The Reflection of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Even though The Curious Case of Benjamin Button in Chinese title is named “the fantastic journey of Benjamin Button,” the life of the hero is not fantastic at all. The only difference in his life from other people is he ages backwards with bizarre consequences. However, no matter what kind of life it is, aging forward or backward, the destinations of life are the same, dying. “You can be as mad as a mad dog at the way things went. You could swear, curse the fates, but when it comes to the end, you have to let go.” It is captain Mike’s dying words when he holding Benjamin Button’s hand on the ship. This quote could conclude everything in the film; it means striving hard when we live and without regret, and until the last time of our life, we have to take a brave heart to face death.
David Fincher, the director, always teaches his audience the meaning the life in his films, such as Se7en, the Game, Fight Club, and Zodiac. Those works talk about the same motif, which is “seize the day.”
This movie makes me recall Forest Gump. They are similar in the stories, which are the heroes pass by the every landmark in American history; however, the different part is Forest Gump uses his own point of view to see the world, but in CCBB, there are a number of people interpreting the meaning of life.
Even though from reviewer to the press have said CCBB is a masterpiece, I don’t like it at all. The story uses the sequences of the landmarks in the history to string every point in Benjamin Button’s life. It makes not merely the story to widen the field of the sight in CCBB intentionally but strengthen the color of Benjamin Button’s incredible legend as well; yet, Fincher, who is used to film music videos, makes the hero’s characteristics too simple, impersonal and tame but makes the story full of introspective and inspiring mottos. I cannot see those sayings have any relation to Benjamin Button in the movie, because he never changes his personality or thought after learning them from others. It seems that there is a huge gap between the mottos and Benjamin Button’s living style. Moreover, the fast tempo in CCBB causes Fincher cannot manage well the profound and meaningful plots the movie tries to present, and thus I only can see it remains a routine and day-to-day diary to read.
Additionally, the sequence of introducing the rest home by Brad Pitt’s voice-over makes me recall the sequence of introducing the support groups in Fight Club by Edward Norton’s voice-over. At last, I think David Fincher forsakes the sharp tone, the rebellious stroke, and the elaborate and pretentious long takes which are his favorite to present in past works, using the soft focus effect, filter and backlighting to film such tedious, old fashioned mystery.