The Age of Adaline

In the 2015 romantic drama film, The Age of Adaline, we are introduced to Adaline Bowman, a young woman who embodies a timeless beauty. At the age of 29, Adaline finds herself at the edge of death following a near-fatal car accident. During her rescue and subsequent recovery, Adaline is inexplicably granted an extraordinary gift – she stops growing older. With this newfound immortality, Adaline embarks on a journey of self-discovery and secrecy. As the years unfold, Adaline chooses to conceal her remarkable ability from the world, altering her identity and moving from place to place, always staying one step ahead of her past. She marries and becomes a mother several times, but each relationship is cut short as she eventually feels compelled to leave behind the lives she has built, unable to remain in one place for too long. Through this nomadic existence, Adaline gains an extensive knowledge of the world, immersing herself in various cultures, languages, and professions. However, in 1959, Adaline (played by Blake Lively) encounters Ellis Jones, a charming and intelligent Australian man who unknowingly disrupts the carefully constructed façade Adaline has built around herself. Ellis, having recently moved to San Francisco, begins to build a life in the city and becomes fast friends with Leonard, a doctor who helps Adaline when she suffers a minor accident. As Ellis and Adaline continue to cross paths, they develop a close bond over shared experiences, with their conversations revealing deeper emotions. They discover common ground in their struggles and find comfort in each other's company. Ellis sees the genuine Adaline, going beyond her enchanted exterior to a complex, tender, and vulnerable individual. Ellis, blissfully unaware of Adaline's extraordinary secret, believes he has discovered someone special and falls deeply in love with her. They meet occasionally in Hawaii and spend quality time together, engaging in delightful and charming conversations. Their developing romance unravels Adaline's carefully constructed world, putting her secret at risk of exposure. When Ellis asks her to move in with him, Adaline's ageless existence raises complex questions, particularly regarding aging and mortality, which prompts Adaline to weigh her options. On one hand, embracing Ellis and experiencing old age side by side would allow her to finally establish roots, break her internalized isolation, and engage in deep love. Or, she risks endangering her unique qualities and happiness if old age catches up with her. In order to protect both herself and Ellis, Adaline concocts a series of strategies to guard her secret, navigating treacherous social boundaries. Even though her age grants her significant financial security and professional stature, Adaline's perpetual state of being alone becomes more crushing, pushing her toward an epiphany about how to reconcile her past and present while unshackling herself. Meanwhile, Ellis continues on his path to greatness: becoming 'Concorde,' an iconic commercial jet pioneer and a testament to human ingenuity. In the interlude, in 1962, Adaline receives special notice from the Concorde aircraft company. This development indirectly plays a decisive role when deciding about sharing her secret with Ellis, further reflecting her inner paradoxes. In the climactic emotional confrontation, Adaline ultimately decides that living without this ability – for a moment – is preferable to losing the love she has found in Ellis's loyalty and compassion. Decimating her ideal of sustaining this perfection forever, she takes a leap of faith. Adaline forces herself to accept an awareness of her age. With an acceptance and newfound emotional maturity, the burden and pain dissolves. Furthermore, when Ellis learns the truth, he first feels the risk of losing Adaline. Despite the new awareness of her secret causing surprise, frustration, disappointment, even questioning his perspective on reality, it results in a profound expression of his inner conviction and his steadfast commitment to the love they share. This unexpected decision causes Adaline, beyond being human, to assume a new perspective about Ellis's affection — no longer based on her enchanting qualities but as someone perfectly aware of, yet loving, the person she truly is. In essence, the timeless theme of aging, lost love, and finding love speaks to human hearts as universally as possible, granting an unusual, dream-like aesthetic while still grounded in the principles of the ever-deep and dramatic potential of romance and adulthood that connects humanity more widely and profoundly.