INFO

The Age of Adaline is a 2015 American epic romance fantasy film directed by Lee Toland Krieger and written by J. Mills Goodloe and Salvador Paskowitz. Screenwriter J. Mills Goodloe wrote the first version of the script in 2003, being inspired by Audrey Tautou‘s character in French film Amélie. The films Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire served as inspiration in terms of colors and saturation.

The Movie

The movie starts with a narrator telling us this is the first and last chapter of Adaline’s story. The voice is warm and together with the soundtrack I easily settle into the mood.

We see Adaline, Blake Lively, in the present, buying a fake ID with a noticeable air of confidence and knowledge in the way she carries herself. Which made me quite happy because I still remember a younger Blake with a simpler role in Gossip Girl.

The narrator brings us through Adaline’s life, from her birth, to her childhood and finally her marriage, the death of her husband and lastly her accident. The scenes have interesting angles and were beautifully shot with gorgeous details like a “close-up” of a snowflake. Her drowning and the electric charge from the sky was almost magical. As she gets out of the water, the narrator explains to us why she is now changed and the science to why she no longer will age. It’s all about the telomere structures – which is true guys! I’ve read about it being the key to aging before – a discovery, the narrator says, that will be found in 2035. Just a little longer and we will know the secret to youth! Haha.

Well, as the movie goes on, we see the difficultues she goes through because of her situation. Her old friends look way older than her and one of them is shocked when seeing her after a long time. Her daughter is a grown lady now, and her and her mom look like sisters. The government finally takes notice and they want to take her for testing but she runs away, and with that she also has to leave her daughter. It’s no longer safe and she must change her identity.

The movie then brings us to the present, she is 60 but doesn’t look a day older than her 20’s. She is at a party with a friend of similar age (60’s), the woman is blind so she doesn’t notice the disparity in appearence! But at the same time it creates amusing moments for them, like young men always approaching “them”. Haha,

In the same party she sees a guy, they look at each other and seem to be immediately attracted to one another. That’s when things, personally, become less interesting. The character just doesn’t sell it for me to be honest… I don’t feel like her and Ellis, Michiel Huisman, have that strong of a connection. And it wasn’t just me that didn’t quite like his appearance. My friend couldn’t even remember him! Long hair, beard…. Maybe if he cleaned up his appearance it would be more appealing because it was not a memorable performance.

Also, some scenes started being a bit exaggerated and forced. Like after the party when he “stops” her Taxi from going. The way it was shot, it made it seem like he stopped the car with brute force by holding onto it by the open window.

Anyway, we finally see her daughter, Flemming, Ellen Burstyn, in the present and it’s so heartbreaking! Her daughter has white hair now and she looks like she is Adaline’s grandma. They sit down and Flemming mentions going to a retirement home. How upside down!

There’s a lot of flashbacks in this movie, of course, and it’s wonderful to see her hair, makeup and clothing evolving! Even in the present they were smart in adding a hint of vintage to her style and apartment. Plus, the warm faded light they used really make it seem like time isn’t passing inside her home, but, then the rest of the world, the outside, looks so cold, modern and alive.

She struggles with deciding to run away or settling and dating Ellis seriously. Her daughter convinces her to stop running and just be happy because “nobody is looking for you anymore”. Still, she can’t just not age, suspicion will rise again! Oh well.

Anyway, she goes with Ellis to his parent’s house. She meets them and lo and behold, Elli’s father is a guy she was serious with in the past. He was even about to propose to her, but she ran away because of her secret.

Now, the following scene was personally amazing for me. Harrison Ford was in-cre-di-ble! The way he portrayed his emotions, the nostalgia, while trying to understand and play it off…The awkwardness. It was genius and he outshined everyone else.

Adaline stays with Ellis in the end, obviously. But, wait a second! Am I the only one weirded out by this? She was in a serious relationship with William, Harrison Ford, he was going to propose and she loved him and he obviously still loves her – even though the movie tried to play it off in the end by showing his love for his current wife – and now she is dating his SON and is going to stay with him? And everyone is okay with this? Alright… if you say so.

William discovers her secret and she runs away only to suffer another accident, the paramedics arrive and defibrillate her which reversed her aging problem!

Well, long story short, I think the movie is great but the ending was forced. I love happy endings but this one was too much even for me! They tied EVERYTHING into a nice, neat, happy ending. Adaline finds a gray hair much to her happiness, William’s comet shows up after years searching for him, Flemming is living with her mother and Ellis. They have a new puppy that is the same breed as all the other dogs Adaline had…

Good luck Adaline, may you finally live your life to the fullest.

What would you do if you didn’t age and had forever ahead of you?
XO,

Natalia

 

XO,

About Natalia

Just a regular girl that obsesses way too much over all things beauty, fashion, books, media and lifestyle.