Not A Masterpiece But Ambitious and Beautiful

Rating: 8/10 (5 November 2016)

When I first saw this movie I didn't know what to think about it, I knew that I loved all the performances and loved the message with time to think on it I still stick to those statements but recognise that it does have some flaws with its final act and some character development. But first are the positives Brad Pitt is amazing in this movie and I honestly wouldn't have blamed him if he couldn't quite nail it because this is a next to impossible performance but he pulls it of beautifully with both the way he walks and talks in his younger (older?) years but he's also able to portray the characters child like innocence to perfection and it's by far his best performance since Fight Club. Cate Blanchett is also really good in this movie she's got a really nice arc to her that goes from a hateful and cruel hearted character to a sympathetic one with great chemistry with Brad Pitt that makes there eventual romance earned. Taraji P. Henson was also amazing in this movie she's got such a likability to her you that you always believe that she's loves Benjamin. The make up and prosthetic are incredible, there life like and that combined with Pitts performance never makes you think that there fake. This movie looks beautiful the cinematography is incredible from the snowy waters in the trap steamer scenes to the beautiful New Orleans sunshine. This movie spans about 70 years from 1918 to the early 90s and the production design is astonishing every new location and time period brings something new and is its always easy to believe the time period that they are in. There are some truly incredible scenes in this movie for instance the opening which might just be my favourite scene in any David Fincher film it's just perfectly done from the editing, directing and some of the best extra performances I've ever scene it just sets up the movie perfectly and establishes a perfect metaphor for the film as a whole. David Fincher finally received his first Best Director Oscar Nomination in this movie and its very well deserved he directed this film masterfully from some of the more intense action sequences to the quieter more character and performance driven scenes. Every thing in this movie from a technical and performance driven stand is perfect but this films greatest shortcoming is its script. Like I said there are some truly amazing scenes and sequences were the righting is on point but I do think they lost that in the films final act. Some of the decisions that the characters make don't feel earned and just came out of nowhere and big scenes are montages over instead of some real time being taken to close out the film properly. I do love Brad Pitt as Benjamin Button but his character isn't really that well written there's no real character arc from him. When he meets new people and travels around the world theirs not really anything that he takes away from his experiences and the character doesn't really get a true conclusion.
I really do like this movie I love aspects of it but others I do not, but I admire it's Ambition and its performances and it overall makes up for some serious flaws.
A-/83%