The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button

Starring: Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett

Director: David Fincher

David Fincher is a director who has always been attracted to exploring the darker elements of the human psyche. With films like Seven and The Game it would seem that the man is purely focused on exploiting themes such as paranoia and male insecurity. However for his most recent film he has completely changed his style to produce a fable and an epic one at that.

The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button charts the life of an individual who is born with a bizarre medical condition that causes him to physically age backwards, and specifically his relationship with his life long love interest. The narrative is made up of several subplots and storylines similar to the structure of Forrest Gump. However as Benjamin’s life essential starts in a retirement home his journey is far more peculiar and unique, with the story taking place all over the globe.

Brad Pitt teams up again with Fincher for the part of Benjamin and Cate Blanchett takes the role of his soul mate Daisy. The two are fantastic together as lovers who are perfect for each other but ultimately are destined not to be together because of the Benjamin’s physical condition. Pitt has the ambitious task of acting the opposite of his physical appearance. At times this is pulled off with humorous effect, in one scene Benjamin is taken to a brothel and even though he looks like an old man he has the hormones and drive of a adolescent teenager.

The film is remarkably visual and the effects are simply sublime. The ageing process that Benjamin undergoes is a new technological benchmark for movies. At times Brad Pitt is hideously old and wrinkled whereas towards the end of the piece he appears younger than he was in Thelma and Louise. The cinematography and style make the film abundant with energy and spectacle that will likely be imprinted on your memory.

While the essence of the film is a love story the more dominant and consistent force of the picture is death. As a catalogue of characters come and go throughout, each one contributing too Benjamin’s life in some minor yet effecting way. Even so the film is a celebration life, not death and is likely to leave you feeling joyful rather than depressed.

With the awards season nearly upon us this film is likely to dominant on many levels. While several members of the cast and the crew rightfully deserve Oscar recognition the true praise belongs to Fincher. Many mainstream directors, including Spielberg, have tried to bring the story to the screen and have failed one by one but Fincher succeeds in adapting this unusual tale. The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button may be a lengthy effort but is a masterclass of film making that is likely to define the careers the careers of all those involved.

5 Star

Review by James Fairfield