The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (film)
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a 2008 American fantasy romantic drama film directed by David Fincher. The storyline by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord is loosely based on the 1922 short story of the same name by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The film stars Brad Pitt as a man who ages in reverse and Cate Blanchett as the love interest throughout his life. The film also stars Taraji P. Henson, Julia Ormond, Jason Flemyng, Elias Koteas, and Tilda Swinton.
Producer Ray Stark bought the film rights to do the short story in the mid-1980s with Universal Pictures backing the film, but struggled to get the project off the ground until he sold the rights to producers Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall in the 1990s. Although it was moved to Paramount Pictures in the 1990s, the film did not enter production until after Fincher and Pitt signed on along with the rest of the cast in 2005. Principal photography began in November 2006 and wrapped up in September 2007. Digital Domain worked on the visual effects of the film, particularly in the process of the metamorphosis of Pitt's character.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was released in North America on December 25, 2008 to positive reviews from critics, who praised Fincher's directing, Pitt's performance, production values, and visual effects. The film was a box office success, grossing $335.8 million worldwide against its $167 million budget. The film received thirteen Academy Award nominations, the most of the 81st Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director for Fincher, Best Actor for Pitt, and Best Supporting Actress for Taraji P. Henson, and won three, for Best Art Direction, Best Makeup, and Best Visual Effects.
Plot
In August 2005, elderly Daisy Fuller is on her deathbed in a New Orleans hospital as Hurricane Katrina approaches. She tells her daughter, Caroline, about a train station built in 1918 and a blind clockmaker, Mr. Gateau, hired to make a clock for it. When it was unveiled at the station, the public was surprised to see the clock running backwards. Mr. Gateau says he made it that way as a memorial, so that the boys they lost in the war, including his own son, could come home again and live full lives. Mr. Gateau was never seen again. Daisy then asks Caroline to read aloud from the diary of Benjamin Button.On the evening of November 11, 1918, a boy is born with the appearance and maladies of an elderly man. After the baby's mother, Caroline, dies during childbirth, the father, Thomas Button, abandons the infant on the porch of a nursing home. Queenie and Mr. "Tizzy" Weathers find the baby, and Queenie decides to raise him as her own, naming him Benjamin.
Benjamin learns to walk in 1925, after which he uses crutches in place of a wheelchair. On Thanksgiving 1930, Benjamin meets seven-year-old Daisy, whose grandmother lives in the nursing home. He and Daisy become good friends. Later, he accepts work on a tugboat captained by Mike Clark. Benjamin also meets Thomas who does not reveal that he is Benjamin's father. In Autumn 1936, Benjamin leaves New Orleans for a long-term work engagement with the tugboat crew; Daisy later is accepted into a dance company in New York City under choreographer George Balanchine.
In 1941, Benjamin is in Murmansk, where he begins an affair with Elizabeth Abbott, wife of the British Trade Minister. That December, Japan attacks Pearl Harbor, bringing the United States into World War II. Mike volunteers the boat for the U.S. Navy; the crew is assigned to salvage duties. During a patrol, the tugboat finds a sunken U.S. transport and the bodies of many American troops. A German U-boat surfaces; Mike steers the tugboat full speed towards it while a German gunner fires on the tugboat, killing most of the crew, including Mike. The tugboat rams the submarine, causing it to explode, sinking both vessels. Benjamin and another crewman are rescued by U.S. Navy ships the next day.
In May 1945, Benjamin returns to New Orleans and reunites with Queenie, and learns that "Tizzy" died a while back. A few weeks later, he reunites with Daisy; they go out for dinner. Upon failing to seduce him afterwards, she departs. Benjamin later reunites with the terminally-ill Thomas, who reveals he is Benjamin's father and leaves Benjamin his button company and his estate.
In 1947, Benjamin visits Daisy in New York unannounced, but departs upon seeing that she has fallen in love with someone else. In 1954, Daisy's dancing career ends when her leg is crushed in an automobile accident in Paris. When Benjamin visits her, Daisy is amazed by his youthful appearance, but, frustrated by her injuries, she tells him to stay out of her life.
In 1962, Daisy returns to New Orleans and reunites with Benjamin. Now of comparable physical age, they fall in love and go sailing together. They return to learn that Queenie has died, then move in together. In 1967, Daisy, who has opened a ballet studio, tells Benjamin that she is pregnant; she gives birth to a girl, Caroline, in the spring of 1968. Believing he cannot be a proper father to his daughter due to his reverse aging, Benjamin sells his assets, leaves the proceeds behind for Daisy and Caroline, and leaves the next spring; he travels alone during the 1970s.
Benjamin returns to Daisy in 1980. Now married, Daisy introduces him, as a family friend, to her husband and daughter. Daisy admits that he was right to leave; she could not have coped otherwise. She later visits Benjamin at his hotel, where they again share their passion for each other, then part once more.
In 1990, widowed Daisy is contacted by social workers who have found Benjamin — now physically a pre-teen. When she arrives, they explain that he was living in a condemned building and was taken to the hospital in poor physical condition, and that they found her name in his diary. The social workers say he is displaying early signs of dementia. Daisy moves into the nursing home in 1997 and cares for Benjamin for the rest of his life.
Daisy says that in 2002, Mr. Gateau's clock was replaced with a digital clock that ran forward. In the Spring of 2003, Benjamin dies in Daisy's arms, physically an infant but chronologically 84 years of age. Having finally revealed the story of Caroline's father to her, Daisy dies as Hurricane Katrina approaches.
Benjamin narrates about what people were brought into this world for, as a montage recaps the most significant people throughout his life. The film ends with alarms wailing as Katrina floods a storage room that holds Mr. Gateau's clock, which continues to tick backwards.
Cast
Production
Development
Producer Ray Stark bought the film rights to do The Curious Case of Benjamin Button in the mid-1980s, and it was optioned by Universal Pictures. The first choice to direct it was Frank Oz, with Martin Short attached for the title role, but Oz could not work out how to make the story work. The film was optioned in 1991 by Steven Spielberg, with Tom Cruise attached for the lead role, but Spielberg left the project to direct Jurassic Park and Schindler's List. Other directors attached were Patrick Read Johnson and Agnieszka Holland. Stark eventually sold the rights to producers Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall, who took the film to Paramount Pictures, with Universal still on as a co-production partner. By summer 1994, Maryland Film Office chief Jack Gerbes was approached with the possibility of making the film in Baltimore. In October 1998, screenwriter Robin Swicord wrote for director Ron Howard an adapted screenplay of the short story, a project which would potentially star actor John Travolta. In May 2000, Paramount hired screenwriter Jim Taylor to adapt a screenplay from the short story. The studio also attached director Spike Jonze to helm the project. Screenwriter Charlie Kaufman had also written a draft of the adapted screenplay at one point. In June 2003, director Gary Ross entered final negotiations to helm the project based on a new draft penned by screenwriter Eric Roth. In May 2004, director David Fincher entered negotiations to replace Ross in directing the film.Casting
In May 2005, actors Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett entered negotiations to star in the film. In September 2006, actors Tilda Swinton, Jason Flemyng and Taraji P. Henson entered negotiations to be cast into the film. The following October, with production yet to begin, actress Julia Ormond was cast as Daisy's daughter, to whom Blanchett's character tells the story of her love for Benjamin Button. Brad Pitt had collaborated with many of his co-stars in previous films. He co-starred with Ormond in Legends of the Fall, with Flemyng in Snatch, with Jared Harris in Ocean's Twelve, with Blanchett in Babel and with Swinton in Burn After Reading.Filming
For Benjamin Button, New Orleans, Louisiana and the surrounding area was chosen as the filming location for the story to take advantage of the state's production incentives, and shooting was slated to begin in October 2006. By filming in Louisiana and taking advantage of the state's film incentive, the production received $27 million, which was used to finance a significant portion of the film's $167 million budget. Filming of Benjamin Button began on November 6, 2006 in New Orleans. In January 2007, Blanchett joined the shoot. Fincher praised the ease of accessibility to rural and urban sets in New Orleans and said that the recovery from Hurricane Katrina did not serve as an atypical hindrance to production.In March 2007, production moved to Los Angeles for two more months of filming. Principal photography was targeted to last a total of 150 days. Additional time was needed at visual effects house Digital Domain to make the visual effects for the metamorphosis of Brad Pitt's character to the infant stage. The director used a camera system called Contour, developed by Steve Perlman, to capture facial deformation data from live-action performances.
Several digital environments for the film were created by Matte World Digital, including multiple shots of the interior of the New Orleans train station, to show architectural alterations and deterioration throughout different eras. The train station was built as a 3D model and lighting and aging effects were added, using Next Limit's Maxwell rendering software—an architectural visualization tool. Overall production was finished in September 2007.
Music
The score to The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was written by French composer Alexandre Desplat, who recorded his score with an 87-piece ensemble of the Hollywood Studio Symphony at the Sony Scoring Stage.Release
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was originally slated for theatrical release in May 2008, but it was pushed back to November 26, 2008. The release date was moved again to December 25 in the United States, January 16, 2009 in Mexico, February 6 in the United Kingdom, February 13 in Italy and February 27 in South Africa.Box office
On its opening day, the film opened in the number two position behind Marley & Me, in North America with $11,871,831 in 2,988 theaters with a $3,973 average. However, during its opening weekend, the film dropped to the third position behind Marley & Me and Bedtime Stories with $26,853,816 in 2,988 theaters with an $8,987 average. The film has come to gross $127.5 million domestically and $206.4 million in foreign markets, with a total gross of $333.9 million.Home media
The film was released on DVD on May 5, 2009 by Paramount, and on Blu-ray and 2-Disc DVD by The Criterion Collection. The Criterion release includes over three hours of special features, and a documentary about the making of the film.As of November 1, 2009, the film had sold 2,515,722 DVD copies and had generated $41,196,515 in sales revenue.
Reception
Critical response
The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 71% of critics gave the film positive reviews based on 248 reviews, with an average rating of 7.11/10. The consensus reads: "Curious Case of Benjamin Button is an epic fantasy tale with rich storytelling backed by fantastic performances." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 70 out of 100, based on 37 reviews. Yahoo! Movies reported the film received a B+ average score from critical consensus, based on 12 reviews. Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade A- on scale of A to F.Todd McCarthy of Variety magazine 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." Rod Yates of Empire awarded it five out of a possible five stars. 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 earthen 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."
A. O. Scott of The New York Times states: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, more than two and a half hours long, sighs with longing and simmers with intrigue while investigating the philosophical conundrums and emotional paradoxes of its protagonist’s condition in a spirit that owes more to Jorge Luis Borges than to Fitzgerald." Scott praised Fincher and writes "Building on the advances of pioneers like Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson and Robert Zemeckis, Mr. Fincher has added a dimension of delicacy and grace to digital filmmaking" and further states: "While it stands on the shoulders of breakthroughs like Minority Report, The Lord of the Rings and Forrest Gump, Benjamin Button may be the most dazzling such hybrid yet, precisely because it is the subtlest." He also stated: "At the same time, like any other love—like any movie—it is shadowed by disappointment and fated to end."
On the other hand, Anne Hornaday of The Washington Post states: "There's no denying the sheer ambition and technical prowess of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. What's less clear is whether it entirely earns its own inflated sense of self-importance" and further says, "It plays too safe when it should be letting its freak flag fly." Kimberley Jones of the Austin Chronicle panned the film and stated, "Fincher's selling us cheekboned movie stars frolicking in bedsheets and calling it a great love. I didn't buy it for a second." Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film two and a half stars out of four, saying that it is "a splendidly made film based on a profoundly mistaken premise.... the movie's premise devalues any relationship, makes futile any friendship or romance, and spits, not into the face of destiny, but backward into the maw of time."
Peter Bradshaw in The Guardian called it "166 minutes of twee tedium", giving it one star out of five. Cosmo Landesman of the Sunday Times gave the film two out of five stars, writing: "The film's premise serves no purpose. It's a gimmick that goes on for nearly three hours... The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is an anodyne Hollywood film that offers a safe and sanitised view of life and death." James Christopher in The Times called it "a tedious marathon of smoke and mirrors. In terms of the basic requirements of three-reel drama the film lacks substance, credibility, a decent script and characters you might actually care for." Derek Malcolm of London's Evening Standard felt that "never at any point do you feel that there's anything more to it than a very strange story traversed by a film-maker who knows what he is doing but not always why he is doing it."
Accolades
At the Academy Awards the film won in three categories: Best Achievement in Art Direction, Best Achievement in Makeup, and Best Achievement in Visual Effects. It was also nominated in ten other categories: Best Motion Picture of the Year, Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role, Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role, Best Achievement in Directing, Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay, Best Achievement in Cinematography, Best Achievement in Film Editing, Best Achievement in Costume Design, Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score, and Best Achievement in Sound Mixing.Taraji P. Henson won Best Actress at the BET Awards for her role in the film combined with two other performances in Not Easily Broken, and The Family That Preys.
The film won all four awards it was nominated for at the 7th Visual Effects Society Awards, the categories of "Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects-Driven Feature Motion Picture," "Best Single Visual Effect of the Year," "Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture," and "Outstanding Compositing in a Feature Motion Picture."
| Award | Category | Recipient | Result | |
| Academy Awards | Best Picture | Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Ceán Chaffin | ||
| Academy Awards | Best Director | David Fincher | ||
| Academy Awards | Best Actor in a Leading Role | Brad Pitt | ||
| Academy Awards | Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Taraji P. Henson | ||
| Academy Awards | Best Adapted Screenplay | Eric Roth and Robin Swicord | ||
| Academy Awards | Best Film Editing | Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall | ||
| Academy Awards | Best Cinematography | Claudio Miranda | ||
| Academy Awards | Best Art Direction | Art Direction: Donald Graham Burt; Set Decoration: Victor J. Zolfo | ||
| Academy Awards | Best Costume Design | Jacqueline West | ||
| Academy Awards | Best Makeup | Greg Cannom | ||
| Academy Awards | Best Original Score | Alexandre Desplat | ||
| Academy Awards | Best Sound Mixing | David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Mark Weingarten | ||
| Academy Awards | Best Visual Effects | Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron | ||
| American Society of Cinematographers | Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Theatrical Releases | Claudio Miranda | ||
| Austin Film Critics Association | Best Supporting Actress | Taraji P. Henson | ||
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Film | Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Ceán Chaffin | ||
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Director | David Fincher | ||
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Adapted Screenplay | Eric Roth | ||
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Actor | Brad Pitt | ||
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Makeup & Hair | Jean Black Colleen Callaghan | ||
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Cinematography | Claudio Miranda | ||
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Editing | Kirk Baxter Angus Wall | ||
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Production Design | Donald Graham Burt Victor J. Zolfo | ||
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Costume Design | Jacqueline West | ||
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Music | Alexandre Desplat | ||
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Visual Effects | Eric Barba Craig Barron Nathan McGuinness Edson Williams | ||
| Broadcast Film Critics Association | Best Film | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | ||
| Broadcast Film Critics Association | Best Actor | Brad Pitt | ||
| Broadcast Film Critics Association | Best Actress | Cate Blanchett | ||
| Broadcast Film Critics Association | Best Director | David Fincher | ||
| Broadcast Film Critics Association | Best Supporting Actress | Taraji P. Henson | ||
| Broadcast Film Critics Association | Best Cast | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | ||
| Broadcast Film Critics Association | Best Screenplay | Eric Roth | ||
| Broadcast Film Critics Association | Best Composer | Alexandre Desplat | ||
| Chicago Film Critics Association | Best Picture | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | ||
| Chicago Film Critics Association | Best Director | David Fincher | ||
| Chicago Film Critics Association | Best Screenplay, Adapted | Eric Roth | ||
| Chicago Film Critics Association | Best Cinematography | Claudio Miranda | ||
| Chicago Film Critics Association | Best Original Score | Alexandre Desplat | ||
| Directors Guild of America Awards | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures | David Fincher | ||
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Motion Picture Drama | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | ||
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama | Brad Pitt | ||
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Director - Motion Picture | David Fincher | ||
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Screenplay | Eric Roth | ||
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Original Score | Alexandre Desplat | ||
| Houston Film Critics Society Awards | Best Picture | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | ||
| Houston Film Critics Society Awards | Best Director | David Fincher | ||
| Houston Film Critics Society Awards | Best Actor | Brad Pitt | ||
| Houston Film Critics Society Awards | Best Actress | Cate Blanchett | ||
| Houston Film Critics Society Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Taraji P. Henson | ||
| Houston Film Critics Society Awards | Best Screenplay | Eric Roth | ||
| Houston Film Critics Society Awards | Best Cinematography | Claudio Miranda | ||
| Houston Film Critics Society Awards | Best Score | Alexandre Desplat | ||
| Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards | Best Art Direction | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | ||
| Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards | Best Cinematography | Claudio Miranda | ||
| Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards | Best Costume Design | Jacqueline West | ||
| London Film Critics' Circle | Best Film | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | ||
| London Film Critics' Circle | Director of the Year | David Fincher | ||
| London Film Critics' Circle | British Supporting Actress of the Year | Tilda Swinton | ||
| London Film Critics' Circle | Screenwriter of the Year | Eric Roth | ||
| MTV Movie Awards | Best Female Performance | Taraji P. Henson | ||
| National Board of Review | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | |||
| National Board of Review | Best Director | David Fincher | ||
| National Board of Review | Best Adapted Screenplay | Eric Roth | ||
| Satellite Awards | Best Adapted Screenplay | Eric Roth Robin Swicord | ||
| Satellite Awards | Best Art Direction and Production Design | Donald Graham Burt Tom Reta | ||
| Satellite Awards | Best Cinematography | Claudio Miranda | ||
| Satellite Awards | Best Costume Design | Jacqueline West | ||
| Saturn Award | Best Fantasy Film | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | ||
| Saturn Award | Best Director | David Fincher | ||
| Saturn Award | Best Writing | Eric Roth | ||
| Saturn Award | Best Actor | Brad Pitt | ||
| Saturn Award | Best Actress | Cate Blatchett | ||
| Saturn Award | Best Supporting Actress | Tilda Swinton | ||
| Saturn Award | Best Music | Alexandre Desplat | ||
| Saturn Award | Best Make-Up | Greg Cannom | ||
| Saturn Award | Best Visual Effects | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | ||
| Scream Awards | Best Fantasy Actor | Brad Pitt | ||
| Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role | Brad Pitt | ||
| Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role | Taraji P. Henson | ||
| Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | ||
| St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Awards | Best Film | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | ||
| Vancouver Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Director | David Fincher | ||
| Visual Effects Society Awards | Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects-Driven Feature Motion Picture | Eric Barba Edson Williams Nathan McGuinness Lisa Beroud | ||
| Visual Effects Society Awards | Best Single Visual Effect of the Year | Eric Barba Lisa Beroud Steve Preeg Jonathan Litt for "Benjamin's Secret" | ||
| Visual Effects Society Awards | Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture | Steve Preeg Matthias Wittmann Tom St. Amand David McLean for "Benjamin Button" | ||
| Visual Effects Society Awards | Outstanding Compositing in a Feature Motion Picture | Janelle Croshaw Paul Lambert Sonja Burchard Sarahjane Javelo for "Benjamin Comes Together" | ||
| Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association | Best Art Direction | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | ||
| Writers Guild of America Awards | Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay | Eric Roth Robin Swicord |