Posted on February 16, 2009 - by irish joy

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

This had been my favorite movie this year!

This movie is about Benjamin Button who was growing backwards. He was born old and died young.

This was inspired by 1921 short story of the same name, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

It’s an inspiring story about love, family, life and age. The transparency of Benjamin in spite of his unique case.

Around the halfway point, “Benjamin Button” concentrates on the relationship between flighty, brittle Daisy and the steadily hunkifying Ben, and here the “Forrest Gump”

echoes start sounding tinny. Roth’s conception of Daisy is vague and cold; Blanchett’s tiptop, but the role is all expediency and destiny and abstraction. Benjamin’s a blank slate, by design. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 24-page short story, a melancholy little jest, no question of character or dimension ever came up. While the film reflects a serious interest in existential matters - aging, loss, time’s march - “Benjamin Button” feels pretty big for its britches.

Quotes from this movie:

Benjamin Button: My name is Benjamin Button, and I was born under unusual circumstances. While everyone else was agin’, I was gettin’ younger… all alone.

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Benjamin Button: Along the way you bump into people who make a dent on your life. Some people get struck by lightning. Some are born to sit by a river. Some have an ear for music. Some are artists. Some swim the English Channel. Some know buttons. Some know Shakespeare. Some are mothers. And some people can dance.

Benjamin Button: It’s a funny thing about comin’ home. Looks the same, smells the same, feels the same. You’ll realize what’s changed is you.

Benjamin Button: [Voice over; letter to his daughter] For what it’s worth: it’s never too late or, in my case, too early to be whoever you want to be. There’s no time limit, stop whenever you want. You can change or stay the same, there are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. And I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people with a different point of view. I hope you live a life you’re proud of. If you find that you’re not, I hope you have the strength to start all over again.

Daisy: I promise you, I’ll never lose myself to self-pity again.
Benjamin Button: [while the day begins] And I think, right there and then, she realized none of us is perfect forever.

The film was directed by David Fincher, written by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord, and stars Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. The film was released on December 25, 2008, by both Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures. The film received 13 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Fincher, Best Actor for Pitt^[3] and Best Supporting Actress for Taraji P. Henson.