~With time when you grow young~ . Review on The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Movie

This is a review on the Movie "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" released during last Christmas and has been nominated for 13 Oscar Awards. When academy award is going to be declared on 22 February, 2009 all Indians would be praying for Slumdog Millionaire and A R Rahman. Just want all of you not to forget another amazing movie amidst of the buzz -

Images -

The images that came to my mind as I wrote this review are almost entirely of my old nursery (kindergarten) - the squarish buildings with tiled roofs, the big jack-tree in the middle, the nursery classes during the rains, the rain falling from the edge of the roofs... and us children clambering on to piled-up desks to look at the overgrown pond at the other side of the school wall - it was our first look at life, our first look at the world. These images are also absolutes, and they remain.

The greatness of a mind is its capacity to imagine all things as cyclical, as occurring in huge and varied iterations of loops. All these are the privileges of a normal human being blessed with good health.

A bit more about the theme and other observations

But if you are born with the disabilities of an 80 year old man with emphysema, wrinkled skin, crippling arthritis and with your birth your mother dies and your dad want to get rid of you - how interesting would be your life? There is every possibility that you will grow young. Each year pass by, you are growing young. This is all about the movie "The strange case of Benjamin Button".This movie demands solid 160 plus minutes from your side and the sequences might be extremely demanding. But at the end of 160 plus minutes, you will be left with the images of the miseries of growing young. When we grow old, it is amazing to think of yester years. But what if your travel is on the opposite direction?

The movie begins when elderly Diasy Williams in death bead (on the dayof hurricane Katrina hits New Orleans Hospital) asks her daughter Caroline to read to her aloud her diary on her lifelong friend Benjamin Button. As mentioned before, Benjamin was born in the midst of agonies and was abanodned by his dad Thomas Button and was raised by Queenie, the negro woman and caretaker of senior people at old age home. Although seprarated through years, Daisy and Benjamin rain in contact through out their lives and unites during their forties and finally match up. Caroline was not able to comprehend the diary as with age Daisy gets and older and Benjamin grows younger to his adoloscent and childhood years.

The movie never explains, why Benjamin is aging backwards. But certain symbols are given like the movie begins with a story about a blind clockmaker who lost his son and he creates a station clock that runs anit clock wise direction. This is the symbol of his wish that he could turn back time, so his son could live again. This happened in the same year when Benjamin was born. The film also gives an example of God's giving and taking, when the preacher gives Benjamin the gift of walking, and subsequently dies himself.

The station clock is a symbolic parallel to Benjamin's life, being placed shortly before he was born, broken down when his time had come, and finally being consumed by the water after his death.

This movie is based on Scott Fitzgerald sotry and the meticulously redacted screenplay is from none otherthan Eric Roth (No wonder, the movie got some glimpses of Forrest Gump). It is a movie that need to be experienced and not explained. From Broadway to Russia, from booms and depression, pearl harbour and ending in Katrina sweeps through New Orlean's ward - the movie is so vast and coveres so much ground.

I am not venturing to explain the depth and range of Brad Pitt's performance. I never looked towards this dude but this movie did some kind of "breaking of prejudice"with in me.

Life, death and love that burns bright and brief as a firefly ----Fincher could birghten up and still turn in a film obsessed with transience, with mortality. This movie ofcourse stands as a monument to his talent.

It is not an entertaining story telling cinematic exprience provided by Slumdog Millionaire.But ofcourse, it is not a movie to be forgotten.

The message -I would like to take is that "Life isn't measured in years, but in moments". Remember, this movie demands lot of time and patience from viewers. But, it is an investment which pays back tenfold.

Courtesy -Some reviews I have read from various sources which helped me to recollect the scenes, sequences and plot.