

* DramaticallyMissingThePoint: At Big Boy's, Sam throws a fit when the restaurant doesn't have his favorite pancakes from [=iHOP=]. Even after the waitress repeatedly tells him that they don't have them. Lucy is visibly embarrassed by this.

Sam ends up moving in just down the street from the foster home; he's not aware that this is a bad thing. Lucy runs away to Sam's house repeatedly, and he keeps bringing her back to the foster home because he knows she has to obey the law. Eventually even the foster mother comes around, realizing how much Lucy loves her father, and one night she even brings her over to Sam's house.

The court case eventually goes through: it's ruled that Sam can raise Lucy, assuming he gets help from the various resources he's proven he's capable of seeking out, to ensure that his daughter is not without proper education.

* TheRainman: Averted. Sam doesn't possess any supernormal abilities to compensate for his mental impairment.

* YourCheatingHeart: Rita breaks down and comments to Sam about her husband screwing people who are "far more perfect" than her.

** There is a screenshot of an episode of ''WesternAnimation/JohnnyBravo'' at one point.

* ABirthdayNotABreak: Lucy gets taken away from Sam and placed into a foster home on her 7th birthday. It's even lampshaded by Sam, who protests to a police officer, "No you can't, it's her ''birthday''!"

%%* ManChild: Sam.

%%* SimpletonVoice: Sam.

* OverlyLongHug: Sam and Lucy ultimately have to be pried off of each other when saying goodbye.

* ManChild: Sam.

* SimpletonVoice: Sam.

%%* OverlyLongHug: Sam and Lucy ultimately have to be pried off of each other when saying goodbye. - Rogue Launched Trope

* OverlyLongHug: Sam and Lucy ultimately have to be pried off of each other when saying goodbye.