The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Ah, hello again dear readers, as usual the preliminaries, Uni work, inter-department football training and playing games has prevented me from updating more frequently. Nevertheless, I was at Signature, the Gardens to catch The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, which much like it's name, made me curious to watch it soon as I heard it's "story".

What the story is about.
The movie starts showing us a dieing woman telling her daughter her life story, details are not made clear but it seems the daughter almost regrets not spending more time with her mother and they're not exactly close. Anyway the brief outline of the story is, after the war, a baby is born, his mother dies in the process of giving birth. His father, so distraught, picks up the baby and it's the ugliest thing ever. He runs out and leaves the baby at a welfare house. The caretaker of the home takes the baby as her own and nurses it. It appears the baby is affected by all kinds of diseases, the kind old dieing people get.

This is where the movie "begins". Benjamin Button starts growing up, but he is no normal child. Physically he grows younger every year, but mentally he is normal, growing older. As you can probably tell his life will not ever be normal and the movie sweeps us into his life as he attempts to find his purpose in life, and find love among other things along the way.

Who is in the movie.
Brad Pitt adds another feather to his cap, doing so well as Benjamin Button. He pushes through the age dimension and you recognise him, no matter at what age. Cate Blanchett really ups my respect for her again. Thoroughly versatile, she ages beside Brad Pitt and is really his contrast. Holding her own against him, I really thought she did extremely well. Well the movie is really based around these 2 but other notable members of the cast included, Tilda Swindon, whom you might remember from Constantine, Jason Flemyng as Thomas Button, Mahershalalhashbaz Ali plays Tizzy and last but not least Taraji P. Henson as Queenie, the caretaker, who was brilliant.


Why you must watch this movie.
When I left the cinema and the movie finished, I felt a little blown away by what I had witnessed for the past 3 hours. Yes, the movie is very long, almost 3 hours but when your in there, it definitely does not feel like 3 hours. It really just flows on by. From Benjamin's childhood all the way to his "old age".

The first thing I would compare this movie to is Big Fish. If you loved Big Fish, you will most definitely love this movie. The idea of it is so farfetched but it works. They manage to put it across in a manner that dosn't have you asking questions every few seconds. Going into the movie I was already questioning myself how it would turn out. But they do it extremely well, making everything simple to digest and in the process just nudging the story on, making it easy to follow.

I really take my hat off to Brad Pitt. His portrayal of Benjamin Button really sucks you in, you feel for him, you want him to do well, you cheer him on. Even from a young age they somehow manage to make it look like Brad Pitt and boy does he transform in front of your eyes. The makeup is simply mindboggling but I'll come back to that later. The fantastic thing about Brad Pitt is not only does his character transform physically, he mentally transforms too, one going younger and one going older. The way he manages to do this really is just astounding. He grows as a man and slowly finds his place.

Any review of this movie wouldn't be complete without mentioning Cate Blanchett though. She is the normal person in the movie and is the "control" unit to Brad Pitt, showing you what age they are at the moment in time. She plays his love interest, Daisy and boy does she pull this one off. Much like Benjamin, you watch her grow throughout the movie, from a young girl, to a ballerina, a grown woman, and finally a dieing one. This woman is seriously versatile and I would say she is definitely one of the best drama actresses of our time. She exudes a beauty I did not notice before and she is one classy lady. Breathtaking performance.

Coming back to make-up though, I think they will win, or come close to picking up an Oscar in this department. This really just stands out in the movie. The visual effects used on Benjamin are superb as you see him grow backwards, from a 70-year old Brad Pitt to a teenage one. Very believeable. Same goes for Cate Blanchett, she grows from a young pretty Ballerina into a beautiful mother and gracefully ages in front of you.

There are so many quotable quotes from this movie, quirky ones similar to those in Forest Gump. The way he moves around questions of his age and quotes that shape his life. The script does not bore in a way some 3 hour movies can. No babbling on about nonsense, very to the point, and witty.

Unlike Big Fish though, where it's a happy and quirky through out, Curious Case is different. It's a slightly darker tale of a misfit in life, trying to get by. While your not laughing with him or cheering him along, you want to cry for him. The movie is a sad tale of how this man can never live properly cause in a way, he's old his whole life. When he was "young" he had to act old because it was simply how he was treated for looking that way, and when his appearance grew younger he was old in though and mind. The things he had to sacrifice along the way and how he has to live his life are pretty sad as well.

Overall though, you want to watch this movie. It's something so different, unique. It might drag along a little in the middle but you'll hardly feel it. All the actors do brilliant jobs and it's just enjoyable through-out despite it being a sad story. Go out, take the time to enjoy this in the cinema and you'll be glad you did.

8.5/10

We're meant to lose the people we love.
How else would we know how important they are to us?