The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Watched The Curious Case of Benjamin Button with Derrick and Stephen in the evening. The synopsis and review are as follows.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is adapted from the 1920s story by F. Scott Fitzgerald about a man who is born in his eighties and ages backwards: a man, like any of us, who is unable to stop time. We follow his story, set in New Orleans from the end of World War I in 1918, into the 21st century, following his journey that is as unusual as any man's life can be.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button has gorgeous sets, beautiful cinematography, lovely score, impressive cast and a very unique story at its core. We follow through the entire lifetime of Benjamin Button, from his birth as an aged elderly man to his final moments as an infant. The character development is wonderful and Brad Pitt is assured and comfortable in his role as the cheeky old man, matured middle-age man, and charming and dashing young man. The supporting cast does a good job as well which include Taraji P. Henson as the maternal and caring mother of Benjamin, and Cate Blanchett as the childhood sweetheart who blossoms into a beautiful dancer.

You might imagine that it would be great if everyone gets older while you get younger. Mortality is the key theme of this movie and it supplements the emotional core of this movie. Growing younger may bring about more grief instead of happiness as one might see their loved ones going one by one. This story has impeccable attention to detail and perhaps it can do so with lesser details with the rather lengthy screen time of 2 hrs 47 mins. I would describe the pace of the movie as steady and it gets a tad staid in the middle of the movie.

The technical accomplishments of the movie are also impressive with the wrinkles, or the lack thereof, the skin pigmentations, the hair, etc. The movie is an epic fantasy tale that is intimate in its details, captivating with its unique storyline, and enriching with its charismatic characters.

***1/2