The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

This film is an honest piece of craftsmanship, into which Fincher has put a lot of his unmistakable ideas, and yet they don't really attract attention and thus leave enough room for the story. The story itself could actually be told in a moment. It’s not that I was bored - the director can tell a story engagingly enough for that, but this is his first film that completely missed the mark for me emotionally. Maybe that’s because of the fact that Cate Blanchett just doesn't "fit" in the film for me and she flutters a bit behind the excellent Pitt, and also because of the lengthy runtime, which is just too long given the amount of plot. Some people obviously think that a perfect style can carry a film. I give it a weaker four stars. (02/01/2009)

While the movie is only about him and not them, I have no major objections. But after that I have several. I’d sum it up with a sad sigh, that although the creators decided to use nothing else from Fitzgerald’s story other than the title (which, on the one hand, is not surprising), and instead blatantly (but unadmittedly) ripped off Greer’s Confessions of Max Tivoli, they could at least have stuck to it in their portrayal of Max and Alice’s relationship. Oops, sorry, I meant Benjamin and Daisy’s relationship, of course. This bittersweet, albeit tasteful lemonade could not equate to Greer’s condensed broth filled with melancholy and sadness. I know, I know, comparing a book to a movie is unfair, but this time it was Roth who started it. If he has to "borrow" ideas elsewhere, he should at least do it with some style. Not in this haphazard way, substituting the best part with a cold romance we’ve seen a hundred times before. ♫ OST score: 3/5 (01/03/2009)

I know that the movie is about the relentless passage of time, fateful encounters, and mutual passing in life. But with all due respect to the luxurious cast, budget, and technically precise direction, this is the only Fincher film that bores me and, above all, almost evokes no emotions in me. I am indifferent to the fate of the protagonist and in such cases, I cannot give it more than two stars. Overall impression: 45%. (01/01/2013)

I have a lot of respect for David Fincher, not just because of this magnificent drama. It's incredible the way he can present a film to the audience. The story is original. Brad Pitt’s performance makes this film really unique and unbeatable!! 100% for the great cast, the idea, and the way it’s presented. (11/02/2011)

David Fincher has better stuff under his belt, but Benjamin Button is a memorable film nonetheless. It’s a sentimental tale about life and death that in 160 minutes portrays a completely ordinary story affected by unusual circumstances. But there’s power in simplicity, it allows the film to reveal the meaning of all the symbols that fill its runtime, delivering by the end an emotional load that mixes sadness, melancholy and fatality in precisely calculated proportions, one that will bring tears to the eyes of the more sensitive viewers… The firm director’s hand and the dreamy atmosphere are only secondary reasons to grant it 5 stars. Gorgeous. (31/01/2009)