More simple than one would expect

Rating: 8/10 (26 December 2008)

I'll say right away, that for me the movie was a little disappointing. Only because it is David Fincher (director of Fight Club) and I expected something a little more bizarre and a little more stylish. Aside from the completely random draw to the movie here, which is the fact that Benjamin Button was born old and is growing younger, what we have here is a very simple love story/tragedy and nothing more than that. But putting that personable flaw aside from the start, what we have here is a very impressive love story.
First of all, whatever kind of make up effects/digital editing they used to make Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett look older and younger was f***ing phenomenal. Just after the old man baby phase, when Brad Pitt is a "100 year old man in a body the size of a 7 year old" - it is ridiculous looking! In a good way! Also, when Cate Blanchett is supposed to be about 23 years old, i don't know HOW they did it, but they made her look HOT! Normally i think Cate Blanchett is hideous, but somehow they altered her face just enough to do it.
Of course all of the performances are impressive, but that is expected from these two. The script and story is heavy and emotional, I dropped a tear a couple of times. We get a nice character out of that creepy redheaded guy with the moustache in the movie Happiness. He is probably the best comedic relief in the film.
The movie works. You feel it throughout. The ups and mostly downs. I didn't get bored in the 2 1/2 hour running time, although some people I went with did. It was interesting to watch how things unfold mentally for a withered old man with a little boys brain, and vice versa - but I felt that it wasn't enough. They should have dug deeper into these perspectives instead of rushing through them and focusing so much on the basic love story between the two characters.
If you're looking for something psychologically challenging, you can skip this one. If you want to see good acting, feel a couple butterflies in your tummy and a couple tears in your eye, then this one's for you.