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 as Adaline, with Michiel Huisman, Kathy Baker, Amanda Crew, Harrison Ford, and Ellen Burstyn. Narrated by Hugh Ross, the story follows Adaline Bowman, a young woman who stops aging following an accident at the age of 29.
The film was produced by Sidney Kimmel Entertainment and Lakeshore Entertainment. Principal photography took place in Vancouver from March 5 to May 5, 2014.
It premiered in New York City on April 19, 2015, was cinematically released on April 24 in the United States by Lionsgate. It received mixed reviews from critics, though many praised both Lively's and Ford's performances, citing them as some of their best work in recent years. A modest box-office success, it grossed $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 was the first baby born on New Year's Day 1908 in San Francisco. She married in 1929 and had a daughter, Flemming, in 1932. Her husband was killed in 1937 during the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge. Ten months later, Adaline crashed her car into a ravine and died in a freezing lake in Sonoma County, but a lightning strike revived her. From then on, Adaline stopped aging.
In 1953, after a traffic violation, a police officer confiscates her ID because it must be fake (she is now 45 but still looks 29). Then, two FBI agents attempt to abduct her for study. She realises she must spend the rest of her life on the run, periodically changing her identification. She bids a heartfelt farewell to her now-adult daughter, who is aging normally.
In 2015, as "Jennifer", Adaline falls in love with philanthropist Ellis Jones. She knows she cannot afford to have a proper relationship but can't resist him. Finally, she goes to his parents' 40th anniversary party. His father, William, recognizes her instantly, but she claims Adaline was her mother, who has died. Adaline recalls that she had been in love with William once, and he had been ready to marry her.
William is shaken when he notices a scar on Adaline's hand, from a cut she sustained while she and William were hiking decades before. He confronts her, and she admits the truth. William begs her to stay for Ellis's sake, but she writes Ellis a note and leaves. Finding the letter, Ellis confronts his father, who refuses to explain.
Driving home, Adaline calls her daughter (now old enough to be her grandmother), to say she is tired of running. A flatbed truck plows into her car, pushing it into a ravine. Thrown from the car, Adaline's heart stops due to 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. A voiceover explains that the jolt from the defibrillator restarted her aging process. She can now grow old with Ellis.
Cast[]
- Blake Lively as Adaline Marie Bowman / Jennifer "Jenny" Larson / Susan Fleisher
- Michiel Huisman as Ellis Jones
- Harrison Ford as William Jones
- Ellen Burstyn as Flemming Prescott
- Kathy Baker as Kathy Jones
- Amanda Crew as Kikki Jones
- Anthony Ingruber as Young William Jones
- Hugh Ross as Narrator
Release[]
On August 15, 2014, Lionsgate set the film for a January 23, 2015 worldwide release.[4] Later, the date was moved to April 24, 2015.[5] 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.[6]
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.[7] The film opened with $575,000 during Thursday late-night showings at 2,100 U.S. theaters.[8] It finished the weekend at number three behind Furious 7 and Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 with $13.4 million from 2,991 locations.[9]
Critical response[]
The Age of Adaline 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.[10] Rotten Tomatoes reports a 55% approval rating from 173 critics, with an average rating of 5.5/10. The Critic'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."[11] Template:Metacritic film prose 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.[12]
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".[13]
External links[]
The Age of Adaline at IMDb- The Age of Adaline at AllMovieScript error: No such module "EditAtWikidata".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
The Age of Adaline at Box Office Mojo- The Age of Adaline at Metacritic
- The Age of Adaline at Rotten Tomatoes
References[]
- ↑ THE AGE OF ADALINE (12A). British Board of Film Classification.
- ↑ Michiel Huisman. imdb.com.
- ↑ The Age of Adaline (2015). Box Office Mojo. Amazon.com.
- ↑ "Lionsgate Dates 'L'age de Adaline'", August 15, 2014.
- ↑ Lang, Brent. "Johnny Depp Comedy 'Mortdecai' Shifts to January 2015 Release Date", Variety, September 24, 2014.
- ↑ Cunningham, Todd (April 28, 2015). How Blake Lively's Iconic Fashion Gave 'Age of Adaline' a Big Boost.
- ↑ The Age of Adaline (2015). Box Office Mojo.
- ↑ McNary, Dave (April 24, 2015). Box Office: 'Age of Adaline' Launches with $575,000 in Latenight Shows.
- ↑ Lang, Brent (April 26, 2015). Box Office: 'Furious 7′ Races Past 'Age of Adaline'.
- ↑ Hoffman, Jordan (April 22, 2015). The Age of Adaline review. The Guardian.
- ↑ Template:Wikidata The Age of Adaline (in en). Fandango Media.
- ↑ Cunningham, Todd (April 25, 2015). 'Age of Adaline' Overhauls 'Furious 7' at Friday Box Office.
- ↑ Seitz, Matt Zoller (April 24, 2015). The Age of Adaline Movie Review (2015).