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Curious Case of Benjamin Button: The Criterion Collection (The)
R1 - America - Criterion Collection Review written by and copyright: Anthony Arrigo (16th June 2009). |
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The Film
 I was upset that I had missed "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (2008) during its theatrical run this past Christmas. Being a big fan of director David Fincher’s work, I was drawn to the film based off of his attachment alone. Truth be told, the film didn’t look terribly interesting to me, but I have enough respect for Fincher as a filmmaker that I trusted he would make a uniquely-crafted cinematic opus worthy of repeat viewing. After having seen the film, however, I can only state my utter disappointment. I’m trying to understand just why this film was so critically lauded during the awards season. This was, undoubtedly, one of the most boring and pointless films I have watched in recent memory. Don’t get me wrong, the performances are all very fine, and the film has incredible production design (it did, after all, win Academy Awards for both Art Direction and Visual Effects), but it’s not a very compelling story. Brad Pitt stars as Benjamin Button, a young boy born with the run-down body of a man well into his twilight years who lives his life in reverse – as everyone around him gets older, he regresses in age and appearance. Benjamin, technically a young man at this point, meets Daisy (Cate Blanchett), the young girl who would eventually meet Benjamin time and again until their ages are compatible enough to enjoy a lifelong romance. That’s really it, nothing of much excitement occurs... I immediately drew comparisons to “Forrest Gump” (1994), since they both tell a similar tale of a man’s life, except trade Forrest’s amazing achievements in for Benjamin’s puzzling aging and - voila! – almost identical. Now I find it funny I noted the similarities between the two, because the writer of “Benjamin Button”, Eric Roth, also wrote “Forrest Gump”. I’m just at a loss as to how he was unable to imbue this screenplay with the life that “Forrest Gump” contained. When you take away the mystery of Benjamin’s reverse-aging, a plot device which soon loses its luster, you’re left with a hackneyed romance that never truly feels as powerful as the film wants us to believe. Clocking in at a torturous 2 hours and 45 minutes, I felt like an hour could have easily been sliced clean off – and that might have made the film slightly more enjoyable. I understand that we need to follow the complete arc of Benjamin’s life, from his difficult beginnings as a young man in an elderly body up through his regression to a toddler, but as I said earlier, once the novelty of his condition wears off you’re left with an uninspired story. Benjamin doesn’t do anything noteworthy in his life; he just leads a simple existence trying to find where he fits in, but he never does anything captivating. Director David Fincher has always had an eye for unique projects, from the anarchic “Fight Club” (1999) to the serial-killer thrillers “Se7en” (1995) and “Zodiac” (2007). I really though that despite the lackluster trailer, this film would deliver on a level only Fincher is capable of playing on. I understand that he may have been drawn to this project due to some parallels he was able to draw to his own life, notable the death of his father, but he really should have made more of an effort to bring some life to the story. I found Brad Pitt’s performance to be nuanced and finely-crafted. After all, he is the film’s focal point. Through the use of motion-capture technology and incredible make-up effects work (which also won an Oscar), Pitt brings each incarnation of Benjamin to life with superb results. He literally plays multiple roles as Benjamin transforms from a withered old man into a mature adult and, finally, a teenager. Pitt doesn’t do a lot of emoting here, however, and his performance is often extremely subtle. Again, it’s not so much that he does a bad job in this role; it’s just that the part is written with little real action for the character. But Pitt, with his usual aplomb, manages to keep the film just high enough above water to not totally sink. Cate Blanchett is a fine actress, but I’ve always found her to be a bit flat. I never bought into her romance with Benjamin; a crucial sticking point here considering this film is ultimately about romance and finding the person with whom you want to spend your life. I don’t think her performance brought the film down, as I doubt any other actress could have done much more with the role. The film’s best performance comes courtesy of Academy Award nominated actress Taraji P. Henson as Benjamin’s adoptive mother. She is a hard-working woman who truly gives her all to make sure Benjamin lives a fruitful life, despite his condition. I think hers was the only performance that really deserved an Oscar nomination. Her due diligence and life lessons play a tremendous part in shaping the man that Benjamin becomes, and she is the backbone of the film.
Video
I have to admit that I was not overly impressed with the film’s 2.40:1 anamorphic transfer. My biggest complaint is that much of the film takes place in dimly-lit areas or near total darkness, and in many of these scenes it was often hard to make out the actors on screen. Shadow detail isn’t nearly as well represented as I had hoped, and the black levels, while rich, sometimes are a little too murky. Thankfully, scenes shot in daylight look vibrant, colorful and razor sharp. Don’t get me wrong, this is about as good as you can do for standard definition, but I was surprised that this didn’t blow me away.
Audio
Audio is presented in English, French or Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 surround. The film’s English Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound track is as clean as clear as you would expect, but it’s also relatively lifeless. Surrounds aren’t given much to do, aside from the odd ambient sound or musical selection, but, considering this is a very dialogue-heavy film, it’s hardly a bother. Optional subtitles are included in English, English for the hearing impaired, French and Spanish.
Extras
The Criterion Collection has always been considered the gold standard for presenting as much bonus material as possible for their films, and this DVD is no exception. Arriving as a 2-disc set, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (spine #476) comes packed with supplements, including: an audio commentary, interviews, behind-the-scenes footage, featurettes, a stills gallery, trailers and a printed essay included in the booklet. DISC ONE: The lone extra on the first disc is an audio commentary with director David Fincher. He has no problem carrying this nearly-3 hour track all on his own, providing lots of production notes on the film’s design, what elements of his own life he brought to the production, as well as noting some scenes that he wishes hadn’t ultimately been cut form the final product. He keeps the track moving along, and it’s a very interesting listen. DISC TWO: This is where the real meat of the set is located. The film’s many behind-the-scenes featurettes and interviews are collected under the heading, “The Curious Birth of Benjamin Button”, which is divided up into four sections: “First Trimester”, “Second Trimester”, “Third Trimester” and “Birth”. They are available to watch separately or altogether using the “Play All” option, though please note that the individual segments contain material not present using the “Play All” option. “First Trimester” contains the following: - “Preface” featurette runs for 3 minutes and 8 seconds. Director David Fincher recounts the story of his father’s passing and how that experience relates to the film. - “Development and Pre-Production” featurette runs for 28 minutes and 53 seconds. As you might expect, this covers the gestation of the film from its early beginnings at Universal over a decade ago. The original short story comes from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s book, “Tales of the Jazz Age” and the script was first written back in 1990, at one point even being presented to Steven Spielberg, among many others, as a possible project. This does a great job of showcasing just how difficult it can be to get a movie made. The project was first optioned in 1987 and it took 20 years, two movie studios and numerous directors & stars attached to finally get the film completed. - “Tech Scouts” featurette runs for 12 minutes and 23 seconds. This is a look at how the crew selected the various locations used in the film’s production. As we are shown each location, a portion of the script describing the scene appears to explain how it will be used. - Storyboard gallery contains 220 (!) images. - Art direction gallery contains 50 images. “Second Trimester” contains the following: - “Production: Part 1” runs for 26 minutes and 15 seconds. This featurette examines the early stages of the film’s production, from rigging the opening frontline war scenes to the creation of the baby Benjamin Button; all aspects of the film’s direction are included. Actress Taraji P. Henson is also on hand to discuss her relationship with the various incarnations of Benjamin present in the film. - “Production: Part 2” featurette runs for 29 minutes and 3 seconds. Similar to the previous segment, and I’m not sure why they broke them up, this covers the building of some of the film’s key locations, including the house that Benjamin grows up in. We are also given some insight into how they shot the scenes on Capt. Clark’s ship, The Chelsea, as well as the make-up process used to gradually age Cate Blanchett. - “Costume Design” runs for 7 minutes and 39 seconds. This featurette provides a quick look at many of the film’s costumes as designed by Jacqueline West. She discusses how she watched old films and looked through old magazines to achieve the right look for the film. - Costume gallery contains 25 images. “Third Trimester” contains the following: - “Visual Effects: Performance Capture” featurette runs for 7 minutes and 43 seconds. This is a brief look at how Fincher used the process of motion capture to ensure he was able to get Pitt’s performance to show through over the course of Benjamin’s various life stages. - “Visual Effects: Benjamin” runs for 16 minutes and 55 seconds. This featurette features interviews with the digital team in charge of transforming Brad Pitt from an old man into a young man over the course of the film. - “Visual Effects: Youthenization” runs for 6 minutes and 20 seconds. This is another featurette looking at the film’s aging effects, known as Digital Cosmetic Effects. Many of the changes they make are so subtle most viewers might not have ever noticed. - “Visual Effects: The Chelsea” featurette runs for 8 minutes and 48 seconds. The ship was housed on a sound stage and was operated using a pneumatic lift to simulate the crashing waves. All of the visuals surrounding it were created entirely in the digital realm. - “Visual Effects: The Simulated World” featurette runs for 12 minutes and 52 seconds. Since the locations used for the film didn’t match the time period needed, the crew needed to digitally enhance or degrade many of the locations to make them appear more authentic. - “Sound Design” featurette runs for 16 minutes and 8 seconds. This is a look at the film’s sound design, which was created at Skywalker Sound in Marin County, CA. Sound designer Ren Klyce discusses what approach he took to achieve the film’s sound. - “Desplat’s Instrumentarium” featurette runs for 14 minutes and 53 seconds. Composer Alexandre Desplat gives us an inside look into how he composed the film’s score. “Birth” contains the following: - “Premiere” featurette runs for 4 minutes and 20 seconds. This is a quick look at the film’s premiere benefit screening in New Orleans. - Production stills contains 122 images. ”Trailers” contains the following: - Theatrical trailer 1 runs for 1 minute and 49 seconds. - Theatrical trailer 2 runs for 2 minutes and 42 seconds. Still galleries are provided for the following: - “Storyboards” contains 220 images. - “Art Direction” contains 50 images. - “Costumes” contains 25 images. - “Production Stills” contains 122 images. Oddly enough, these are the same galleries featured in “The Curious Birth of Benjamin Button” section. Subtitles are available for these extras in English, French and Spanish.
Packaging
The 2-disc set comes housed in a clear amaray keepcase with hubs on both sides of the case to house the two discs. A booklet is included with a short essay, and the entire package is wrapped in a spiffy, sleek slipcover.
Overall
Thoroughly disappointing and far too long, I can’t really recommend this film as it just doesn’t have anything compelling to draw in viewers. Once you’ve become accustomed to Benjamin’s extraordinary condition, there is little else to keep the film afloat. The supplemental package, however, is quite supple and well worth the price of the DVD.
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