The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)
77%RT Audience Score: 80%
Awards & Nominations: Won 3 Oscars
83 wins & 160 nominations total
Curious Case of Benjamin Button is an epic fantasy tale with rich storytelling backed by fantastic performances
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” is a movie that will make you question your own mortality and the passage of time, but in a fun way! Sure, it’s a bit long and some critics found it plodding, but who cares when you have Brad Pitt aging backwards and Cate Blanchett looking stunning in every scene? The visuals are stunning and the love story is heartwarming. It’s not just a chick flick, but it’s definitely a movie you’ll want to watch with your significant other. So grab some popcorn, settle in, and get ready to feel all the feels.
Production Company(ies)
Ferndale Films, Granada Television, Hell’s Kitchen Films,
Distributor
Paramount Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Wide)
Filming Location(s)
India
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG-13 for brief war violence, sexual content, language and smoking
Year of Release
2008
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:DTS Dolby Digital SDDS
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:2h 47m
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Language(s):English, Russian, French
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Dec 25, 2008 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): May 5, 2009
Genre(s)
Fantasy/Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Taraji P Henson, Julia Ormond, Jason Flemyng, Mahershala Ali, directed by David Fincher, written by Eric Roth, fantasy, drama, romance, PG-13, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Richard Brody, Namrata Joshi, Deborah Ross, Candice Frederick, Travis Johnson, Marianna Neal, Tim Stevens, Mike Massie, Jason Best, Richard Propes, produced by Frank Marshall, Kathleen Kennedy, Ceán Chaffin
Worldwide gross: $335,802,786
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $462,555,506
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 314
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 50,442,258
US/Canada gross: $127,509,326
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $175,639,224
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 430
US/Canada opening weekend: $26,853,816
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $36,990,105
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 348
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $150,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $206,619,268
Production budget ranking: 103
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $111,264,476
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $144,671,762
ROI to date (est.): 46%
ROI ranking: 1,171
Cate Blanchett – Daisy
Taraji P. Henson – Queenie
Julia Ormond – Caroline
Jason Flemyng – Thomas Button
Mahershala Ali – Tizzy
Director(s)
David Fincher
Writer(s)
Eric Roth
Producer(s)
Frank Marshall, Kathleen Kennedy, Ceán Chaffin
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Won 3 Oscars
83 wins & 160 nominations total
Academy Awards
Oscar Best Achievement in Art Direction Winners, Oscar Best Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling Winners, Oscar Best Achievement in Makeup Winners, Oscar Best Achievement in Visual Effects Winners, Oscar Nominees, Oscar Winners
All Critics (257) | Top Critics (68) | Fresh (183) | Rotten (74)
A sumptuous and stirring romantic drama.
May 12, 2020
Richard Brody
New Yorker
TOP CRITIC
Plodding, facile and fails to connect.
January 31, 2019 | Rating: 2/4
Namrata Joshi
Outlook
TOP CRITIC
It could have worked, had it ever snapped to life, but it doesn’t. It just goes on and on and on and on and on and on. And on. You may even shake your watch to check it is still going. I know I did.
August 29, 2018
Deborah Ross
The Spectator
TOP CRITIC
… I was pleasantly surprised.
September 12, 2017 | Rating: A
Candice Frederick
Reel Talk Online
TOP CRITIC
November 24, 2011 | Rating: 3/5
David Fear
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
Between the visuals and the Pitt factor, this is a movie your girlfriend will dig, but there’s enough crazy fantasy stuff going on that I’d never call it a “chick flick.”
August 13, 2009 | Rating: A-
Jordan Hoffman
UGO
TOP CRITIC
Grief is inevitable; as we grow older, we’ll inevitably attend more funerals than birthday parties, and the reward of a long life is watching everything but your own self be swept away by time and tide. But perhaps love is inevitable as well.
November 4, 2021
Travis Johnson
Flicks.com.au
It’s a beautiful story, and it is unlike anything Fincher has ever made.
January 3, 2021 | Rating: 9/10
Marianna Neal
Impression Blend
At its core, the film is rotted through with a philosophical viewpoint that proves a mile (or 166 minutes) wide but only an inch deep.
December 31, 2020
Tim Stevens
The Spool
It may be flawed, especially from a bloated script, but it still manages to be one of the more impressive films of the year.
November 28, 2020 | Rating: 8/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
Strip away all the classy art direction and CGI trickery, and the story is a bit of a snooze
November 19, 2020
Jason Best
What’s On TV
I won’t necessarily quibble with an Oscar nomination for Pitt, though I’d find myself extremely disappointed with a win.
September 5, 2020 | Rating: 3.0/4.0
Richard Propes
TheIndependentCritic.com…
Plot
On the day that Hurricane Katrina hits New Orleans, elderly Daisy Williams (nee Fuller) is on her deathbed in a New Orleans hospital. At her side is her adult daughter, Caroline. Daisy asks Caroline to read to her aloud the diary of Daisy’s lifelong friend, Benjamin Button. Benjamin’s diary recounts his entire extraordinary life, the primary unusual aspect of which was his aging backwards, being diagnosed with several aging diseases at birth and thus given little chance of survival, but who does survive and gets younger with time. Abandoned by his biological father, Thomas Button, after Benjamin’s biological mother died in childbirth, Benjamin was raised by Queenie, a black woman and caregiver at a seniors home. Daisy’s grandmother was a resident at that home, which is where she first met Benjamin. Although separated through the years, Daisy and Benjamin remain in contact throughout their lives, reconnecting in their forties when in age they finally match up. Some of the revelations in Benjamin’s diary are difficult for Caroline to read, especially as it relates to the time past this reconnection between Benjamin and Daisy, when Daisy gets older and Benjamin grows younger into his childhood years.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
There is no goofy or funny or odd comment about the film on Fresh Kernels.
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