The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Rating (out of 4): **1/2

As I was watching ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’, I felt a resemblance to ‘Forrest Gump’. No wonder, the same writer, Eric Roth, penned the screenplays for both movies. Both movies feature a less-than-normal human being, and follow their life story in a cross decades and continent way. Both films also feature a love interest that intersects with the life of the main protagonist in an on and off manner.

No, ‘Benjamin’ isn’t in the class of ‘Forrest Gump’, and I’ll tell you why. ‘Forrest Gump’ is aided by a magnificent performance by Tom Hanks, which will stand the test of time and be remembered as one of the most unforgettable performance in film history. Secondly, ‘Forrest Gump’ is a meditation on modern American history, chronicling major events in recent American history, as seem through the eye of a naïve, good-hearted Gump. As a film, ‘Benjamin’ lacks qualities of such intellectual focus as well as a pivotal acting achievement.

In fact, the 1st half of the movie is somewhat sluggish. We see Benjamin Button born as a baby with wrinkles and cataract, and age backwards. His childhood was spent in an old-age home, listening to life stories of old people in their twilight years. Death, is a common sight for him from small. He then met Daisy, the love of his life. As he grew up, he embarked on a cross-continental sea voyage in a tug boat, and stumble upon war battle.

Up until this point, the film is way too episodic, lacking a good flow. It is a common trap for movies chronicling life events to fall into, particularly biopic. Some, like Martin Scorsese’s splendid ‘The Aviator’, managed to provide a much-needed story arc to allow the life events sail through in a nice flow.

The movie starts to pick up when Ben and Daisy, who age in opposite direction, intersects in their 20’s and 30’s. This is when a story arc starts to surface, putting them into difficult life choices and moral dilemma. Ben was hesitating to raise his daughter, as he thinks the daughter need a real father who age with her, and that Ben will be more like a playmate to her, and Daisy can’t possibly be raising both of them. This is what we find interesting, fitting a ‘curious case’ as Benjamin’s.

The film was directed by David Fincher, who has previously worked predominantly in the realm of thrillers. His ‘Se7en’, ‘Fight Club’, ‘The Game’, ‘Panic Room’ and ‘Zodiac’, offers some of the most well-made thrillers in modern time. A material like ‘Benjamin’ is a somewhat unfamiliar territory for Fincher, and it felt so.

No doubt, on a production level, ‘Benjamin’ is impressive in many aspects, and it may very well picks up Oscars for makeup, visual effects, art direction and other technical categories. It is also well-acted as a whole. It is an ambitious film, exploring heavy subject matters such as life, death, aging and mortality. But the film seems overwhelmed by its own ambition, and I am not sure if the ‘curious case’ premise really helps to tell such philosophical elements better. It feels more like a gimmick to pull the audience in.