Hands down, one of the best-made films of the new year and of 2008. Simply put: beautifully done. David Fincher's films just get better and better.
Benjamin Button was quite a departure from Fincher, who has been the mastermind behind cinematic jewels such as Fight Club, Zodiac, and Se7en. Benjamin Button is the drama/romance/fantasy story of a man who ages backwards. Born to a father who doesn't want him, Benjamin is raised by a young couple who runs a nursing home in 1930's New Orleans. At the age of five, he meets the love of his life-- a young ballerina named Daisy. As time rolls on, Daisy and Benjamin are faced with the hardships of life: both normal and unusual. We the audience are taken along the road of history and life, as told through Benjamin's eyes.
Now that we're done with the synopsis, it's on to the criticism!
This is the first film in cinema history to be film entirely in digital, which I believe made it easier for Fincher to work with all the aging effects. The camera work and the colors will put you in awe. Camera work is typical, brilliant Fincher-- simplistic, but not infantile. Every shot is framed up beautifully, almost as if he was planning on each one to be a photo. The color is also tell-tale Fincher. The palette is saturated, but not to the point where it is overwhelming. It is like a beautiful telling of reality with a little notch up.
One of the most impressive factors of the film is pacing. The movie is extremely long-- about 2 hours and 15 minutes-- but the pacing is so well done that you don't even realize you've been in the theatre that long. You're never bored with a scene, nor are you confused. Absolutely. Perfect.
Special effects in this move are seamless. They literally took Brad Pitt's digitally-aged head and stuck it on a kids aged body. I don't know how they did it, but it look awesome. I'm not so big on CG stuff (meaning I don't know much about that stuff) but this got me all excited.
Acting, of course, is well done. There are several unique characters Fincher invented for Benjamin to meet and the actors portraying these people are fantastic. Cate Blanchette balances the audience love/hate thing well for her character Daisy, as well as giving a believable performance as a woman faced with the inevitability of a doomed love. Brad Pitt does what Brad Pitt does best and manages to draw you in (not only with his looks) but with his stoic performances. He plays the perfect New Orleans gentlemen, from his fedora-topped head down to his winged-tipped loafers. Other, more minor characters, also earn merit for their small parts. Tilda Swinton plays perfectly as Benjamin's old flame, Elizabeth and Jared Harris is a brilliant and lewd comic-relief as Captain Mike.
As far as I'm concerned, this film earned every single Golden Globe it was nominated for. It's a beautiful, human, heartwrenching tale of love, loss, and (ultimately) the lives we choose to lead.
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