A Wonderful Fable That Doesn't Excite Enough

Rating: 7/10 (8 May 2009)

This week, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button has come out on DVD and Blu Ray. David Fincher's tale of a man who ages backwards and the adventures and lessons that he learns along the way. Based on a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald and adapted by Eric Roth (who also wrote Forrest Gump which I'll get to later). Benjamin's story is told through his diary to Daisy (Cate Blanchett), an elderly woman on the verge of death by her daughter Caroline (Julia Ormond). This film looks like a labor of love by Fincher and Brad Pitt who stars as the backwards aging Benjamin. We share Benjamin's life from his birth as an old man, all the way back to his infancy. What we experience is an unconventional love story that is held together by Cate Blanchett's superb work and Brad Pitt's lack thereof. There are other great performances as well by Taraji Henson, Tilda Swinton and briefly, Elias Koteas. But they are not enough to make this a great film.
There are a lot of metaphors incorporated through the film and they all seem to be centered on the affect that time has on all of our lives. I found the prevailing themes of redemption and live life to its fullest as the primary message which could be construed as corny but I found comforting. The ever present refrain of "You never know what's comin for ya." is spoken throughout the film and is a warning to us all. Hurricane Katrina is also a very visceral metaphor in the film and it seems to embody that mantra. Essentially, nothing lasts, but it's choice as a metaphor for this film is...well...curious
A lot of great special effects were used to depict Benjamin from birth until about half way into the film when the real Brad finally shows up. All throughout, Benjamin's voice is narrating to us, sharing his adventures and his simple wisdom for us all. It is because of this that the film has a Forrest Gump like quality and especially Brad's accent and voice inflection is very similar to Tom Hanks who played Gump (I've seen Forest Gump and you Mr. Button are no Forest Gump). Whether it was a conscious or unconscious choice is irrelevant, I personally thought it sounded forced and as we like to say in the acting world, indicated. That is not to say that his acting is bad overall but he seemed to focus too much on his accent and not enough on his the spine of his character. But, to his credit, there are times when he does a decent job of finding the emotional reality of the character, except for a few scenes which his lack of emotion is glaring. The scenes with Julia Ormond staying with Blanchett as she is dying didn't do much for me. I enjoyed Blanchett's elderly characterization but I found Ormond to not have clarity about her character which left me feeling nothing about her relationship and how she really felt about her dying mother. The Cinematography by Claudio Miranda is outstanding. I just love the way the shots were framed and the wonderful use of color. One of my favorite shots is in an elevator with Tilda Swinton...sumptuous.
The film deservedly received 3 Oscars for Art Direction, Visual Effects and of course, Makeup. I agree that it should not have won Best Picture but the film's message of seizing life was beautiful and especially as I am entering a turning point in my life, just passing 40, the point is quite powerful for me. I commend David Fincher, (who is a great director) for creating a modern fable and trying to bring magic back into movies. I just wish there was more magical moments to enjoy. But, I was still entertained overall and I give Benjamin 3 out of 5 stars.