The Age of Adaline premiered in New York City on April 19, 2015, was cinematically released on April 24 in the United States by Lionsgate. The film received mixed reviews from critics, with many praising the performances of Lively and Ford, and was frequently cited as some of their best work in recent years. It was a modest box-office success, grossing $65.7 million worldwide on a $25 million budget. The film received two nominations at the 42nd Saturn Awards, one for Best Fantasy Film and one for Lively for Best Actress.
Plot
Adaline Bowman purchases fake IDs and then opens a box of film reels highlighting historical events. A voiceover tells Adaline's life. She was the first baby born on New Year's Day of 1908 in San Francisco. She married in 1929, had a daughter in 1932, and was widowed when her husband was killed in 1937 during the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge. Ten months later, while driving to her parents' cottage, Adaline crashed into a ravine and died in the freezing lake in Sonoma County, but a lightning strike revived her. From then on, Adaline never aged beyond 29 years old.
In 1953, after a traffic violation, during which a police officer doubts her age as 45 years old, two FBI agents attempt to abduct her for study. She escapes and spends the rest of her life on the run. She periodically changes her identification while her daughter Flemming ages normally.
On New Year's Eve 2014, as "Jennifer", she meets Ellis Jones at a party. Knowing she can never fall in love, she initially declines to see him again but accepts the next day.
In a flashback, Adaline pulls up in a cab to where a man is waiting, holding an engagement ring. She tells the cab driver to keep going.
Ellis asks Adaline to his parents' 40th anniversary party. His father, William, recognizes her instantly and calls her Adaline, though she is using another name. She says Adaline was her mother who has since passed away. A flashback reveals William was the man with the engagement ring.
William is shaken when he notices a scar on Adaline's hand, revealed in a flashback to be from a cut she sustained while she and William were hiking decades before. He confronts her, and she confirms who she is and says she does not know what changed her. William begs her to stay for Ellis' sake, but she writes Ellis a note and leaves. Finding the letter, Ellis confronts his father, who refuses to explain.
Driving home, Adaline recalls all the times she has run. She calls her daughter to say she is going to stop running. A flatbed truck plows into her car, pushing it into a ravine. Adaline is ejected from the car and dies from hypothermia. An ambulance crew revives her with a defibrillator and she wakes up in the hospital with Ellis at her bedside. They profess their love, and Adaline reveals her 107 years of life and fear of being discovered.
A year later, Ellis and Adaline are leaving for a New Year's Eve party when, in the hallway mirror, she notices a grey hair. When Ellis asks if she is okay, she replies she is perfect.
Cast
Blake Lively as Adaline Marie Bowman / Jennifer "Jenny" Larson / Susan Fleisher
On February 22, 2011, it was reported that Gabriele Muccino was in talks to direct the film, replacing Tennant, with the film re-titled from The Age of Adaline to simply Adaline.[7] On May 14, 2012, it was announced that Spanish director Isabel Coixet would direct the film instead.[8] On October 16, 2013, Lee Toland Krieger was reported to be the actual director of the film.[9] Producer Dan Cohen had shown him the script at a general meeting in 2009.[10]
Casting
On May 12, 2010, Katherine Heigl was cast as the title character.[4] On November 12, 2010, Angela Lansbury was added to the cast of the film, set to play the daughter of the ageless Adaline.[11] On November 15, Heigl withdrew from Adaline's cast, and there were rumors that she had been fired by Lakeshore, which both Lakeshore and Heigl denied.[12] She later announced that her withdrawal was a result of her recent adoption of a daughter.[12] On August 15, 2011, TheWrap reported that Natalie Portman had been offered the lead role.[13] On August 25, Portman told Entertainment Weekly that she had declined the offer.[14]
On October 16, 2013, Blake Lively and Ellen Burstyn were cast in the film to play the lead roles, with Lively starring as the title character.[9] On January 15, 2014, Harrison Ford joined the cast, and the film was set to begin shooting in March of that year.[15] On February 11, 2014, Michiel Huisman joined the cast to star opposite Lively as Adaline's love interest.[16]
While Rob Simonsen scored the film, Lana Del Rey contributed a song titled "Life Is Beautiful," which is featured in the film's trailer but not included in the soundtrack.
Release
On August 15, 2014, Lionsgate set the film for a January 23, 2015 worldwide release.[20] Later, the date was moved to April 24, 2015.[21] The film was released on DVD on September 8, 2015.
Marketing
The promotional campaign was aimed primarily at fashion-conscious women. Danielle DePalma, executive vice-president of digital marketing at Lionsgate, said, "We were very aware of Blake’s high-fashion profile when we crafted the campaign, and there was so much beautiful imagery from the film." They created vignettes for MTV and VH1 and a fashion segment for E! News showing viewers how to achieve the same looks as Lively. They created a custom "Fashion Journey Through the Decades" initiative, through which a fashion influencer from YouTube or Maker Studios created a unique look inspired by the film. Video ads were also released on Instagram and tutorials on Pinterest. Advance screenings for fashion and lifestyle influencers took place in partnership with Gilt City. The application Periscope was used to spread information about the film.[22]
Reception
Box office
The Age of Adaline earned $42,629,776 in North America and $23,033,500 in other countries, for a worldwide box office gross of $65.7 million.[23] The film opened with $575,000 during Thursday late-night showings at 2,100 U.S. theaters.[24] It finished the weekend at number three behind Furious 7 and Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 with $13.4 million from 2,991 locations.[25]
Critical response
The Age of Adaline has received mixed reviews from critics, although the performances of Blake Lively and Harrison Ford received very positive reviews and were cited as some of their best work in recent years.[26] On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 55% approval rating, based on 170 reviews, with an average rating of 5.5/10. The site's consensus reads: "The Age of Adaline ruminates on mortality less compellingly than similarly themed films, but is set apart by memorable performances from Blake Lively and Harrison Ford."[27] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 51 out of 100, based on 32 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[28] In CinemaScore polls conducted during the opening weekend, cinema audiences gave The Age of Adaline an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.[29]
Matt Zoller Seitz of RogerEbert.com gave the film three out of four stars, expressing surprise at the film's increase in quality midway through: "I've never seen a less involving movie become so compelling at the exact moment when you've resigned to write it off as just okay." He also gave high praise to Harrison Ford's dramatic performance, writing that "Ford's voice—always deep, lowered an octave by age and one more by William's longing—is even more powerful [than the devastating look on his face]. This is Ford's best performance since The Fugitive, maybe since Witness".[30]
