The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

I guess I'll continue the fine (?) tradition of posting comments to movies I see at the theater and apply a qualifying number of Shwing!s to them. Here's a 4-Shwing!er.

Last weekend it was a great night out with friends to see The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Overall I thought the movie was very good. I think it was a example of very good storytelling. The makeup and effects used to change the apparent age of the characters were terrific. And then, there's Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett.

The story here made me think about that phrase "Youth is wasted on the young." This movie seemed to turn that notion on its head, and look at giving youth to the older, the wiser. There were amusing scenes where a seven-year-old Benjamin was surrounded by the elderly, amusing in how they seemed to sometimes behave much the same way. Funny, too, where some random scenes peppered in having to do with lightning strikes.

The peripheral characters were often as engaging as the main ones. Benjamin's mom (she was wonderful), the woman who teaches him piano, Caroline and Captain Mike were interesting and so well-done. This is not just a Brad Pitt movie.

There was potent symbolism involving the approach of Hurricane Katrina that I hope Laura will explain to me.

Even though there were a few times it seemed to move a little slow, the story never felt bogged-down. I'm happy I saw it.