The Age of Adaline

The Age of Adaline is a 2015 American romantic fantasy film directed by Lee Toland Krieger and written by J. Mills Goodloe and Salvador Paskowitz. The film stars Blake Lively in the title role, with Michiel Huisman, Kathy Baker, Amanda Crew, Harrison Ford, and Ellen Burstyn in supporting roles. Narrated by Hugh Ross, the story follows Adaline Bowman, a young woman who stops aging after an accident at the age of 29.
The film was co-produced by Sidney Kimmel Entertainment and Lakeshore Entertainment. In October 2013, Lively was cast as the title character, with Krieger attached to direct. Principal photography took place in Vancouver from March 5, 2014 to May 5.
"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 respectively 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.
One afternoon in San Francisco, Adaline Bowman purchases fake IDs at an apartment before returning home to feed her dog. She then goes to work and opens a box of film reels, which highlight historical events and times. A voiceover ties together the film reels explaining the story of Adaline's life so far. She was the first baby born in San Francisco on New Year's Day of 1908, then later married and gave birth to a daughter, only to become a widow after her husband died in a tragic accident during the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge in 1937. Ten months later, Adaline crashed her car when she swerved into a ravine during a snowstorm and died in the freezing lake nearby, but a lightning strike suddenly revived her. From that moment on, Adaline has stayed physically 29 years old.
One night, two suspicious FBI agents attempt to force her onto an airplane for study, but she escapes captivity and realizes that she will have to spend the rest of her life on the run. Ever since, she has changed her identification and address according to the era, while her daughter Flemming ages normally, to the point where she appears older than Adaline.
On New Year's Eve in the present year, she attends a party where she meets Ellis Jones, introducing herself as her current alias, Jennifer. He asks to see her again but she refuses, knowing she can never fall in love because she can never have a normal future with someone. The next day at work, Ellis arrives and again asks Adaline to go on a date with him. Finally she accepts.
In a flashback, Adaline is shown pulling up in a cab to a park where a man is waiting, holding an engagement ring. Scared, she asks the cab driver to keep going. Back in the present day, Adaline's dog falls ill and she begins to ignore Ellis' calls. He shows up at her apartment but she pushes him away, only to have a change of heart while looking through some old photographs and realizing she doesn't want to live the same year a hundred times without having a natural life.
They later resolve their argument and Ellis asks Adaline to attend the party at his parents' house celebrating his parents' fortieth anniversary, and she says yes. Upon their arrival, Ellis introduces her to his father, William, who recognizes her instantly and calls her Adaline. She appears to recognize him, too, but lies, telling him that Adaline was her mother, who has since died. A flashback shows how they met and came to be in love, soon revealing that he was the man with the engagement ring she stood up that afternoon. One night, Ellis tells Adaline he is falling in love with her and she is irresolute.
The following day, Adaline talks with William outside and he notices a scar on her left hand, and becomes shaken. Another flashback reveals that Adaline cut her hand while she and William were hiking together decades ago and he had stitched it up himself. He realizes that she is truly Adaline and confronts her. She becomes upset, saying she used to be "normal" and doesn't know what changed her. He begs her not to run, for Ellis' sake, but she says she doesn't know how to stay. She flees and returns to the house, writing a note to Ellis while he showers, then she packs her things and leaves. Moments later, Ellis finds the letter and confronts his father, who refuses to explain.
While driving home, Adaline thinks of all the times she has run and suddenly has a change of heart about the way she lives her life. She stops and calls her daughter to tell her she is going to stop running. As she turns the car around, a tow truck plows into her in a hit-and-run accident, leaving her to die. Freezing and helpless, Adaline dies again. An ambulance arrives and she is revived by the electricity of the defibrillator. Later in the hospital, she wakes up to Ellis, and the two profess their love for one another. Adaline then tells him of her 107 years of life, running and always afraid of her identity being discovered.
One year later, Ellis and Adaline are going to a New Year's Eve party. As she is leaving, she notices something strange in the hallway mirror: her first grey hair, proving she has begun to age naturally again. When Ellis asks if she is okay, she responds: "Yes... Perfect."
Production.
On May 12, 2010 it was announced that "The Age of Adaline" would be co-financed and co-produced by Lakeshore Entertainment and Sidney Kimmel Entertainment. Salvador Paskowitz and J. Mills Goodloe wrote the script. Sierra / Affinity has the international rights, while producers were Steve Golin, Alix Madigan, Tom Rosenberg and Gary Lucchesi. On July 20, 2010 it was reported that Andy Tennant was set to direct the film. On October 31, 2010, Summit Entertainment bought the US distribution rights to the film, which was set to begin shooting in March 2011 for an early 2012 release.
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". On May 14, 2012, it was announced that Spanish director Isabel Coixet would direct the film instead. On October 16, 2013, Lee Toland Krieger was reported to be the actual director of the film. Producer Dan Cohen had shown him the script at a general meeting in 2009.
Casting.
On May 12, 2010, Katherine Heigl was cast as the title character. On November 12, 2010, Angela Lansbury was added to the cast of the film, set to play the daughter of the ageless Adaline. 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. She later announced that her withdrawal was a result of her recent adoption of a daughter. On August 15, 2011, TheWrap reported that Natalie Portman had been offered the lead role. On August 25, Portman told "Entertainment Weekly" that she had declined the offer.
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. On January 15, 2014, Harrison Ford joined the cast, and the film was set to begin shooting in March of that year. On February 11, 2014, Michiel Huisman joined the cast to star opposite Lively as Adaline's love interest.
Filming.
Filming began on March 10, 2014 in Vancouver and continued through May 5. On March 11, 2014 filming at the Hotel Vancouver commenced. Anamorphic lenses and minimal use of steadicams were employed to provide greater authenticity for scenes set in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. The films "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" and "How to Marry a Millionaire" served as inspiration for the period color tone and saturation.
Music.
While Rob Simonsen scored the film, Lana Del Rey contributed a song titled "Life Is Beautiful." The song is featured in the film's trailer but is not included in the soundtrack.
Release.
On August 15, 2014, Lionsgate set the film for a January 23, 2015 worldwide release. Later, the date was moved to April 24, 2015. 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.
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. The film opened with $575,000 during Thursday late-night showings at 2,100 U.S. theaters. It finished the weekend at number three behind "Furious 7" and "" with $13.4 million from 2,991 locations.
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. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 54%, based on 168 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." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 51 out of 100, based on 32 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". 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.
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"".