On one level, Keep the Change (which opens today at the Music Box) is a formulaic romantic comedy about a man and woman who meet cute, fall in and out of love, then rediscover their affection for each other. On another level, the film is a documentary-style portrait of what it’s like to be an adult with autism and learning disabilities—the principal characters are played by people who actually have these conditions, and writer-director Rachel Israel (expanding on a 2013 short of the same name) shows them engaging in activities they would likely pursue in their real lives. Much of the film takes place in continuing education classes and recreational clubs for people with intellectual disabilities; it also considers real-world challenges that such people face, like as maintaining friendships, interacting with strangers, and performing daily living skills. (The film’s title refers to the protagonist’s difficulty with counting money.) The familiar plot provides a structure for Israel’s observations and helps create familiarity with people that viewers might not encounter in their everyday lives.
This scene also stands out because it’s one of the few instances of prejudice in Keep the Change—Israel makes a point of showing communities where people with disabilities are generally accepted. In one of the movie’s more pleasant surprises, Israel presents David’s relationship with his cousin, a well-known TV actor. David often tells his friends that his cousin will help him enter his short film into a festival, and since Israel never shows the cousin until late in the film, viewers might suspect that David’s exaggerating his relationship with him. When the cousin finally appears, he shows real affection toward David (even though he makes no mention of the short film), and his interactions don’t betray the slightest twinge of pity. Keep the Change may be a breakthrough in its focus on real people with intellectual disabilities, but it’s especially commendable for providing positive examples of how the nondisabled can create inclusive environments for all.
