The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

By now we all know that this is the biggest movie of 2008. With 13 Academy Award nominations, including best picture and best director it is by far the most nominated film. The first two times we went to see this movie it was sold out (third time lucky I guess) and the theater was still full at the show we went to, despite the movie being out for months.

The story of the movie is actually quite simple, it's the way that it is treated that makes it so interesting. In a nutshell, Benjamin Button (Brad Pitt) is born at the end of the first world war. While he is the size of a baby, he has all the physical attributes and ailments of a very old man. The movie follows his life as he gets younger, grows up and finally becomes a young child. I think most people would have a very hard time explaining why Benjamin keeps getting younger, but the story is set in New Orleans, so people are not as bothered by the super natural or they put it down to drinking too much.

This is a longish movie, but the good news is that once it gets going it doesn't feel long. The story is narrated by a woman attending her dying mother as hurricane Katrina bears down on New Orleans. She is reading from Button's diary, which at first seems like fiction, but reveals itself to be much more complicated as the story develops. This is a big and wonderfully shot movie, I can see why the Academy loves it, it is epic. If you have the chance, you should go see this movie on the big screen and if you don't get out to many movies, make sure you make this one, one of the ones you see.