Review: The curious Case of Benjamin Button

David Fincher is one of my favourite directors and each movie of his has had me spellbound. I thought last time round Zodiac was badly treated at all the award ceremonies and was one of my top 5 films of the year of 07. With work like Fight Club and Seven to his credit you frankly dont expect mediocrity from Fincher. All his tales have a unique mix of thrill, adventure, human nature, depth and novelty. Well I wouldnt say The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was mediocre but it was not as awesome as I thought it could have been. This one had a lot of depth and reflection on human nature but hardly any of thrill, adventure and excitement. Though the plot was essentially unique being based on the F Scott Fitzgeralds’s story of same name telling the story of a man who ages backwards; it goes on in a fashion quite common to biopics where the whole story is narrated from start to end. We trace the steps of Benjamin Button as we move on never harping too long on any part of his life and for some reason I cant explain all his life is just in the same vein and nothing is too important or too trivial. It works and the movie is quite breathtaking technically thanks to flawless art directions and brilliant sets and costumes but it doesnt shock, awe and delight your instincts like an uncommon story dealing with age and life can do.



This brings me to the question, how would your life be if you were like Benjamin Button. Quite the same if they let you live, a lot more exposure and wide media coverage if we lived in this modern age as world easily gets around. However Button was born in 1918 as the war ended and his father puts him quite luckily at the footsteps of an old age home, which quite practically is the only place he wouldnt have grabbed attention. If we were there, more or less thats how our lives would have turned out and this point exactly is the boon and bane for the movie. Fitzgerald and Eric Roth did think it through and do a good job at it ( I dunno who did what as I havent read the story yet) and they chose a complete life a reflection of deeper things which affect man in general like the phenomenon of aging, youth being wasted on the young, living life losing your loved ones and above all tolerance, love and understanding of various people we across of our lives. The questions asked and explored were all right but I thought they could have been done more effectively with such a running time and resources of money and stunning cast at their disposal. And what if they hadnt chosen this path for Button?
Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Tilda Swinton, Taraji P Henson give brilliant performances and the special effects team did a marvellous job of forging different ages and changes seamlessly into the fabric as the movie moved on. Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett get to play such deep and emotionally taxing characters which have to endure so many things in life, live together and love each other when their lives are going in the opposite direction; and they do it really well. Quite a good movie and if you get a chance watch it on the big screen(too bad I dint get to do it).
Rating: 7/10