Robin Pottratz"Benjamin Button" is uneven but beautiful *** out of 4
February 15th 2009 23:58
Brad Pitt plays the backwards aging title character in "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a lot like a Babushka doll. You start off with a large piece, but then very slowly, you start to take apart the pieces to eventually find something wonderful. The problem is that it is a very slow journey to get to that point. When you do reach the special prize at the center of Benjamin Button you feel rewarded to have experienced such a poetic journey.
That is not to say that The Curious Case of Benjamin Button doesn't have flaws...believe me it does. The biggest flaw of all comes from its leading man. Brad Pitt was recently nominated for an Oscar for playing the backwards aging title character of Benjamin Button. The problem with Pitt in this film is that he seems to be so reliant on the visual effects that make his character appear so interesting that he has forgotten to infuse Benjamin with any emotion at all. The result is that Brad Pitt is an absolute black hole in this film. Once Benjamin goes into adult hood, Brad Pitt eases into his natural sexy drawl, which makes Benjamin very boring and dull. It is a shame, because when Pitt wants to, he is a very talented actor...see Twelve Monkeys, Babel, or Burn After Reading if you don't believe me. It is a waste of a good actor's talent that he seems to be phoning it in and relying on the FX department to try to make a memorable performance.
With the exception of Pitt, all the actors try their best to give this story life...and their efforts are greatly rewarded. Cate Blanchett is wonderful as Daisy, the love of Benjamin's life. Blanchett is always terrific, but here, she has to put double duty in, as she is the primary source for the love story to succeed on any level. Blanchett brings a kind heart and ballerina body to the part and she gives it everything it has and it shows.
The best performance in the film belongs to Taraji P. Henson as Queenie, the New Orleans midwife who takes in Benjamin and becomes his mother. Henson has a natural maternal instinct and it comes through in her scenes with the baby and young Benjamin. She gives a mother's love even though most people would be frightened of a child with an old man's features. As Queenie ages, her love, heart, and spirit never diminish. Queenie breaks your heart every time she is on screen and Henson's Oscar Nominated performance is what allows Benjamin Button to soar.
Also along for the ride are Jason Flemying as Benjamin's biological father, Julia Ormond as Daisy's adult daughter, Jared Harris as a drunken yet jovial ship captain and Tilda Swinton as a British Spy's wife, who Benjamin has an affair with.
The film itself is about life...Benjamin is physically forced to live it backwards yet lives it forward in his mind. It is a film about appreciating all the little things that you have and never regretting. The framework of the film involves an 80 something Daisy recounting Benjamin's story to her adult daughter (Julia Ormond) as she is on her deathbed in a New Orleans hospital while Hurricane Katrina rumbles outside.
We learn all about Benjamin's amazing life. From the relationship with his mother, to his adventures with captain Mike (Jared Harris), his affair with the British spy wife, and of course, when he often reunited with Daisy.
Unfortunately, there are many highs and lows in Benjamin's life, just as there are with the film. Seeing Brad Pitt as a seven year old boy with a 70 year old face is visually fascinating. However, the section of the film where Benjamin is a boy simply moves too slowly, and despite the best efforts of Taraji P. Henson, this is where the film lags. Once Benjamin becomes an adult, the rest of the film is smooth sailing.
The point of this film is rich and always relevant, however I think that Director David Fincher (Seven, Fight Club, Zodiac has overstuffed a great deal with the film, and because of that, the film loses focus. The screenwriter Eric Roth Forrest Gump also tries to go too hard for tear jerking sentiment at times, when he should just let the story go its own way.
Despite its flaws, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a rich, rewarding, and beautiful film that audiences of any age and any level of patience should be able to take to heart.
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