The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is an interesting tale of contradictions, both internal and external. I was simultaneously drawn into the emotional tale and held at arms length from becoming too invested. The central character is a contradiction by definition, the child born old who ages in reverse. Benjamin is someone in the world but not of the world. It is a film that is near poetic with meaning, while also maddeningly obtuse. In the end, it is a movie that bears enough evidence to sway viewers to the side of love just as it contains enough to push them in the opposite direction. I have found the film more poetic than not, engrossing in its slowly paced flow, and a film that will require multiple viewings in order to determine a final opinion. Fortunately, there is enough to it to warrant a desire to revisit.
The child is discovered by Queenie (Taraji P. Henson) and her boyfriend Tizzy (Mahershalalhashbaz Ali). She takes him in and raises him like her own son. It doesn't hurt that she is also the live in help at a home for old folks, a place where Benjamin fits right in and it is also easy to keep his secret.
No one really knows why Benjamin was born this way, or what will happen when he grows older and older, and the film makes no attempt to explain why his life is the way it is. It is probably for the better. It moves forward in such a way that you have no choice but to accept it and move on. Forget about the utter implausibility of the device and see the device for what it is trying to accomplish. What it is trying to accomplish is the hard part. Frankly, I am not quite sure. There is something to be said for its look into life as a series of vignettes, watching the world pass you by without ever being truly a part of it.
The second act sees Benjamin strong enough to live on his own and curious enough to leave the old folks home in order to explore the world. He finds work on a tugboat and serves on it through World War II. He also experiences intimate love, having an affair with a British woman (Tilda Swinton) living in Russia. It is an experience that has an effect on Benjamin, but does not last.
The final act has Benjamin returning home, reuniting with Daisy, if only temporarily. It is here where the overarching romance has its biggest impact as when he and Daisy are able to spend time with each other, there is no time to truly enjoy it.
David Fincher is an interesting choice for this material. Fincher is a fantastic director known for taking on darker material, this definitely has its dark side, so that is not where the change there. However, this material could have taken a highly sentimental route, ala Forrest Gump (a film which shares its screenwriter, Eric Roth), and this is not something seen very often in Fincher's work. It is true there is sentimentality in the film, but it is kept at a minimum, it plays a good part in the story, but it never overtakes it. Fincher does a fine job at keeping this lengthy film focused on its central character and the exploration of self through this odd aging process. I am still at a loss as to what it all means, but that does not diminish the journey.
Oh yes, I would be remiss if I did not mention the special effects. In short, they are fantastic. They are seamless as the show this odd aging/growing progress through the film. From the little old man Pitt to the younger than he's been in years Pitt, you will have no troiuble believing what you see is real.
Bottomline. This is a movie that needs to be seen, for better or for worse. All too often films state their intentions right up front, leaving nothing to be discovered and nothing to reward multiple viewings. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is not one of those films. There are layers here to be peeled back and exposed to the light of day. A trip well worth taking.
Highly Recommended.
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