Starring: Cate Blanchett, Brad Pitt, Julia Ormond, Taraji P. Henson

Directed by: David Fincher

Warner Brothers Pictures

The Official Site of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Discuss The Curious Case of Benjamin Button on the boards!

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is very loosely based on the short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It borrows the concept of a man living his life in reverse, casts some A-list talent, throws a big budget at it and forgets the rest of the inconsequential details of the original text. In its place is a simple and sweet story of love and life that anyone should be able to relate to… no matter how many wrinkles they have on their face.

Button is a project that has been in the works for years, something that director David Fincher “poured over… like a favorite fairy tale from his child hood.� What a wonderfully inspirational quote. (From EW issue #1029) Wouldn’t it have been something if the finished film had half the imagination and inspiration that even the worst children’s book does? The only thing about Benjamin Button that feels like it’s ripped from a fairy tale is the premise that he’s ageing in reverse. Beyond that he’s just a sepia-toned Forrest Gump with nothing to do. At least Gump was a war hero, a shrimp man, the accidental creator of the smiley face and a professional ping-pong player for the USA. All Benjamin (Brad Pitt) does is get shot at by a submarine and fall in love. Still, if you're going to choose a couple of really impressive standout events in life, those two ain't all that bad.

Even though the scope is big, the visuals are grand and the intentions are ambitious, Benjamin Button has very little of the whimsy and charm that a fairy tale description might imply. And I’m not even talking about whistling dwarves or singing rats that help you with your chores. I’m talking about the wink and a smile that come along with a told story. That’s nearly absent from this film. As much as some of us might like to bash its lack of charm, excessive running time or the fact that there’s not that much going on in those 2 hours and 47 minutes, it’s kind of hard to rag on a love story.

Even without much of a story to tell, the adventures of Benjamin growing up and facing the same challenges of life we all do (just in a slightly more wrinkled body) has some very important things to say. Themes of “nothing lasting forever� or “we’re all the same� haunt the film and rear up in unexpected and interesting ways. Benjamin and Daisy (the love of his life played by Cate Blanchett) are kept apart not because he looks like a creep, hunchback, hobbit pedophile, but because of who they are and who they become. The look on Benjamin’s face when he realizes the woman he’s loved all his life has grown up to be a complete stranger is absolutely crushing. But it’s such a relatable realization and that’s part of the reason the film works.

Button is full of these moments as our hero sets out into the world to find himself. Watching him working for a living, cherishing a first kiss and questioning his mysterious past, we can all find ourselves in there somewhere. Our pasts may not be as mysterious but Benjamin faces a lot of the same questions we do. The lengthy film, that is really only becomes obviously lengthy when you take a second to notice how much the characters have evolved or devolved from scene to scene, stays alive in how relatable it is. It’s amazing to find a connection in the growing pains of a pasty white California Raisin.

There are some great performances form Pitt, Blanchett and Taraji P. Henson who delivers the lines that came closest to breaking me down emotionally. Her being great is nothing new though. Go back to 2005’s Hustle and Flow and watch me sing her praises as the pregnant call girl with a voice of gold. The real star of Benjamin Button though seems to be its larger-than-life visuals. Benjamin’s journey on land and sea all across the world through 50 years of history and half a dozen body doubles, layers of make-up and spins around the CGI airbrushing tool to give the entire cast that youthful sheen, combine to make up one of the most impressive looking films in years. It’s big, beautiful and impossible to ignore.

The film’s message and story may be slightly easier to gloss over though. Benjamin’s lack of ambition and direction are part of what makes him unique but watching a confused young man hang out at home, sale boats and live off the family fortune is hardly edge-of-your-seat excitement. Even with the spectacle of watching him get younger every 20 minutes. Somehow though it works. Perhaps I’m just a sucker for a good love story with a tragic twist but I think at the end of the day Benjamin Button is a good example that some stories are worth telling thoroughly. It’s hardly Snow White and the Seven Dwarves though.

Rating: 8 out of 10 - It's a sweet story but to me doesn't carry the emotional power or feeling of grandeur to match its epic visuals and Oscar buzz. If you've got this kind of time to kill though, there are far worse ways to do it.

Pass. I was happy to make time for this up on the big screen to really soak in the big visuals and big concept in a big way. Now that I’ve seen those visuals and know where the story is (or isn’t) going, Benjamin Button is one of those movies I’ll never seek out again. Lord knows how often I’ll get sucked in once it’s replaying on basic cable all weekend long in a couple years.

The length was definitely less intrusive then I thought it would be. I noticed a few folks checking their watches and as soon as the credits came up people were booking for the exits, but it’s not like there were any walkouts or anything. Watching the film it’s easy to pick places where they could trim the fat and tighten up the film a little but what’s the point? This is a big adventure. Let it be big!

The roller coaster is a direct call back to the X-files strip. Is there really any better way to say “time killer� than the entire cast riding a roller coaster?

So it’s been a while huh? Hope everyone had a good holiday and is having a great 2009 so far. Going into the holiday weeks I had every intention of seeing the big films and getting some comics and reviews up but a few very big things came up. The biggest was completing the JLCM book. Phil and I confronted this crunch to get the book done before January 1st so that we could have it in time for New York Comic Con next month. A couple of 16-hour days and the help of Yeo and Phil proofreading the hell out of those reviews… and we made it! I’m happy with the finished book and very eager to share it with you guys. No presales though. I don’t want to take any money until I know I can get these things in the mail 10 minutes later.

Regarding the Frost/Nixon comic from the last update - I’ve received a handful of e-mails letting me know that even though Nixon is placing the next piece, according to the pieces in play, it’s not even his turn! The best excuse offered for this is that the President is cheating, though I admit the actual reason is that I wasn’t paying close enough attention. If you look closely enough though you can see that Nixon could win the game easily in 2 moves. That’s what happens when you cheat!

That’s it for now but I’m back, excited to work and I have no extra baggage hanging over my head… so expect updates. Thanks so much for reading!