A new movie called THE AGE OF ADALINE stars Blake Lively as a beautiful woman who doesn’t age. It’s a good example of how a mediocre script can be made into an enjoyable movie if everything else is done right. This movie offers likable characters played by people who know how to act. Plus, the cinematography is rich, the editing is polished, and the music and overall sound design are appealing.
Narrator: Adaline Bowman lived a normal life until one cold winter night in 1935 when something incredible happened. From that moment, she would never age another day.
Even though it’s preposterous, the idea of a person never getting old is a pleasant fantasy. Which of us would turn away from a “fountain of youth”?
And it doesn’t hurt that Adaline is played by Blake Lively, a lovely young actress whose face really does express the conflicting emotions of her character. It would be hard dislike this woman who completely changes her identity every ten years to keep her condition a secret.
It’s also fascinating to see a young looking 100 year old woman with a daughter (played by Ellen Burstyn) who looks old enough to be her grandmother. But for Adaline perpetual youth is a curse. She’s avoided relationships for decades.
Daughter: Don’t you miss having someone to love?
Adaline: It’s not the same when there’s no growing old together. Without that, love is just heartbreak.
Ah, but when she meets Ellis, a wealthy, handsome philanthropist played by Michiel Huisman, her resolve begins to melt.
Ellis: So, where are you off to?
Adaline: Some place with better food. My apartment. And yourself?
Ellis: Back to the party. I just wanted to spend 27 floors with you.
Adaline: That was a risky move.
Of course, they fall in love, but when Ellis takes Adaline (who calls herself Jenny in this decade), home to meet his parents, the screenplay really ups the ante.
Ellis: Dad, this is…..
Dad: Adeline…How is this possible? I’m sorry; you look exactly like this old friend of mine. We were very close. (pause)
Adaline: Jenny, actually.
Harrison Ford is terrific as the man who lost Adaline decades before and now sees her spitting image in front of him.
Sure, this is romantic hokum, but THE AGE OF ADALINE is so well done, I was willing to “suspend my disbelief.”
Terry Hunter, Hawaii News Now.
thunter@hawaiinewsnow.com