As I walked into movie theater 12, I scanned the rows for the perfect seat. During my search I noticed something that I should have guessed already: not one male was present. This was not something I was all that surprised about considering the target market forAge of Adaline wasn’t exactly teenage boys.

Age of Adaline tells the story of a woman born in the early 1900’s that has not aged since a freak car accident changed her life forever. Before viewing the film, the story line seemed to be an awkward attempt at magical realism and too much of a fairytale to elicit any strong emotion. After viewing the film, my view was changed.

The movie was clouded with a melancholy overlay throughout it, clearing only towards the very end. Adaline Bowman’s (played by Blake Lively) tragically beautiful expressions contributed to the believability of the plot, as you could understand her struggle to be happy with her eternal life. The age progression of Adaline’s daughter (played by Angela Lansbury and later, Ellen Burstyn) puts into perspective just how long Adaline has remained 29 and adds another element of sorrow, seeing as that it looks like she will outlive her child.

The two love interests, one old flame and one new spark, further developed Adaline’s character. Her flashbacks of her dates with her old boyfriend from the 70’s compared to her encounters with him now added more depth to the story and expanded further on her timeline.

What made the story more conceivable was the use of scientific terminology to break down what events lead to her immortality. After her car crashed into a body of water on a frigid winter night, the narrator explains, Adaline enters a hypothermic state, causing her body to shut down gradually. However, after she is officially dead, a lightening bolt strikes and defibrillates her heart, thus, reviving an Adaline that will never age.

Throughout this film the characters will impose their troubles and triumphs upon you to the point where its unclear what is reality and what is a work of fiction. Age of Adaline manages to skillfully intertwine a hopelessly romantic plot with a pseudo-medical undertone to create a film worth seeing.