The Passage of Time

Rating: 8/10 (2 January 2009)

Not the traditional concrete story but rather an amalgam of experiences at random but defining stages of age.
We all know the plot (a man born physically old and matures physically backwards to youth), yet it is interesting to see old man buttons acting and interacting with the sensibility of a child and progressing towards mental maturity contrasting with his reverse physical development.
That is really all there is; aspects of a man's life climaxing in the "meeting in the middle" with his soul mate that he met in childhood. There is nothing extraordinary about him (besides the obvious reverse aging), no adversity to be overcome, no battles to be fought no achievement strived for nor was there any heavy drama yet the story is still so profound and compelling since it is about the most grand, universal themes, which is the passage of time, age, aging and change. The nostalgic aura of these themes and the steady pace create a mesmerizing, mellow mood that allow us, as we slowly witness Buttons' interesting progression, to simultaneously internalize these themes to our own life.
This well made movie due to the state of the art make up and special effects that miraculously transform these appealing good actors into different ages, more so than has ever been done before, along with the well imagined love story, also partly as a result of the appealing good actors, overshadow the minor weaknesses. The failure to truly encase us in the various time periods and the simple/easy way out for making Buttons as an aged but visibly youthful child gives the impression that the creators got a little lazy, however, it is mere nitpicking to point out these weaknesses as the evocative mood we feel and the grand themes remain unaltered.