THE STORY – Benjamin Button, born in 1918 with the physical state of an elderly man, ages in reverse. He experiences love and break-ups, ecstasy and sorrow, and timelessness by the time he dies in 2003 as a baby.
THE CAST – Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Taraji P. Henson, Julia Ormond, Jason Flemyng, Elias Koteas, Mahershala Ali, Jared Harris & Tilda Swinton
THE TEAM – David Fincher (Director) & Eric Roth (Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 166 Minutes
One hears the name David Fincher and thinks of gritty crime dramas, dark psychological thrillers and characters you’re happy you don’t know in real life. During the first decade of his career, he made a name for himself with suspense films such as “Seven,” “Fight Club,” “The Game” and “Zodiac.” He showed audiences he can take them on a twisted ride and leave them wanting more of his intense, detail-oriented filmmaking. Then came the swoon-worthy romance drama “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” in 2008, and suddenly we saw a different side of Fincher. Instead of exploring the horrific and unsettling parts of humanity, he gave us a sweeping tale of curiosity, whimsy, and love that focuses on the beautiful moments we all crave. Fincher was certainly an unconventional choice to direct the film – which was written by “Forrest Gump” Oscar-winning screenwriter Eric Roth and adapted from a F. Scott Fitzgerald short story – but nearly 20 years later, it remains one of his very best projects. It not only brought another stellar collaboration with Brad Pitt, who delivers one of his best performances, but also showcased Fincher’s meticulous attention to detail, as seen in the craft and technical achievements. It’s a movie that only gets better each time it’s revisited, and the viewer gains more life experience, just as Benjamin tries to wrap his head around his own journey.
It’s 2005 in New Orleans and Hurricane Katrina is slowly approaching. Two women, an elderly Daisy (Cate Blanchett under heavy makeup) and her daughter Caroline (Julia Ormond), sit in a hospital room. With Daisy on her deathbed, she enlists her daughter to read Benjamin Button’s diary. Told through mostly flashbacks, the story revolves around a curious man who was born old and ages backward. When his father Thomas (Jason Flemyng) catches sight of his newborn – whose tiny face looks like that of an old man and has a number of ailments – he grabs his child and abandons him on the porch of a nursing home. It’s quite a shock when he’s discovered by lovable caretaker Queenie (Taraji P. Henson) and cook Mr. Weathers (Mahershala Ali), but they decide to take him in. As he grows older (though he looks younger), Benjamin sees just how different he truly is. He wants to read children’s books and play with other kids because, mentally, he is a child, but it doesn’t look good when he appears to be a man in his 80s. This early section of the film is where we get to see some truly impressive visual effects and makeup work at play, showing an ultra-aged-up Pitt’s face on an older person’s body. Even though it’s been nearly 20 years and this technology has only gotten better, it’s still so impressive to see how well these visuals hold up today and how realistic it all looks.
Living in a nursing home where death is a common occurrence, many people come and go and leave lasting impressions on his life. There’s a hilarious running bit about a man who recounts all the times he’s been struck by lightning, and an elderly woman who teaches him how to play the piano. His mother Queenie is a force to reckon with in many ways, but she shows him, and many of the residents in this home, so much love that it’s a joy to see her on screen, brought to life so tenderly by Henson. But no one makes as much of an impact as Daisy (played by Elle Fanning as a child, Madisen Beaty as a teen and Blanchett as an adult). He falls for her the second he meets her, but their visual age gap complicates things. As Benjamin eventually moves away from home to discover the world, his thoughts always return to Daisy, and he continues to write to her no matter where he is.
As Roth’s screenplay moves away from New Orleans, he gives us a slew of fascinating characters who cross Benjamin’s path and teach him valuable life lessons. There’s the naughty tugboat captain Mike (Jared Harris), who, despite his nautical appearance, really wants to be an artist. He opens Benjamin’s eyes to the pleasures of life (aka women) and to the horrors of humanity as they enlist in World War II. At another point in time, Benjamin finds himself in Russia, where he has an affair with Elizabeth Abbott (Tilda Swinton), an experienced, worldly woman who shows him how to savor and indulge in life and go after the things that inspire him. Even Benjamin’s father reenters his life and shows him the value of forgiveness. Fincher, for his part, gives each of these stories enough breathing room in the film’s runtime so that we’re well acquainted with these people and feel like we’re part of the journey as well. These segmented stories may not always entertain viewers, and their lessons may be cliché for some, but they all do carry a special meaning. As we continue to age and experience more of life, these segments become increasingly relatable to us, and we start to feel warm and fuzzy when reflecting on our own journeys. We value relationships more and what we gain from them because they continuously teach us and shape us into the people that we are today, just as much as Benjamin does. As he experiences all of these things, often taking a back seat, Pitt really shows the gentler side of his acting. His wide eyes take in these moments, and he feels them so deeply internally, as evidenced by the way he writes about them so eloquently in his diary, which also features a very soothing narration from him. It’s a quiet performance from Pitt compared to the heavyweight one Sean Penn delivers in “Milk” (ultimately winning the 2009 Academy Award for Best Actor), but it’s one of his very best. If it were some other year, it should have earned him his first acting Oscar.
But this film truly shines whenever Benjamin and Daisy come together, though Fincher and Roth really make us wait for the romance. They have several missed connections over the years – when Daisy, now a dancer in New York, returns to New Orleans and is trying to seduce an overwhelmed Benjamin; when he surprises her, and she’s not too thrilled to see him; and when he visits her in the hospital when she has a career-ending accident. These moments don’t reflect the best of them – Daisy is a bit of a brat while Benjamin is a bit too shy for his own good – but they keep us wanting and hoping for them to get together finally. When it does happen, you can’t help but smile and fall in love alongside them (and what a great “Absolutely” line delivery Benjamin has when Daisy asks him to sleep with her). You can’t ask for better when it comes to Pitt and Blanchett in this film, who look like true movie stars and act like them too. Their chemistry is off the charts, and the adventures that their lives take them on are beautiful, sweet, romantic, steamy, and soulful. But there’s also sadness in this story about their future and Benjamin’s condition, which leads to a heartbreaking scene that, no matter how many times you watch it, never gets easier. No words are spoken between Benjamin and Daisy in this pivotal scene, but the looks that they give each other say it all.
When looking at the rest of his filmography, it’s still a little strange that Fincher directed this film, but so many of his trademark features can be felt. There’s humor found throughout, which he loves to display in his films, no matter how dark they may be. His true attention to detail in filmmaking shines in the meticulously edited sequence that shows all the events leading up to Daisy’s injury. He takes the time to show us every angle and every moment that could have gone differently to prevent the accident, making our heads hurt just thinking about all the takes he likely needed to get it right. Overall, this film is chock-full of stellar craft that rightfully earned several Academy Award nominations and won three. There are so many different settings throughout the film, from the New Orleans nursing home to the filthy tugboat to Benjamin and Daisy’s home, and they all come to life with period-specific furniture and warm tones that cinematographer Claudio Miranda brings out on screen. Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall’s editing work also makes this nearly three-hour film fly by. Alexandre Desplat’s sweeping score perfectly accompanies the many uplifting and melancholic encounters in Benjamin’s life, and it’s one that this reviewer continues to listen to after all these years.
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” is about as perfect a film as one can get. With an acclaimed filmmaker at the helm, no detail is too small to not make a difference in the visual storytelling. Impeccable craft at every level brings to life a moving and spectacular story that Roth grounds so beautifully in reality, despite its mythical nature. Pitt and Blanchett are the A-team here with their undeniable chemistry, and it’s incredible to see that they’ve only gotten better as performers since this film was released. Some wonderful supporting work from Henson, Swinton and Harris also keeps the entertainment high throughout the runtime. Though Fincher has largely stuck to his thrillers and cold dramas since this film came out (“The Social Network,” “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” “Gone Girl” and “The Killer”), if he were to ever dabble in a life-affirming romantic drama again, we’d be first in line to see it.
