John Sorrel W

Age of Adaline builds a film around the greatest dread of a young woman's life: turning 30. A film to show you how terrible it must be to be a white woman who is beautiful, rich, brilliant, blond... and who lives forever never looking a year older than 29. Terrible because her eternal youth must be kept a secret from the jealous world, to the heartbreak of all the men who fall in love with her and make her run away. Spoiler: Nothing is more perfect than discovering your first gray hair.

The only thing that saves this movie from being utterly horrible is the adorable performance of Melanie Lynskey as the ne'er do well stoner who will of course swoop in as the heroine at the end. And as a surprise white savior at that. But if you are tone deaf enough to set a romcom around a white southern belle ghost who ruled over a mansion thru the Civil War and Reconstruction, you might as well go all the way. It's a movie by white people for white people with the usual smattering of black people in the background... but not to worry because they're sure to be given something in the end. A movie about as amusing and edifying as your typical southern plantation nostalgia tour.

Cute with a great cast. If you came from a certain kind of liberal white affluent mileu, you know a Ned and probably have the same kind of love/hate relationship with him that his sisters in this movie have.

Exquisite mood. Beautiful music.