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Jan
02
The Book Lady & Benjamin Button
2009 at 10am Posted by Rebecca Joines Schinsky
Not being big party animals, hubby and I decided a quiet New Year’s Eve at the movies was just the thing for us. We considered Marley & Me, then quickly concluded that we’d rather wait until we can rent it and sob our hearts out in the privacy of our own living room, and we thought about Seven Pounds, which we’d heard was good but didn’t know much about, but we settled on The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I had heard that it was nothing like the short story on which it was based (by F. Scott Fitzgerald), so I decided to forego by usual M.O. and see the movie before I read the book (or, in this case, the 26-page short story).
Going in, all I really knew about the movie was that it was about a man who was born old and aged backwards, going gradually younger while everyone around him grew old. As Trish noted, that’s pretty much the only thing the movie has in common with the story, which I read just this morning. Without giving too much away, here are some of the big differences:
- The story is set in Baltimore and begins just before the outbreak of the Civil War; the movie is set in New Orleans and begins in 1929
- In the story, Benjamin is born a full-grown old man, complete with long white beard, and he walks, talks, and thinks like an old man. In the movie, Benjamin is born an average-sized baby with old man-like health problems and wrinkles. He has the brain of an infant in the body of an old man. So, in the story, Benjamin grows younger both physically and mentally; in the movie, he grows younger physically as he ages mentally.
- The story is cold and stark and doesn’t give many details of Benjamin’s life or his personal experiences; the film is warm and sentimental, a love story at its core, and Benjamin’s life is far from lonely.
- In the story, Benjamin’s family and friends do all they can to ignore and cover up his condition; in the movie, his loved ones accept that he is growing younger as they age, and they are happy for him as he gets to experience to glories of youth.
Some differences are bound to happen when you expand a 26-page story into a nearly three-hour-long film, but really, the only similarity between the story and the movie is the concept of a man born old who ages backwards.
As several reviewers and bloggers have said before me, at the heart of the movie is the idea that youth is wasted on the young. Because Benjamin has experienced the challenges and frustrations of living in an old man’s body, he appreciates the vitality and vigor that become available to him as his body grows younger.
I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but I had high hopes for this film, and I’m happy to say that I loved it. (Meg Cabot didn’t, though…scroll down this post for her hilarious response.) The ensemble of supporting actors were colorful and sensitive, and I thought Brad Pitt did a lovely job portraying this wholly unique character. Cate Blanchett was as beautiful and captivating as always, and she conveyed the confusion, fear, and pain of watching the man she loved grow younger as she grew old with great depth and subtlety. It reminded me a bit of the conflict facing Henry and Clare in The Time Traveler’s Wife (which, incidentally, will also soon be a film).
I did find some of the framework story a bit distracting and unnecessary, and there’s this whole bit about a clock that runs backward that doesn’t really have much to do with anything, but otherwise, a great movie. Probably one of my favorites in quite a while. The story is romantic and moving, and it offers us an opportunity to think about life and aging in a new way.
In this case, I’m glad that I waited to read the story until after I saw the movie because if I had gone into the movie with the story fresh in my mind, I would have been distracted by the huge disparities. Really, I’m surprised they were able to call the film by the same name as the story with the two being so different. At almost three hours long, this movie is a marathon, but one worth seeing. And who doesn’t love Brad Pitt doing a James Dean-esque motorcycle ride?
Have you read the story and/or seen the movie? What did you think?
Download the full text here (it’s free!).
I just went to see this one last night, Rebecca! And I loved it, too. It was incredibly lush and poignant, and it’s been a very long time since I was so wrapped up in another world for so long. It was a little long — folks around me were getting restless and texting, how rude! — but it didn’t bother me too much.
The whole thing with the clock running backward… I was wondering if that was supposed to be the catalyst for how Benjamin was born? Because wasn’t that just… “curious”? He was born after the clock was constructed, and Daisy died the day the flood came and overtook New Orleans. I don’t know… there were pieces of the puzzle I didn’t quite get, but I loved it all the same.
Interesting that it was based on a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I’m assuming they named Cate Blanchett’s “Daisy” character as an homage to him? So many questions! I’m off to Google around!
Hope your new year is off to a good start, and sorry for just typing you a novel!
I skimmed through your review because we hope to see this one today. I was glad to see you like it, though.
i saw this movie on new years eve too. i agree with much of what you said and glad i saw it. it was a little creepy to me towards the end. i laughed but never cried – a relief after being told i was going to see a three-hour tear-jerker!
I’m so glad to hear you liked it Rebecca! After reading Meg Cabot’s thoughts I was less enthusiastic about it so I was glad to see your positive review today.
I’ve heard from others that the 2 stories are almost completely different. I’ll probably wait until it comes out on DVD.
I’m glad you enjoyed this movie, I think I just may have to go see it. At first I was apprehensive about Pitt being in it – I’m not a fan and I wondered if he could pull this part off. But I guess it will be worth it just to see Cate Blanchett – I am a fan of her!
First, thanks for linking back to my review!
Second, after your review of the movie, I’m glad you waited to read the book until after you’d seen the film. The disparity between the story and movie were distracting to me and that was all I could think about through the whole movie.
I didn’t realize what a great actor Brad Pitt is until a film critic was talking about him. The critic noted that Brad Pitt takes chances with the movies he takes on, and that’s something I can respect. Cate Blanchett does an amazing job as well, and I found their relationship to be very realistic…refreshing for a Hollywood film!
I’ll see anything with Cate in it, so will see this soon. I haven’t read the short story yet, and it sounds like I should hold off until after seeing the film.
I’m off to read Meg Cabot’s post, I hope it doesn’t completely put me off!
I liked the movie, didn’t love it. The beginning just felt a little slow to me, although I really liked the second half.
[...] are totally different. I won’t compare them, though. If you’d like a comparison, The Book Lady and Trish have both done a great job of [...]
[...] The Book Lady & Benjamin Button [...]