Film Review of Age of Adaline (May 2015)

Walking into the theater on Friday, May 8, all I knew about this movie was that it starred Blake Lively, which automatically sold me on the idea of watching it because well, it’s Blake Lively. Age of Adaline, is a film mixed between romance and science fiction as one woman, Adaline Bowman, is involved in a near-death car accident in which she is thrown into a freezing pond and then struck with lightning. This accident causes Adaline to stop aging at the age of 29, leaving her in an immortal state. As Adaline's youthful appearance begins to starkly contrast her actual age, people, specifically the FBI, become suspicious of this. From this point on Adaline vows to change her identity every ten years and move, until many decades later, she meets a man that finally allows her to forget her past and settle and accept the life that she lives without the fear of being captured.
Going into the film I really had no questions I sought to be answered because I had no clue as to what the film would entail. But from the title and the actors I knew within the film I did have preconceptions about how I thought the film would be. The title Age of Adaline  made the film seem more grand and something that was Oscar-worthy but also knowing that Blake Lively was the star, I knew that the actual quality may be lowered because of her acting repertoire, specifically Gossip Girl. No offense to Gossip Girl, but I definitely knew that Blake Lively although gorgeous, is not much of an Oscar-worthy actress. And after the film most of my preconceptions were confirmed as I thought the film didn’t contain the best acting and was a bit cheesy or sappy.
The best aspect of the film was definitely the wardrobe. Blake Liveley or Adaline, specifically, looked beautiful in almost everything she wore. Much of the wardrobe was more dated because of Adaline’s character actually being from the early 20th century. She wore pieces that reflected each decade, ranging from neck scarves to turtlenecks. Those who put together Adaline’s wardrobe did a good job of emphasizing the length of time Adaline has been alive and her immortal state. I think the producers’ focus on getting Adaline’s wardrobe accurate to each decade she lived through allowed for more of a sense of genuinity, showing how Adaline truly has lived all these years adapting and changing in order to fit in and hide her identity.
As for the acting within the film, I did not think it was terrible, but at times could be a little too sappy with the way Adaline would deliver lines about having to hide her identity. Obviously this also had to do with the writing of the script itself and therefore I don’t put the entire blame about sappy lines on the shoulders of Blake Lively, but think that the writers could have made the lines less cheesy and more genuine. I did like the tone of voice used for Adaline because it accurately represented that she wasn’t from the modern era as her speech reflects an older time period. I think Adaline’s daughter did the best job of acting, delivering lines that felt sincere and genuinely described the pain she felt not being able to see her mother everyday and her genuine concern for her mother’s constant moving.
The biggest criticism I have of the film would be parts of the plot. I thought the explanation as to how Adaline had become immortal, through meteors, lighting, and water, was just outright implausible and overly dramatic. The dramatic way in which the narrator would explain Adaline’s situation made the plot see silly and humorous when it was suppose to be more touching when dealing with the topic of immortality. The film had a good plot dealing with the idea that being immortal is not something that should be desired for because of the struggles and conflicts one may endure if immortal. But that at times one must accept the struggles and learn to live with them as Adaline learns that she cannot continue to run but should rather stay with the man she has fallen in love with and not let him get away as she did with her other lovers. Yet when science was brought in to try to explain Adaline’s immortality the genuineness faded as I felt like everything was fake and sappy. If they focused less on the science or trying so hard to make it seem plausible, I think the overall quality of the film could have been higher.
Overall I felt neutral to the film, I mainly went to see it because of Blake Lively, but I don’t exactly think that paying money to see this film is worth it. If anything I would recommend waiting for it to come out on DVD to watch it. It’s not a movie for everyone, as it’s geared to those who enjoy romantic films and enjoy watching the struggles of relationships and the sappy happy endings.