Long, long movie from short F. Scott Fitzgerald story...

Rating: 6/10 (14 January 2009)

THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON is only half successful.
First of all, if there are any Oscars to give out here it's got to be for whomever did the miraculous make-up jobs. Technical awards category might give this one a few Oscars for visual effects and cinematography. And the music by Alexandre Desplat is gorgeous.
But the story is a ponderous one, something about the time warp that occurs if a person ages backwards and keeps getting younger than all his contemporaries--but as fascinating as that concept might be, it takes a much better grip on fantasy to work for a movie that runs two hours and forty-seven minutes. Frankly, there isn't enough of a story here to sustain such a lengthy film. How many of us have to worry about getting younger each year, so where's the connection?
And towards the middle, it really starts to sag, despite some good performances from a first-rate cast performing brilliantly under Bryan Singer's direction.
BRAD PITT has certainly chosen an unusual role to play and he does it with his customary capabilities intact. CATE BLANCHETT is outstanding as Daisy, the childhood sweetheart who grows up to be the love of his life, but her motivations are sometimes vague and her character is sometimes irritating.
Most interesting supporting roles are well played by TARAJI P. HENSON as Queenie who finds the foundling Benjamin and raises him as her own, and JASON FLEMYNG as the boy's wayward father who abandons the baby.
The biggest hurdle for BENJAMIN BUTTON to jump is making the story seem credible, as fantastic as the concept is. But since the concept istelf isn't grounded in any sort of reality, it's too big a leap to make.
Should find its special target audience in fans who love the arty type of flick, no matter how slow moving the story may be. But in the end, it's all rather meaningless. After all, is anybody else in the world going to have Benjamin's unique problem? Only in the movies--or if your name is Dorian Gray.