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Except for the general idea of the story and a few bare bones details, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button bears no resemblance to the F. Scott Fitzgerald short story. In my opinion that's not a bad thing. Although the short is quirky and original, the way that the movie has been extended provides a nuance and depth that more effectively explores the Mark Twain quote that inspired Fitzgerald: "Life would be infinitely happier if we could only be born at the age of eighty and gradually approach eighteen."
I found the movie to be funny, poignant and tragic. A lovely re-interpretation of the story with heart and depth. Brad Pitt was beautifully wistful as Benjamin, out of step even for the brief period when he and Daisy managed to "meet in the middle". It works so wonderfully because, unlike the short story, Benjamin is ever at odds with his body and with the world. The crux of the difference lies in the way that Benjamin ages. In the short he begins life as an eighty year-old man from tip to tail. Height, weight, language and understanding all find him more suitable to the retirement home than to the playground. As he ages, he loses that "adultness", experiencing each age mentally as well as physically. The movie, however, forces Benjamin to grow up with an old man's body and form himself based on his experiences and limitations, many of which come as a result of his very particular situation. Benjamin cultivates a contemplativeness that becomes a hallmark of his character. I couldn't help but to like him. However, things don't stay that way and as tragic as Benjamin's youth (when he was born an old and decrepit man) is as tragic as his dotage (as he continues to age backward becoming a teenager and child with the mental disease of the elderly).
Discovering that by the time that he is physically fourteen he has completely lost himself is sad. My only bone about that particular turn of events is that after Queenie dies and he realizes his state (at some point he would have, I think), that he doesn't return to the retirement home but is instead found living in an abandoned building.
Benjamin's lack of a relationship with his "sister", Queenie's daughter with Tizzy. Although I see the disconnect between Benjamin and Tizzy, I didn't understand the distance between Benjamin and Queenie's unnamed daughter. We could attribute it to their age difference; Benjamin leaves the retirement home at 17, shortly after the girl is born. However, given Queenie's apparent devotion to Benjamin, I can't say that's an accurate interpretation. If nothing else, perhaps, it is another sign of Benjamin's isolation. His remove from his own family (both biological and adopted) is just as obvious as his remove from the world at large. He may be of the world, but he is never really a part of it. Benjamin Button also never seems to form any real opinions on the state of the world as it exists and is transformed by war, technology and social revolution.
The CGI was stunning. All of Pitt's expressions of emotion were very beautifully captured and he looked more realistic as a very old man than I thought would be possible. The younger versions of Pitt and Cate Blanchett were stunning as well, but almost too perfect. There was a smooth, luminous quality about them that reminded me of some of the Eye Candy filters in Photoshop. They were almost too done. But that said, they were still beautiful. There may have been more difficulties in reducing Pitt's physical age. Most of his younger scenes are poorly lit or shot at angles and from distances. Everything following the studio scene where he shows up looking all of eighteen startled me because he's so hard to see.
Taraji P. Henson's Queenie was a great, if somewhat stock, character. Blanchett was lovely as Daisy and I thought that using her relationship with Benjamin as an entre into his reality was very effective. Watching them age side by side made that discrepancy between physical and mental age very apparent and very poignant. Again, Benjamin always running to catch up.
All of that said, the movie doesn't have much going for it in terms of plot. It tracks Benjamin's life, covering a major part of the twentieth century without ever actually commenting on it. There is a brief interlude where he befriends a Pygmy friend of Tizzy's, but it doesn't go very far and appears to be played for affectation, two marginalized freaks shaking their cages and perpetually trying to find a place in a world that does not fit. Oti does, however, inspire Benjamin to leave the safe confines of the retirement home that Queenie manages and make a way for himself in the world. However, Benjamin's been slowly building to that point through the beginning of the film, as he continues to change, and there's the briefest suggestion of some one-sided alienation after Queenie's much longed for pregnancy finally becomes a reality.
As Benjamin says, "Our lives are defined by opportunities, even the ones we miss," and this film has quite a few missed opportunities. Although it is epic in scope and Benjamin's life appears extraordinary, we never quite get to feel that breadth of experience. Too much of the focus has been given to Daisy. Even though we may believe that he has accomplished a tremendous lot (as evidenced by the voice over and a series of montages towards the end), it's never actually apparent unless it, in some way, is related to Benjamin's feelings for or attachment to Daisy.
I really, really enjoyed the film. It was charming and sad and funny. Benjamin tugged at my heartstrings. Brad Pitt with his soulful eyes. He remains one of the most fascinating people to me. There is a quality of spirit and physical handsomeness that extends beyond the screen that just grabs me up. For it's length it's a very intimate character piece, but I think, entertaining and charming enough to sweep you up, at least the first time.
I found the movie to be funny, poignant and tragic. A lovely re-interpretation of the story with heart and depth. Brad Pitt was beautifully wistful as Benjamin, out of step even for the brief period when he and Daisy managed to "meet in the middle". It works so wonderfully because, unlike the short story, Benjamin is ever at odds with his body and with the world. The crux of the difference lies in the way that Benjamin ages. In the short he begins life as an eighty year-old man from tip to tail. Height, weight, language and understanding all find him more suitable to the retirement home than to the playground. As he ages, he loses that "adultness", experiencing each age mentally as well as physically. The movie, however, forces Benjamin to grow up with an old man's body and form himself based on his experiences and limitations, many of which come as a result of his very particular situation. Benjamin cultivates a contemplativeness that becomes a hallmark of his character. I couldn't help but to like him. However, things don't stay that way and as tragic as Benjamin's youth (when he was born an old and decrepit man) is as tragic as his dotage (as he continues to age backward becoming a teenager and child with the mental disease of the elderly).
Discovering that by the time that he is physically fourteen he has completely lost himself is sad. My only bone about that particular turn of events is that after Queenie dies and he realizes his state (at some point he would have, I think), that he doesn't return to the retirement home but is instead found living in an abandoned building.
Benjamin's lack of a relationship with his "sister", Queenie's daughter with Tizzy. Although I see the disconnect between Benjamin and Tizzy, I didn't understand the distance between Benjamin and Queenie's unnamed daughter. We could attribute it to their age difference; Benjamin leaves the retirement home at 17, shortly after the girl is born. However, given Queenie's apparent devotion to Benjamin, I can't say that's an accurate interpretation. If nothing else, perhaps, it is another sign of Benjamin's isolation. His remove from his own family (both biological and adopted) is just as obvious as his remove from the world at large. He may be of the world, but he is never really a part of it. Benjamin Button also never seems to form any real opinions on the state of the world as it exists and is transformed by war, technology and social revolution.
The CGI was stunning. All of Pitt's expressions of emotion were very beautifully captured and he looked more realistic as a very old man than I thought would be possible. The younger versions of Pitt and Cate Blanchett were stunning as well, but almost too perfect. There was a smooth, luminous quality about them that reminded me of some of the Eye Candy filters in Photoshop. They were almost too done. But that said, they were still beautiful. There may have been more difficulties in reducing Pitt's physical age. Most of his younger scenes are poorly lit or shot at angles and from distances. Everything following the studio scene where he shows up looking all of eighteen startled me because he's so hard to see.
Taraji P. Henson's Queenie was a great, if somewhat stock, character. Blanchett was lovely as Daisy and I thought that using her relationship with Benjamin as an entre into his reality was very effective. Watching them age side by side made that discrepancy between physical and mental age very apparent and very poignant. Again, Benjamin always running to catch up.
All of that said, the movie doesn't have much going for it in terms of plot. It tracks Benjamin's life, covering a major part of the twentieth century without ever actually commenting on it. There is a brief interlude where he befriends a Pygmy friend of Tizzy's, but it doesn't go very far and appears to be played for affectation, two marginalized freaks shaking their cages and perpetually trying to find a place in a world that does not fit. Oti does, however, inspire Benjamin to leave the safe confines of the retirement home that Queenie manages and make a way for himself in the world. However, Benjamin's been slowly building to that point through the beginning of the film, as he continues to change, and there's the briefest suggestion of some one-sided alienation after Queenie's much longed for pregnancy finally becomes a reality.
As Benjamin says, "Our lives are defined by opportunities, even the ones we miss," and this film has quite a few missed opportunities. Although it is epic in scope and Benjamin's life appears extraordinary, we never quite get to feel that breadth of experience. Too much of the focus has been given to Daisy. Even though we may believe that he has accomplished a tremendous lot (as evidenced by the voice over and a series of montages towards the end), it's never actually apparent unless it, in some way, is related to Benjamin's feelings for or attachment to Daisy.
I really, really enjoyed the film. It was charming and sad and funny. Benjamin tugged at my heartstrings. Brad Pitt with his soulful eyes. He remains one of the most fascinating people to me. There is a quality of spirit and physical handsomeness that extends beyond the screen that just grabs me up. For it's length it's a very intimate character piece, but I think, entertaining and charming enough to sweep you up, at least the first time.
