Tuesday, February 10, 2009

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

"I was born under unusual circumstances"
-Benjamin Button


And so begins “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” adapted from the 1920s story by F. Scott Fitzgerald about a man who is born in his eighties and ages backwards. A man, like any of us, unable to stop time. We follow his story set in New Orleans from the end of World War I in 1918, into the 21st century, following his journey that is as unusual as any man’s life can be. Directed by David Fincher, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” is a time traveler’s tale of the people and places he bumps into along the way, the loves he loses and finds, the joys of life and the sadness of death, and what lasts beyond time.

The film has received genesrally positive reviews. As of January 24, 2009, the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 72% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 169 reviews, with 77% of selected "Top Critics" gave the film positive reviews. According to Metacritic, the film received an average score of 70 based on 36 reviews. Yahoo! Movies reported the film received a B+ average score from critical consensus.

Todd McCarthy of Variety gave the film a positive review, calling it a "richly satisfying serving of deep-dish Hollywood storytelling." Peter Howell of The Toronto Star says: "It's been said that the unexamined life is not worth living. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button suggests an addendum: a life lived backwards can be far more enriching..." and describes the film as "a magical and moving account of a man living his life resoundingly in reverse" and "moviemaking at its best." Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter felt the film was "superbly made and winningly acted by Brad Pitt in his most impressive outing to date." Honeycutt praised Fincher's directing of the film and noted that the "cinematography wonderfully marries a palette of subdued earthern colors with the necessary CGI and other visual effects that place one in a magical past." Honeycutt states the bottom line about Benjamin Button is that it is "an intimate epic about love and loss that is pure cinema."

Joe Morgenstern of the The Wall Street Journal gave the film a rave and states "Benjamin Button is all of a visionary piece, and it's a soul-filling vision." Rex Reed of The New York Observer describes "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a monumental achievement—not only one of the best films of the year, but one of the greatest films ever made", and further states that it is "brilliantly directed and acted, sumptuously photographed and endlessly fascinating."


Awards and honors


2009 Academy Awards

  • Nominated: Best Picture
  • Nominated: Best Director: David Fincher
  • Nominated: Best Actor: Brad Pitt
  • Nominated: Best Supporting Actress: Taraji P. Henson
  • Nominated: Best Adapted Screenplay: Eric Roth
  • Nominated: Best Film Editing
  • Nominated: Best Cinematography - Claudio Miranda
  • Nominated: Best Art Direction
  • Nominated: Best Costume Design
  • Nominated: Best Makeup
  • Nominated: Best Original Score: Alexandre Desplat
  • Nominated: Best Sound Mixing
  • Nominated: Best Visual Effects

2009 British Academy of Film and Television Arts

  • Nominated: Best Film
  • Won: Best Makeup & Hair
  • Nominated: Best Director – David Fincher
  • Nominated: Best Adapted Screenplay – Eric Roth
  • Nominated: Best Leading Actor – Brad Pitt
  • Nominated: Best Costume Design
  • Nominated: Best Music - Alexandre Desplat
  • Nominated: Best Cinematography - Claudio Miranda
  • Nominated: Best Editing
  • Won: Best Production Design
  • Won: Best Visual Effects
Austin Film Critics Association[46] Best Supporting Actress Taraji P. Henson Won
Houston Film Critics Association[48] Best Film
Won
Best Cinematography Claudio Miranda Won
National Board of Review[47][49] National Board of Review: Top Ten Films

Best Director David Fincher Won
Best Adapted Screenplay Eric Roth Won
St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Awards[50] Best Film
Won
Vancouver Film Critics Circle Awards[51] Best Director David Fincher Won
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Best Art Direction
Won

sources: >link<
>link< official site of this movie

my rate: 10/10 perfect score

I have watched this movie last Jan. 31, 2009. I didn't know that the movie has a deep and inspiring theme. Ofcourse, like those girls that was so fanatic and mesmerized by Brad Pitt's charms, i also intended to watch this movie. After reading the summary of the movie, I said to myself.. "wow". Then at that moment, I watched the movie. It was so inspiring fiction made by F. Scott Fitzgerald in the 1920's. It is my pleasure to rate this movie, in my opinion, as a perfect score of 10/10. It was so inspiring, althought the part in the movie wherein Benjamin left his family to travel on his own and to leave his family in the arms of the other man because he wanted to reserve a better future with his daughter in the arms of the most appropriate man to do the job, that he thought in the end he would eventually be grown as a child and die. I cried in the end of the story. I just can't help it specially the moment wherein Daisy accompanied Benjamin untill the end. OMG,, huhuhu.. It is the best movie by far. Enjoy the movie!