The Curious Case of Benjamin Button [Blu-ray]
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button [Blu-ray]
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars Brilliant Adaptation of Fitzgerald’s Short Story
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” is a wonderfully staged fantasy based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s fantasy about a boy born old and aging younger instead of older. The story could obviously be off-putting and distracting, but everyone involved does such a magnificent job of telling this story that it is not hard to accept this as fact, and following the story as it shows Benjamin growing younger and falling in love with a young girl named Daisy.
Benjamin and Daisy’s story and the balance of Benjamin’s life impart so many valuable life lessons that it is hard to recount them all - the idea that life brings many hardships and the best we can do is doing the best we can with what we’re given, making the most of every moment because life is fleeting and unpredictable, find the joy and happinessin life and hold on to it dearly, and many other lessons.
“Benjamin Button” gives Brad Pitt the chance to shine in the title role, and he makes the most of it. He is ably assisted by Cate Blanchett as Daisy, Taraji P. Henson as Benjamin’s adoptive mother, Tilda Swinton as another love of Benjamin’s, and many others. This film is marvelous and a hopeful fable for all of us.
4 Stars A Beautiful Movie
This review or really my opinion of this movie has nothing to do with the actually dvd as mine was kinda bootleg but was dvd quality, this is just about the movie itself.
So I got me a copy of The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button,(a dvd quality copy, not a sorry bootleg) and I’ll tell you what, I didn’t expect what I got. It was an awesome movie in every sense of the word. If you love life then you should see this movie because this is life at it’s best. A journey through a man’s life that is running backward’s in age was very interesting, the only part I thought was wierd was when he was getting younger and eventually went back to being a baby. But other than that this was a great story about just living your life to the fullest and to just be happy no matter what life throw’s at you, If you liked Forrest Gump than you should like this movie. Cate Blancett did a very good job in this movie as Benjamin’s love and I thought her to be more attractive than usual in this one. All around good acting and a great life and love story, highly recommend this for everyone to see. But on a side note, love life and live it to the fullest everyday because someday we all gotta go, why not make the best outta what we have? That’s how’s this movie inspire’s me, to live my life to the fullest and to be happy with everything I have and not to take life for granted. I really hope some of you watch this movie and feel what I felt from it.
5 Stars The Clock Is Ticking Backwards
Upon first introduction of this film, we know that it is based on a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The short story tells of a boy born as an old man who, within a few hours can talk and act as such. To avoid embarassment, Benjamins father forces him to dye his hair and play with the local children as a real child. All Benjamin wants to do is read, smoke cigars and have adult conversations as an adult would. Being a short story, you cannot really expect a feature film to be wholly adapted from it, you have to expect massive changes and extensions in order to present a worthwhile and fluid picture to be enjoyed by the masses. What would likely be a film under 1 hour long if it was adapted word for word from the story, we were presented with a treat of a 2 and a half hour story told from the death bed of an aged Cate Blanchett in a pre-hurricane New Orleans hospital.
To start off the story we are presented with a metaphorical plot device in the form of a train station clock running backwards, which was made as a hope that it would mean all the dead soldiers of the first world war could come home alive.
The story as told to Daisy (Cate Blanchett) by her daughter reading from a diary is that of Benjamin Button, an incredible man whos mother gave her life for and was abandoned by his father (Jason Flemyng). He was born with the appearance of an old man, with all the ailments to boot. He was left on the porch of a New Orleans nursing home to be found by one of the nurses known as Queenie (Taraji P. Nelson), she adopts him and christens him with the name Benjamin. Throughout his early childhood Benjamin is expected to die any day due to the illnesses he has and the way he looks, so is forced to live in the home as if her were one of the elderly relatives.
What Queenie starts to become aware of is that as Benjamin gets older, he does not get weaker and sicker as predicted but he’s getting younger and fitter. Whilst still looking old but being about the age of 7 he meets a girl who is the daughter of one of the elderly residents known as Daisy. They become friends but cannot be around each other too much due to what he looks like (quite frankly I’m glad they didn’t take it any further too early as it was a bit creepy). As Benjamin grows older, he meets his father again, but is not told who he is. He just thinks he is a friendly stranger who offered him a ride and a drink at a bar. Benjamin then moves out to enjoy the adventures of life and is forced to deal with some adult adventures he wouldn’t experience if he looked his age.
What I can really say about this film with whole hearted honesty is that I absolutely loved it. From start to finish it felt genuine, the maternal love of Queenie for her adopted son came across as authentic thanks to the sublime acting of Taraji. The affair scene with Tilda Swintons character, (although I truly dislike the woman as she looks like someone who was repeatedly hit in the face with a dog by a tramp, and sounds like the queen if she smoked 5 packets of cigarettes a day) is done really well and you get the feeling that Benjamin (Pitt) is genuinely falling for her.
Apart from the main plot of Benjamin Button being quite heart wrenching at times, the sub plot of an aged Daisy keeping herself alive until the end of the story is told is quite something. The make up, setting and in some cases special effects all come together well to present a believable setting of a progressive early 1900s New Orleans. The superb performance of Taraji P. Nelson deserves special mention as she now shows the world some genuine acting talent. This has to be Pitts oscar win as for this role it would truly be deserved, however, I would not be surprised if it were highly overshadowed by 2008s biggest blockbusters.
5 Stars Remarkable story-telling, one of the year’s best!
Wonderous movie that captivated me from the get-go. Which surprised me a bit, since I wasn’t overly interested in seeing it, despite the rave reviews. Boy, I was wrong. It’s been a long time for me that a 2-1/2 hour movie has gone by so quickly - with so many movies today, I get antsy around the 1-hour mark. Not this one - with it’s superb acting and special effects, and especially it’s great storytelling, it was like a great book that I couldn’t put down
5 Stars A Dreamy, Wonderous, Heartfelt Fantasy
Okay, so call me old fashioned, call me cliche, call me vapid, but I really, really love The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Damn all those who say its Forrest Gump 2.0, damn those who say its too long, damn everyone who thinks its overly shamltzy, I think its a great film and one of the best fantasy films since LOTR.
The story tells of Benjamin Button, who by some weird twist of fate, was born with the body of an old man and as he gets older, he ages backwards. We are then taken on his life and all his life adventures, from growing up in an old folks home with his adoptive mother Queenie, spending his early adult life as a sea boater, and coming back to America for his childhood friend and love interest Daisy.
I think I speak for everyone that the film is gorgeously made, considering it did pick up three Oscars for many of its technical aspects, the set pieces evoking the time period, the cinematography rich, art direction meticulous, and of course, those special effects, those awesome special effects that transform the handsome Brad Pitt from an old man to a spiting image of Brad the first time we saw him in Thelma & Louise.
Now unlike many, I actually thought Button was that film that didn’t feel long. At nearly three hours, you would expect this to be true but for me, the film really just glided along and the pacing was so effortless, it was like I was transported to another world, something I haven’t experienced since, ironically, LOTR.
This mostly has to do with Fincher, known for his dark, sinster films like Seven and Zodiac. Leaving behind all that for a more lighter fair, you can still detect his touches in the film. After all, this film is essentally about life and death, Benjamin slowly aging backwards, his life in reverse, watching as the world changes while he seems to be going further and further into the past, all leading towards that time when he will eventually die. And I for one think Fincher keeps things from getting to shmaltzy, giving the film a heart but not such a ooey, gooey center that feels too sweet.
Each actor also brings life to their performance. Brad Pitt is able to act through all that make up and effects to deliver a very sturdy and calm performance, something I think that many would have think was way to subtle in order to pull of the effects, but I think it works, he dosen’t try too hard to make it a good performance, he just does. Taraji P. Henson was a very nice surprise as Benjamin’s adoptive mom Queenie, giving both wit, charm, and personality, but once again, keeping it from becoming too stereotyped or cliche. And as always, Cate Blanchett is as a great as ever (still very shocked she was ignored through out the awards season).
Honestly, I think Benjamin Button is one of those films that you either love it or hate it. For me, I fall into the love it catagory, and you know what? I’m proud off it. Whether or not you like Brad Pitt, or don’t life fantasy films, or just turned off by some of the lukewarm reviews, give Button a chance. Maybe you’ll hate it, maybe you’ll be indifferent, but if your like me, you’ll find a very rich, thoughtfull, and heart tugging film that is that true Hollywood experience.
Filed under: Blue Ray Movie Reviews