the Kennedy/Marshall Company, 2008
Mov No. 44743
Genre: Drama
Rated: PG-13
Directed by: David Fincher
Staring: Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Taraji P. Henson, Mahershalalhashbaz Ali
Oscars: 3 Wins (Visual Effects, Art/Set Direction, Makeup) 13 Nominations (Picture, Lead Actor (Brad Pitt), Supporting Actress (Taraji P. Henson), Director, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Score, Film Editing, Sound, Costume Design)
AFI 100 years, 100 _____ tributes: None
Runtime: 2h 46min
Best quote: For what it's worth, it's never too late, or in my case too early - to be whoever you want to be. There's no time limit; stop whenever you want. You can change, or stay the same - there are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people with a different point of view. I hope you live a life you're proud of. If you find that you're not, I hope you have the strength to start all over again. Benjamin Button
Film critic Roger Ebert, when he reviewed this film, said that it doesn't work because life doesn't work this way. That's hooey. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a fantasy film first and foremost, so whatever is real and not real is thrown out the window. It is wonderful film and works extremely well - weather the central idea of the film works or not in real life doesn't matter at all. This is a film; pure entertainment.
The film had been in development since 1994, with several directors and stars attached. The film is based on a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald, writer of several classic American literary works (This Side of Paradise, Tender is the Night, and his greatest work, a masterpiece, The Great Gatsby).
Brad Pitt, in an incredible turn as the title character, Benjamin Button, mesmerizes the audience with his transition from old man to youthful young adult. It is his best performance in many years.
It is Brad Pitt who takes control of the film makes it into a beautiful love story. The story has elements of other films, most notably Forrest Gump. Benjamin, an outcast like Forrest Gump, makes his way through the decades, but unlike Gump, does not affect the events of the era.
Benjamin Button was born and abandoned as an hours old newborn because he was born looking like an old man. In fact, Benjamin is not getting older; he is growing younger. By the time he is seven years old, he uses a wheelchair and has a withered old face.
He soon meets Daisy, his love interest, as a young girl (Played by Cate Blanchett as an older woman). Also like Forrest Gump, Benjamin tries to woo her several times through the years. By the time he is in his fifties he thunders down the road on a motorcycle with tight t-shirt and sunglasses. Just how women want a sexy Brad Pitt to look.
Benjamin always had a crush on Daisy, from the first time he met her. But how can two people (who do care for each other) love each other when one is getting older and the other is getting younger?
At 2 hours and 46 minutes, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is an epic, to be sure. It is, at times very sad, yet at other times very funny.
Brad Pitt's performance makes the film. Weather an old man or young man, he turns in a performance defiantly worthy of Oscar recognition. Is he the best actor of the year? Hard to say. Is he one of the top five? You bet. Is this film one of the best of the year? You bet. 13 Nominations, you can't go wrong.
Movies it was nominated with for Best Picture: Frost/Nixon, Milk, The Reader, *Slumdog Millionaire
Is the movie worth your time to watch?
8.5/10 08-01-09
