The Age of Adaline appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.40:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. The film came with a fairly good image.
For the most part, sharpness seemed positive. Occasionally, I saw a bit of softness, especially during interiors. However, the majority of the film delivered nice clarity and accuracy. I saw no jagged edges or moiré effects, and the presentation lacked source defects.
In terms of palette, Age tended to mix teal and amber. This never became a dynamic set of hues, but the colors seemed appropriately rendered. Blacks appeared dark and tight, while shadows looked smooth and clear. In the end, the image remained generally solid.
To my surprise, Age offered a Dolby Atmos soundtrack. A new format, Atmos usually pops up with big action movies, not character dramas like this.
Because I don’t have an Atmos-equipped system, this played back as a Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mix. Despite the sonic possibilities available, Age came with a fairly restrained soundscape.
The mix did pop to life on occasion. Adaline’s car crash used the various channels well, and a few other scenes brought us pretty involving use of the different speakers. However, those remained in the minority, as most of the track focused on music and general ambience.
Audio quality seemed satisfactory. Music was full and rich, while effects appeared accurate and dynamic. Dialogue always came across as smooth and natural. Nothing here dazzled, but the soundtrack worked fine for the story.
Age comes with a mix of extras, and we start with an audio commentary from director Lee Toland Krieger. He delivers a running, screen-specific look at sets and locations, visual design and cinematography, cast and performances, editing, story/characters, deleted scenes, and related areas.
Krieger offers a chat that mostly looks at technical areas, and that’s usually fine. While I’d like to hear more about the creative side, he touches on a good array of topics and does so in a manner that provides a solid series of details. Krieger gives us a chat that manages to add to our understanding of the film.
Three featurettes follow. A Love Story for the Ages runs 29 minutes, 38 seconds and offers notes from Krieger, producers Gary Lucchesi, Richard Wright and Tom Rosenberg, production designer Claude Pare, costume designer Angus Strathie, director of photography David Lanzenberg, and actors Blake Lively, Michiel Huisman, Harrison Ford and Ellen Burstyn.
We learn about story/characters and the flick’s path to the screen, historical/period elements, production design and sets/locations, costumes and photography, cast/performances, and general thoughts. “Ages” covers a good array of production elements in a satisfying manner.
During the 18-minute, 19-second Style Throughout the Ages, we hear from Krieger, Huisman, Ford, Lively, Lucchesi, Wright, Strathie, Pare, Lanzengerg, Rosenberg and screenwriter J. Mills Goodloe. “Style” examines different visual motifs across the movie’s many chronological eras, with an emphasis on costumes, hair/makeup, production design, and cinematography. The program acts as a nice complement to the prior featurette.
Finally, Discovering Young Harrison Ford goes for eight minutes, 19 seconds and features Krieger, Goodloe, Lively, Rosenberg, Ford, and actor Anthony Ingruber. We learn how Ingruber got the role as the younger version of the Ford character and aspects of his performance. This becomes a fun look at an unusual casting call.
Two Deleted Scenes last a total of four minutes, 30 seconds. The first highlights Adaline’s secrecy and paranoia about others learning her secret, while the second shows a health scare with Adaline’s daughter. Both are interesting but not essential.
The disc opens with ads for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2, The Divergent Series: Insurgent, The DUFF and Love and Mercy. No trailer for Age shows up here.
A second disc presents a DVD copy of Adaline. It includes the same extras as the Blu-ray.
Although The Age of Adaline comes with an intriguing premise, it mostly wastes its potential on sappy romance. Lead actor Blake Lively occasionally gives it motion, but too much of the movie bogs down in bland drama. The Blu-ray offers good picture and audio along with a nice roster of supplements. Parts of Age work but too much of it seems ordinary.