Quantcast

More Raves for Button

Posted by Susan Thea Posnock On December - 25 - 2008

Thanks to all who, on a Christmas Day, have linked to or sent me the raves.  Trying to balance doing the family thing with the Oscar watching thing.  This one from TIME’s Richard Corliss:

Eric Roth, author of the adaptation (with Robin Swicord) and the final screenplay of Benjamin Button, also wrote the Forrest Gump movie, another story of an unusual innocent, which leaned as heavily on computer effects as this one. (At the extremes of his life Benjamin is played by children, or with Pitt’s face miraculously superimposed on other actors’ bodies.) But here the CGI magic and the artful makeup elegantly serve the poignant fantasy of a displaced soul who knows that the very young and the very old are similarly dependent, and everything in between is a precious gift. So is this wonderful movie.

And the Wall Street Journal’s Joe Morgenstern starts his review:

If time flowed backward for me as it does for Brad Pitt in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” I would have been almost three hours younger by the time the end credits rolled around. No such luck on that score, but David Fincher’s majestic fantasy left me happier than I could have imagined I’d be. Eric Roth’s screenplay, inspired by a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald, turns on a single device. A baby is born old — not just old but downright senescent — and youthens as he grows. Yet the film, which co-stars Cate Blanchett, quickly outgrows any sense of gimmickry and matures into a one-of-a-kind meditation on mortality, time’s inexorable passage and the fleeting sweetness of love.

And closes it this way:

Not until he grows 15 years younger and she grows 15 years older, however, are they right for each other physically as well as spiritually. “My God,” Daisy says at one point in their mid-40s, “look at you — you’re perfect.” It’s a charming laugh line, since he has finally emerged as a fully recognizable Brad Pitt. And what a remarkable presence the actor is, not just during that golden era but before and after, when he has only his voice and eyes with which to fashion Ben’s character while the wonders of digital technology and age-confounding makeup provide his body and face.

It’s a great performance by any measure, but let me count some of the other ways that Mr. Fincher’s film is remarkable. Ms. Blanchett’s performance, to be sure; she’s breathtaking in a long red dress, dancing in a fog-shrouded gazebo; otherwise she’s simply dazzling, and deeply affecting. A supporting cast that includes Tilda Swinton, Taraji P. Henson, Jason Flemyng and Jared Harris. Alexandre Desplat’s score, as exquisite and evocative as the Scott Joplin concert waltz woven through it. Claudio Miranda’s sumptuous cinematography, Donald Graham Burt’s art direction and production design, and Jacqueline West’s costumes. “Benjamin Button” is all of a visionary piece, and it’s a soul-filling vision.

Wow.

| |

No Response for "More Raves for Button"

  1. humdinger December 25th, 2008 at 1:49 pm 1

    wow.. indeed….

  2. red_wine December 25th, 2008 at 2:05 pm 2

    It currently has a really pitiful score on Metacritic where it is hanging onto the 60’s.

  3. Paul Outlaw December 25th, 2008 at 2:18 pm 3

    It’s at 69 and neither of these two reviews have been included in the score yet. (Mick LaSalle’s 25 score is really a kick in the gut.)

    Merry Christmas!

  4. andrew December 25th, 2008 at 2:47 pm 4

    Or A.O. Scott’s, I think it’s final score will hover in the mid 70’s

  5. The Natural December 25th, 2008 at 4:05 pm 5

    I don’t understand what people are missing about this film. No, it isn’t perfect, but somehow that makes the whole thing even richer and more beautiful. For me it’s nothing short of a wholly original, groundbreaking masterpiece, perhaps a film ahead of its time and one that is perhaps too cerebral and too observational for today’s audience. But I’d be damned if that wasn’t one of the most haunting, stunningly gorgeous, melancholic and poetic things I have ever witnessed. It’s like… from another planet.

  6. Paul Outlaw December 25th, 2008 at 4:40 pm 6

    I would love to know what Steven Spielberg thinks of this film.

  7. The Natural December 25th, 2008 at 4:44 pm 7

    Funny, because I remember hearing he thought it was a “masterpiece.” Don’t remember where I heard this, but I definitely read it somewhere.

  8. Paul Outlaw December 25th, 2008 at 4:55 pm 8

    Googled:

    Spielberg on Button

    “Your coming here will help preserve so many foreign and American classics, including the one you are about to see now, The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button.” Well, I still want to know what he thought of the film. ;-)

  9. Maciej December 25th, 2008 at 5:09 pm 9

    Come on, a wholly original, groundbreaking masterpiece?

    I mean, I enjoyed it, it was gorgeous to look at and had a lot of good stuff in it, but Eric Roth’s string of cliches does not a masterpiece make.

  10. Chase Kahn December 25th, 2008 at 7:07 pm 10

    Yeah, I wouldn’t call it a groundbreaking masterpiece either. Loved it, but I’m still not convinced it’s even the best movie of the year (although certainly Top 5).

    Part of what keeps it back slightly is Roth’s script with occasionally feels to Gumpian in its artificiality. I can’t believe some people feel the movie is too cold — I think it’s a deeply moving film, and almost overly sentimental at times.

    Great, great movie — I can’t believe something as unimaginative (albeit competent) as ‘Frost/Nixon’ is endlessly praised while ‘Button’ is met with reserved recognition — I’ll never understand that.

  11. Haifa December 25th, 2008 at 9:56 pm 11

    One thing I’ve noticed from a few people I know who have seen it today, is that NONE of them knew how long it would be, and by the last third or so kept wondering when it was going to end.

  12. Kyle December 25th, 2008 at 10:03 pm 12

    Chase,
    you echoed exactly what didn’t sit right about the film to me from about the point that he started working with the tugboat captain. I just kept feeling like I had seen this film before with Tom Hanks.
    It really lessened the film alot in my eyes and made it feel like a hybrid of Forrest Gump and something slightly Burton-esque (Big Fish comes to mind).
    It’s still an enjoyable film, but I can’t say it has much replay value for me.
    It probably doesn’t crack the top five of the year for me.
    Slumdog Millionaire and the Dark Knight still rank #1 and #2, with only the Wrestler left for me to see.

  13. Ryan Hoffman December 26th, 2008 at 12:17 am 13

    I’ll say I was very touched by this film. There were some parts that I felt were unneeded, a tad too illogical, or a little cliched, but to me it told a story that really has never been told.
    I think the term “cold” is a wrong one to describe the film. I feel that it is a realistic look at how someone would act if this condition happened to them.

    Ultimately, what struck me while watching the film was it made me think about my own life, especially my own loves, and it just gave me a different perspective that I had never really looked at before.

    Anyway, my two cents. I have been in the crowd saying Slumdog and Milk will not win Best Picture, and I feel this fits enough of the classic Oscar holes.

  14. OmarS December 26th, 2008 at 1:25 am 14

    Sorry to come on as a grumpy-Guss, but I persoanlly didn`t feel the love for the film. I did think it was wonderfully lensed and framed and there were some wonderful moments in the film. But personally, it did feel slightly artificial to me. It was hard to emotionally invest in the characters, to seriosuly feel for them. I DID love the overall idea of the film. The cathartic tone and overall what the movie was trying to say on death and dieing where well represented. But I could never really feel for the characters, and it always kept me at arms length from the movie. ALSO! some of the cliches were too much to handle and almost made me groan. Carolines epiphany towards the end was likely my least favorite.

    That said and done, I’d still put it in my top 10. But likely at the bottom. And that mainly becasue I love David Fincher and the overall ambiton are applaud-worthy.

  15. Chris Price December 26th, 2008 at 9:01 am 15

    **SPOILERS**

    I saw Ben Button and thought it was great. Thought the very last montage where they show you all the various characters again felt tacked on and didn’t end the film right. A better way of putting it is I don’t think that bit did justice for what I just saw, which I thought was brilliant. Also, surprisingly, Julia Ormond didn’t always work for me. Not to say she was bad, but honestly I didn’t buy that she just found out this guy was her father. There was nothing behind her eyes in that moment. Having bitched a little bit, I thought almost everything else was phenomenal. Cate was GREAT. Brad Pitt can add another career high to his resume. And nobody was better than Taraji P. Henson. 9.5 out of 10.

    Here’s my top 10 as of now (still gotta see Valkyrie and Revolutionary Road):

    1. The Dark Knight
    2. WALL-E
    3. Slumdog Millionaire
    4. The Wrestler
    5. Pineapple Express
    6. The Visitor
    7. Rachel Getting Married
    8. Tell No One
    9. Iron Man
    10. The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button

    11-25 in alphabetical order:
    Appaloosa
    Be Kind, Rewind
    Boy A
    Cassandra’s Dream
    Choke
    Frost/Nixon
    Gran Torino
    In Bruges
    Kung Fu Panda
    Milk
    Snow Angels
    Speed Racer
    Synecdoche, New York
    The Signal
    Tropic Thunder

  16. lac December 26th, 2008 at 9:05 am 16

    First I never knew critics had so much power over what wins Best Picture.

    Second I wish I was around when The Departed was in the race. I would have loved to have read the varied comments. I can’t believe that movie was so beloved that it won Best Picture.

  17. Chris Price December 26th, 2008 at 9:20 am 17

    By the way, it looks like Button now claims the second biggest Christmas Day opening ever at the Box Office and is all set to gross something like 45 million in the first 4 days. This would mean it could make about 125-150 million when all is said and done.

  18. jrc ven December 27th, 2008 at 6:33 am 18

    no matter what people say i still adore this film definitely the best film of 2008.


Leave a reply


  • Contender Tracker

    Best Picture
    Up in the Air
    Nine
    The Hurt Locker
    An Education
    Precious: Based on the Novel
    Push by Sapphire

    A Serious Man
    Inglourious Basterds
    Up

    Julie & Julia
    Star Trek
    District 9
    Bright Star
    Where the Wild Things Are
    A Single Man

    Best Actor
    Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart
    Colin Firth, A Single Man
    George Clooney, Up in the Air
    Matt Damon, The Informant!
    Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker
    Viggo Mortensen, The Road
    Ben Foster, The Messenger
    Michael Stuhlbarg, A Serious Man
    Michael Sheen, The Damned United

    Best Actress
    Gabby Sidibe, Precious
    Carey Mulligan, An Education
    Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia
    Abbie Cornish, Bright Star
    Helen Mirren, The Last Station
    Michelle Monaghan, Trucker

    Best Supporting Actor
    Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds
    Alfred Molina, An Education
    Stanley Tucci, Julie & Julia
    Peter Sarsgaard, An Education
    Robert Duvall, Crazy Heart
    Peter Capaldi, In the Loop
    Zach Galifianakis, The Hangover
    Anthony Mackie, The Hurt Locker
    Brian Geraghty, The Hurt Locker

    Best Supporting Actress
    Mo'Nique,Precious
    Anna Kendrick,Up in the Air
    Maggie Gyllenhaal, Crazy Heart
    Julianne Moore, A Single Man
    Melanie Laurent, Inglourious Basterds
    Vera Farmiga, Up in the Air
    Samantha Morton, The Messenger
    Emma Thompson, An Education
    Cara Seymour, An Education

    Best Director
    Jason Reitman, Up in the Air
    Lee Daniels, Precious
    Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker
    Lone Scherfig, An Education
    Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds
    Joel and Ethan Coen, A Serious Man
    Neill Blomkamp, District 9
    Spike Jonze, Where the Wild Things Are
    Tom Ford, A Single Man
    Jane Campion, Bright Star

    Best Original Screenplay
    Mark Boal, The Hurt Locker
    Joel and Ethan Coen, A Serious Man
    Jane Campion, Bright Star
    Quentin Tarantino,Inglourious Basterds
    Michael Haneke,White Ribbon
    Bob Peterson, Pete Docter,Up
    Scott Neustadter, Michael H. Weber, 500 Days of Summer

    Best Adapted Screenplay
    Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner, Up in the Air
    Nick Hornby, An Education
    Spike Jonze, Dave Eggars, Where the Wild Things Are
    Peter Morgan, The Damned United
    Geoffrey Fletcher, Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire
    Scott Burns, The Informant!
    Tom Ford, A Single Man

    Best Editing

    Chris Innis, Bob Murawski, The Hurt Locker
    Sally Menke, Inglourious Basterds
    Dana E. Glauberman,, Up in the Air
    Joel and Ethan Coen,, A Serious Man

    Best Cinematography
    Greig Fraser,Bright Star
    Robert Richardson,Inglourious Basterds
    Roger Deakins, A Serious Man
    Christian Berger, White Ribbon
    Bruno Delbonnel,Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
    Barry Ackroyd, The Hurt Locker

    Best Art Direction

    Where the Wild Things Are
    Julie & Julia
    Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
    Bright Star
    Inglourious Basterds
    White Ribbon
    District 9
    A Serious Man

    Best Sound Mixing

    Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
    District 9
    Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
    The Hurt Locker
    Star Trek

    Best Sound Editing

    District 9
    Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
    Star Trek
    Up

    Best Costume Design
    Janet Patterson, Bright Star
    Jany Temime,Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
    Anna B. Sheppard,Inglourious Basterds
    Mary Zophre, A Serious Man
    Colleen Atwood, Public Enemies
    Consolata Boyle,Cheri

    Best Original Score
    Carter Burwell, Karen O,Where the Wild Things Are
    Carter Burwell,A Serious Man
    Michael Giacchino,Up
    Alexandre Desplat, Cheri
    Elliot Goldenthal, Public Enemies

    Best Foreign Language Film (submissions)

    Letters from Father Jacob, Finland
    White Wedding, South Africa
    A Prophet, France
    Dawson, Isla 10, Chile
    Nobody to Watch Over Me, Japan
    Prince of Tears, Hong Kong
    No puedo vivir sin ti, Taiwan
    Kelin, Kazakhstan
    Mother, Korea
    The White Ribbon, Germany
    Silent Army, The Netherlands


    Best Documentary Feature

    The Beaches of Agnes
    Burma VJ
    The Cove
    Every Little Step
    Facing Ali
    Food, Inc.
    Garbage Dreams
    Living in Emergency
    The Most Dangerous Man in America
    Mugabe and the White African
    Sergio
    Soundtrack for a Revolution
    Under Our Skin
    Valentino
    Which Way Home


    Best Animated Feature
    Up
    The Princess and the Frog
    Coraline
    The Fantastic Mr. Fox
    A Christmas Carol
    Mary and Max
    Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
    Ponyo


    Best Visual Effects
    Star Trek
    District 9
    A Christmas Carol
    Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
    Transformers


    Best Makeup

    Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
    District 9

    Best Song

    Best Live Action Short

    Best Animated Short

    Best Documentary Short

    China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province
    The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner
    The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant
    Lt. Watada
    Music by Prudence
    Rabbit a la Berlin
    Tell Them Anything You Want: A Portrait of Maurice Sendak
    Woman Rebel

  • Ampas Breakdown

    Actors-1,222
    Producers-462
    Executives-436
    Sound-411
    Writers-388
    Art Directors-373
    Directors-375
    Public Relations-370
    Members at Large-254
    Shorts/Feature Ani-335
    Visual Effects-272
    Music-233
    Editors-227
    Cinematographers-197
    Documentary-145
    Makeup-115
    Total Voting Members -approx 6,000
  • Tuesday, December 1, 2009: Official Screen Credits forms due

    Monday, December 28, 2009: Nominations ballots mailed

    Saturday, January 23, 2010: Nominations polls close 5 p.m. PT

    Tuesday, February 2, 2010: Nominations announced 5:30 a.m. PT, Samuel Goldwyn Theater

    Wednesday, February 10, 2010: Final ballots mailed

    Monday, February 15, 2010: Nominees Luncheon

    Saturday, February 20, 2010: Scientific and Technical Achievement Awards presentation

    Tuesday, March 2, 2010: Final polls close 5 p.m. PT

    Sunday, March 7, 2010: 82nd Annual Academy Awards presentation