The 4-1-1: Stars: Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, and Tinda Swinton; Director: David Fincher; Rating: PG-13; Total running time: 166 minutes.
The Venue: Movies on TV in Hillsboro, OR
The Preface: Long before the trailers came out for this film, I had heard that it was being made into a movie. It is based on a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald, which is one of the very few reading assignments I actually completed at Beaverton High School. The "message" of the story was a bit over my head - but I remember being quite intrigued by the idea of someone aging backward. Therefore, I was instantly interested in the movie. Then...I heard that Brad Pitt was going star. Cue the disappointed sigh and rueful thoughts about what might have been. However, I soon recalled his performance in "Seven Years in Tibet," and thought that, perhaps, not all was lost.
The preview that I eventually saw gave me "tingles" and I had high hopes that this could be a really outstanding film. Oscar buzz soon ensued] and I HAD to see the movie. I talked Laura into going and we saw the movie on the Sunday that we came back from a night in Cannon Beach.
The preview that I eventually saw gave me "tingles" and I had high hopes that this could be a really outstanding film. Oscar buzz soon ensued] and I HAD to see the movie. I talked Laura into going and we saw the movie on the Sunday that we came back from a night in Cannon Beach.
The Trailers: Although it wasn't cause for great alarm, we saw the preview for "Bride Wars" again. Ugh. I saw an extended trailer for "Gran Torino," which made the film look a little more inviting than I thought it might be. Although I am not big fans of either Jamie Foxx or Robert Downey Jr., I think "The Soloist" shows a lot of potential.
The Film: Let me just get this off my chest from the get go: I loved this movie. Perhaps the most well directed film in the past fifteen years. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
As you probably know, this movie follows the life of Benjamin Button (Pitt), a man who was "born under unusual circumstances." The movie is told through the perspective of woman dying in a hospital threatened by an oncoming Hurricane Katerina. Before she dies, she wishes her daughter to read her a diary left to her. The diary is that of a man she once knew: Benjamin Button.
Benjamin is born in New Orleans amidst the euphoric celebrations of the end of World War I. For reasons that are (to the movie's credit) never questioned nor pursued, he was born as an infant with all the physical impairments and appearances of a man in his late eighties. His mother dies in child birth and his father - after a failed attempt to throw him in the river - discards him at the only place he can hastily find to take him, the local "old folks home." He is taken in by Queenie, who raises Benjamin as his own. Benjamin finds his place at the home and calls Queenie "momma."
The special effects in these early scenes are outstanding - especially insomuch as you don't really see them as "special" at all. The infant Benjamin and the 8-9 year old versions look precisely like how you would expect him to appear. Yet what you see more clearly than the wrinkles and stooped posture is the curious nature of a child and the bare, naked humanity of a human being that you know will struggle throughout life to find his place.
As the movie progresses, you see how many of the people Benjamin knew at the home inherintly die soon after he gets to know them - thus being the nature of such a home. Seeing the futility in relationships at the only place he's ever known to be "home," when he is old enough, Benjamin sets out on his own and has a spate of adventures on the open sea, in war, and in Russia.
Benjamin has a romance with an "older" woman (Swinton) who teaches him much about the realities of romances and he eventually falls in love with a childhood friend (Blanchett) who pops in and out of Benjamin's life. Everyone in the audience quickly surmises that their love is doomed as they really only have a few years where they are the "same" age. The movie does not avoid this - it embraces it in all it's heartbreaking reality. You know exactly where the story must go - and so does Fincher - but he takes you there hypnotically and with mesmerizing willingness.
Like all films, this movie is not without its detractions. The setting of pre-Hurricane Katrina seems slightly forced and will probably date the film in years to come. It never really proves to be an important part of the story anyhow - so it turns into a bit of a question mark as to why it was there at all. The original story took place in a different city anyhow.
Also, there is an inconsistency with how Benjamin ages. When he was born, he was a infant with the physical characteristics of an old man. As he ages, his body gets bigger and his features begin to reverse. This should mean that when he gets much older, he should have the body of an older man, but all the physical characteristics of a baby (smooth skin, no hair, etc.). But his entire body goes into reverse instead and he eventually turns back into a baby. Although one must have a "willing suspension of disbelief" in order to fully enjoy the film, I wish there were a greater sense of continuity.
To surmise, many great movies are driven by visual stimuli and special effects (see: Casino Royale). Some are driven by dialog (see: Pulp Fiction). This movie has those attributes - but it is not what defines the film. This movie is mood piece. The moments of silence and shadows, of subtle expressions, and of impeccable timing are what make this film what it is: a heartbreaking, yet life-affirming examination of the life of a man who touched the lives of others in way that most never truly understood.
As you probably know, this movie follows the life of Benjamin Button (Pitt), a man who was "born under unusual circumstances." The movie is told through the perspective of woman dying in a hospital threatened by an oncoming Hurricane Katerina. Before she dies, she wishes her daughter to read her a diary left to her. The diary is that of a man she once knew: Benjamin Button.
Benjamin is born in New Orleans amidst the euphoric celebrations of the end of World War I. For reasons that are (to the movie's credit) never questioned nor pursued, he was born as an infant with all the physical impairments and appearances of a man in his late eighties. His mother dies in child birth and his father - after a failed attempt to throw him in the river - discards him at the only place he can hastily find to take him, the local "old folks home." He is taken in by Queenie, who raises Benjamin as his own. Benjamin finds his place at the home and calls Queenie "momma."
The special effects in these early scenes are outstanding - especially insomuch as you don't really see them as "special" at all. The infant Benjamin and the 8-9 year old versions look precisely like how you would expect him to appear. Yet what you see more clearly than the wrinkles and stooped posture is the curious nature of a child and the bare, naked humanity of a human being that you know will struggle throughout life to find his place.
As the movie progresses, you see how many of the people Benjamin knew at the home inherintly die soon after he gets to know them - thus being the nature of such a home. Seeing the futility in relationships at the only place he's ever known to be "home," when he is old enough, Benjamin sets out on his own and has a spate of adventures on the open sea, in war, and in Russia.
Benjamin has a romance with an "older" woman (Swinton) who teaches him much about the realities of romances and he eventually falls in love with a childhood friend (Blanchett) who pops in and out of Benjamin's life. Everyone in the audience quickly surmises that their love is doomed as they really only have a few years where they are the "same" age. The movie does not avoid this - it embraces it in all it's heartbreaking reality. You know exactly where the story must go - and so does Fincher - but he takes you there hypnotically and with mesmerizing willingness.
Like all films, this movie is not without its detractions. The setting of pre-Hurricane Katrina seems slightly forced and will probably date the film in years to come. It never really proves to be an important part of the story anyhow - so it turns into a bit of a question mark as to why it was there at all. The original story took place in a different city anyhow.
Also, there is an inconsistency with how Benjamin ages. When he was born, he was a infant with the physical characteristics of an old man. As he ages, his body gets bigger and his features begin to reverse. This should mean that when he gets much older, he should have the body of an older man, but all the physical characteristics of a baby (smooth skin, no hair, etc.). But his entire body goes into reverse instead and he eventually turns back into a baby. Although one must have a "willing suspension of disbelief" in order to fully enjoy the film, I wish there were a greater sense of continuity.
To surmise, many great movies are driven by visual stimuli and special effects (see: Casino Royale). Some are driven by dialog (see: Pulp Fiction). This movie has those attributes - but it is not what defines the film. This movie is mood piece. The moments of silence and shadows, of subtle expressions, and of impeccable timing are what make this film what it is: a heartbreaking, yet life-affirming examination of the life of a man who touched the lives of others in way that most never truly understood.
