Street Style

More than just a beautiful face, Brad Pitt proves why he is still one of the biggest draw cards in Hollywood…

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a movie that will warm the cockles of your heart as well as showcase Pitt’s versatility as an actor. Based on a short story of the same name by iconic writer F. Scott Fitzgerald (of The Great Gatsby fame) this elegant film shines through the mediocrity to surprise and entertain. The film’s messages of acceptance, unconditional love and determination are not shoved down our throats but massaged onto our psyche with velvet gloves.

When Pitt’s character is born into a wealthy New Orleans family his baby body has the skin of an old man. His horrified father panics and dumps the ‘baby’ on the doorstep of an old-peoples home. God-loving and kind-hearted Queenie, the proprietor, scoops him up and adopts him as her son, naming him Benjamin. Not given long to live by a doctor, Benjamin defies the odds and keeps growing younger.

Cate Blanchett stars as Daisy who meets Benjamin as a child while visiting her grandmother at the retirement home. Benjamin instantly falls in love with Daisy and watches from afar as she grows into a beautiful woman. There is a celluloid sigh of appreciation when Daisy and Benjamin finally meet in the middle at relatively the same age. After a few years of bliss they can no longer ignore the fact that they are aging in opposite directions.

It is not just the leads who enchant this film. The supporting characters add great depth, humour and grace. Queenie (played by Taraji P. Henson who has been nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for her role) the elderly boarders in the retirement home and the tugboat captain (played by Eddie Izard) are especially endearing.

Yes, the film runs for nearly three hours but you are so immersed in Benjamin’s story that the time flitters away. The costumes are lush and the colour, smell and heat of New Orleans radiate from the screen. The makeup, wigs and prosthetics used to transform Pitt through all stages in life is state-of-the-art, as is the cinematic magic used to transplant Pitt’s head onto a stooped and withered body.

Known for films such as Se7en, Fight Club, Alien 3 and Panic Room, director David Fincher’s first foray into a softer kind of movie is a resounding success. He skillfully weaves close ups with sweeping vistas to create a smorgasbord of visual delights. In his third collaboration with Pitt he shows the audience yet another facet of the actor’s prowess.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a genuinely feel-good film that you will walk away from with a wide smile and light heart. You may even dare to brave the three-hour running time once more.