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Author Topic: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008) Brad Miller Administrator Posts: 17775 From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall) Registered: May 99 posted 12-25-2008 12:10 PM                     Did anyone else make it through this 18 hour epic? I was very disappointed, as this seemed to me nothing more than a wanna-be Forrest Gump remake starring Brat Pitt from the planet Ork. The only thing good about this movie was the makeup. 1 out of 5 stars  |  IP: Logged Jon P. Inghram Expert Film Handler Posts: 124 From: Wichita, KS USA Registered: Jan 2007 posted 12-25-2008 01:09 PM                     "Wanna-be Forrest Gump" was exactly what I was thinking after watching it. Especially after the WWII sequence, it just seemed to lose it's way and drag on without end, and could have easily been trimmed down to 120 minutes, if not shorter, without effecting what story there was. The ending happened so subtly and meaninglessly I was like "Wait, it's actually over? YAY!"  |  IP: Logged Mike Schindler Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1039 From: Oak Park, IL, USA Registered: Jun 2002 posted 12-25-2008 04:21 PM                     There's this theory that's been going around since FIGHT CLUB came out that David Fincher movies follow the same pattern as Star Trek movies, where the even numbered ones are good and the odd numbered ones are bad. So let's see here... Alien 3 is #1 (odd) Se7en is #2 (even) The Game is #3 (odd) Fight Club is #4 (even) Panic Room is #5 (odd) Zodiac is #6 (even) So that means THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON is... Yep. Still works.  |  IP: Logged Brad Miller Administrator Posts: 17775 From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall) Registered: May 99 posted 12-25-2008 04:43 PM                     I firmly disagree. The Game is the best movie on that list.  |  IP: Logged Sam Graham AKA: "The Evil Sam Graham". Wackiness ensues. Posts: 1431 From: Waukee, IA Registered: Dec 2004 posted 12-25-2008 09:45 PM                        No, "Panic Room" is, because it's the only one I bothered to see.  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 12-25-2008 10:02 PM                        The Game was lame. It actually made me angry that I had watched, it.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 12-25-2008 11:59 PM                        I agree with Brad on this one. The Game was well, not great but at least very good. I liked Panic Room too.  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 12-26-2008 12:16 AM                        Seven was better (I refuse to spell it with the number in it because that is just plain retarded).  |  IP: Logged Joe Tommassello Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 547 From: Coatesville, PA, USA Registered: Jan 2008 posted 12-26-2008 10:51 AM                  I liked Panic Room, Fight Club, etc. but I also agree "The Game" was a great film.  |  IP: Logged Richard P. May Expert Film Handler Posts: 243 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Jan 2006 posted 12-26-2008 12:48 PM                     Well, back to BENJAMIN BUTTON... I thought it was a big bore. Very low key, dark, and who cares. Technically, the whole crew did an excellent job. At our SMPTE meeting a couple of months ago many of the creative staff were on a panel, and we could see their dedication. The script was the problem, as well as the 167 min. running time.  |  IP: Logged Paul Burt Film Handler Posts: 46 From: San Francisco, CA, United States Registered: Apr 2006 posted 12-26-2008 01:28 PM                     I thought Benjamin Button was a very fine film. Like most of Fincher's films, it's getting mixed notices at best, but the same thing happened with Fight Club, The Game, Panic Room and even Zodiac. No matter. It's a great film and eventually will be recognized as such. My choice for the year's best so far. Deeply intelligent, beautifully realized. No big action sequences (unless you count a fishing trawler's encounter with a u-boat) and I suppose that puts some people off in a nearly three hour movie, but I was completely rivited all the way through. Trust Fincher. He knows exactly what he's doing, even if a lot of us can't recognize it yet.  |  IP: Logged Kurt Zupin Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 989 From: Maricopa, Arizona Registered: Oct 2004 posted 12-27-2008 04:07 PM                     I have to agree with Paul for the most part, I really liked it. I didn't see any of the comparisons to Forrest Gump. Unless your talking about the fact that it was 3 hrs and covered the course of someones life. Then yeah I see it. They did a great job with the makeup effects and making Brad look very very old and then very very young. Spoiler of sorts, when he walks in to the dance stuido towards the end, they made him look like he was a teenager. On the negative side I do think that they could of cut about 20-30 minutes and pulled the story together a little more. Even with that said I still liked it and liked the style it was done in. 4/5  |  IP: Logged Chris Hipp Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1462 From: Mesquite, Tx (east of Dallas) Registered: Jul 2003 posted 12-27-2008 05:44 PM                     Here's what you do. You take the premise from that Star Trek episode where the race of children are born old and get younger, wrap it around the Forrest Gump plot line and give it Big Fish's ending and you have Benjamin Buttons.  |  IP: Logged Tyler Potts Expert Film Handler Posts: 159 From: Anderson, SC, USA Registered: Sep 2008 posted 12-27-2008 07:14 PM                       I thought it was absolutely amazing. I watched 2 hours after a shift last night (then at 12:30am realized I had to be back there in 9 hours) and the last hour tonight. I'll be going back again this week for the full sitdown effect. I remember thinking if they tried to make the Gump movie as epic as the book it would have more resemblance to Button. And the flashback story telling of the clock in the beginning, I think they must've filmed it, put it on 35mm, then kicked it around a parking lot. I had trouble concentrating at that point because it was like watching my worst nightmare of a print's condition.  |  IP: Logged Geoff Jones Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 579 From: Broomfield, CO, USA Registered: Feb 2006 posted 12-29-2008 05:11 PM                        I thought it was only ok. I didn't hate watching it, but I don't think I'd ever care to sit through it again. PS: If anyone knows any techs who service the UA Denver Pavilions 15, let 'em know one of the front speakers in auditorium 6 is faulty and sounds distorted (clipping?) on the high notes. PPS: Anyone in the DC area who wants to catch Fincher's earlier stuff on the big screen can see most of 'em at the AFI Silver Theatre. The Curious Case of David Fincher January 30 - March 1 ALIEN 3 SE7EN FIGHT CLUB THE GAME ZODIAC  |  IP: Logged

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