The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)

4.0

DRAMA
U.S. Release Date: 12/25/08
Running Length: 159 Minutes
MPAA Classification: PG-13 (Profanity, Sexual Situations, Violence)
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Cast: Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Julia Ormond, Taraji P. Henson, Jason Flemyng, Tilda Swinton, Jared Harris
Director: David Fincher
Screenplay: Eric Roth, based on the short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Cinematography: Claudio Miranda
Music: Alexandre Desplat
U.S. Distributor: Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros.

Review by: Carter Moulton

12/26/08

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button examines people, love, and time with an inquisitive gaze that, because of its careful execution, lures us in and invites us to explore life’s romantic mysteries. Loosely based off of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s short story, the film is about Benjamin Button (played by Brad Pitt): a man who ages backwards. Delicately sewn together, the film makes use of every figure on screen to create something visually and sentimentally beautiful. Overflowing with aged luminosity and dark shadow, it creates an antique atmosphere that floats off of the screen and slowly surrounds its audience. Director David Fincher (Fight Club, Zodiac) uses all to his advantage including set design, makeup, and exceptionally subtle special effects.

Brad Pitt is phenomenal in the film. It’s one of those quiet, reserved performances—one that forgoes the balling-teary-eyed breakdowns. As Benjamin, he is an observer of life, an outsider who’s along for the ride. He constructs each blink and each smile in a way that creates Benjamin as an innocent and sincere man. It’s a subdued triumph from Pitt, an actor who is improving with every project he undertakes.

Cate Blanchett plays Daisy, Benjamin’s love interest. Their relationship is interesting to watch as it unfolds unconventionally due to Benjamin’s aging. We see many sides of Daisy, making her another emotional anchor of the film. Watch for a scene of her silhouette dancing in front of Benjamin; it’s picturesque. Blanchett is superb at nailing Daisy’s self-doubt, and she’s pretty good at ballet too.

Photo © Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros.

Throughout Benjamin’s life he meets various people—some who die, most who fade as the story continues. Sea captains, piano players and closet relatives grace the screen for only moments of the film’s runtime. Elizabeth Abbot (Tilda Swinton) is one of these characters, she’s a temporary fix for Benjamin’s romance. The entrances and exits of Ben Button’s characters showcase the constant change in our own lives, and it reminds us that our future will feature a notably different supporting cast.

It’s an epic attempt to tackle so many monstrous issues within one film, but somehow The Curious Case of Benjamin Button pulls it off. The visual beauty that Fincher frames combined with Alexandre Desplat’s score and Eric Roth’s—writer of Forrest Gump—delicate words are more than enough to stir my mind. It genuinely feels as if I’ve lived right alongside Benjamin and viewed his fantastical life in its entirety. When it ends, it’s not sad, but bittersweet in a most perplexing—or curious—way.

The film has a premise that almost ensures continuity errors and distracting special effects. Following characters through an entire lifetime whilst using the same talent is hard to pull off. The audience must be convinced and allowed to sink into the characters sensations. I looked and looked for a mistake, a flaw in continuity. I couldn’t find one. It’s a miracle case where makeup, subject placement and special effects enhance the storytelling significantly. Fincher fine-tunes every detail, down to the wattage of each lamp.

Speaking of lights, lighthouses, sunrises, light bulbs, moonlight, table lamps, and candles illuminate Fincher’s film. He’s successful at creating a thoughtful mood early on, allowing the more reflective scenes—later in the movie—to leave an impression. It's this assured direction that makes the movie so deeply felt. A scene where Benjamin sits behind his father and watches the sunrise provides a moment of quiet, reflective serenity. The movie is peppered with profound scenes like this—it’s so tranquil that it nestles its way into your heart, slowly softening it. It does so by blending the colors and shadows on screen to form poetry on film.

There’s a point in our lives where we wish the clock would tick backwards. A point where we ponder our aging bodies and the mystery behind them. A point where we realize that none of us can cheat death, and that someday all of the supporting characters will fade from our film. Benjamin tells Daisy, “I was thinking how nothing lasts, and what a shame that is.” As The Curious Case of Benjamin Button faded to black, I was thinking the same thing. It’s my pick for best picture of the year.