The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)This is what going to the movies is about (or, at least, it should be, but is so often not the case). Grand in scale and execution, what this movie does best is that it so completely creates a new world-- even within our familiar one.
Clocking in at over 2.5 hours, it is almost impossible not to disappear into it, and isn't that what truly makes watching movies so great? To be able to escape into another world, but then come out the other end with key messages for our own, is really what makes movie-going such a wonderful experience.
Benjamin Button is not the best film of the year in the traditional, overly-critical sense: it is overlong, and a bit too cold with its title character (even after watching his whole life, I still felt like I needed to know more about him).
But where it succeeds so brilliantly is its truly epic feel. I only wish that more movies provided such a complete, all-encompassing sense of escapism. You literally disappear into this film. So, no matter its nit-picky shortcomings (it still is quite brilliant in performances, direction, and certainly special effects), it would be hard not to come out full of emotion. Not many dry eyes after such a superb ending.
It says so much about themes literally everyone can relate to: family, discrimination, age, time, and love. It will make you want to hold on to your loved ones and never let go.
This movie is not so much a film as an experience, and too few movies have been able to accomplish that these days.
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