The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Movie Details:

Cast & Characters:

• Brad Pitt as Benjamin Button (adult)
  • Robert Towers as Benjamin Button (apparent adult)
  • Peter Donald Badalamenti II as Benjamin Button (apparent adult)
  • Tom Everett as Benjamin Button (apparent adult)
  • Spencer Daniels as Benjamin Button (apparent age 12)
  • Chandler Canterbury as Benjamin Button (apparent age 8)
  • Charles Henry Wyson as Benjamin Button (apparent age 6)
• Cate Blanchett as Daisy Fuller (adult)
  • Madisen Beaty as Daisy Fuller (age 10)
  • Elle Fanning as Daisy Fuller (age 7)
• Taraji P. Henson as Queenie
• Julia Ormond as Caroline Button (adult)
  • Katta Hules as Caroline Button (age 12)
  • Shiloh Jolie-Pitt as Caroline Button (age 2)
• Jason Flemyng as Thomas Button
• Elias Koteas as Monsieur Gateau
• Tilda Swinton as Elizabeth Abbott
• Mahershala Ali as Tizzy Weathers
• Jared Harris as Captain Mike Clark
• Faune A. Chambers as Dorothy Baker
• Ed Metzger as Theodore Roosevelt
• Phyllis Somerville as Grandma Fuller
• Edith Ivey as Mrs. Maple
• Josh Stewart as Pleasant Curtis
• David Ross Paterson as Walter Abbott
• Bianca Chiminello as Daisy’s friend
• Rampai Mohadi as Ngunda Oti
• Lance E. Nichols as Preacher

Storyline:

On the day that Hurricane Katrina hits New Orleans, elderly Daisy Williams (nee Fuller) is on her deathbed in a New Orleans hospital. At her side is her adult daughter, Caroline. Daisy asks Caroline to read to her aloud the diary of Daisy’s lifelong friend, Benjamin Button. Benjamin’s diary recounts his entire extraordinary life, the primary unusual aspect of which was his aging backwards, being diagnosed with several aging diseases at birth and thus given little chance of survival, but who does survive and gets younger with time. Abandoned by his biological father, Thomas Button, after Benjamin’s biological mother died in childbirth, Benjamin was raised by Queenie, a black woman and caregiver at a seniors home. Daisy’s grandmother was a resident at that home, which is where she first met Benjamin. Although separated through the years, Daisy and Benjamin remain in contact throughout their lives, reconnecting in their forties when in age they finally match up. Some of the revelations in Benjamin’s diary are difficult for Caroline to read, especially as it relates to the time past this reconnection between Benjamin and Daisy, when Daisy gets older and Benjamin grows younger into his childhood years.

About Movie:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a 2008 American romantic fantasy drama film directed by David Fincher. The storyline by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord is loosely based on the 1922 short story of the same name by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The film stars Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Taraji P. Henson, Julia Ormond, Jason Flemyng, Elias Koteas, and Tilda Swinton.

Producer Ray Stark bought the film rights to do the short story in the mid-1980s with Universal Pictures backing the film, but struggled to get the project off the ground until he sold the rights to producers Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall in the 1990s. Although it was moved to Paramount Pictures in the 1990s, the film did not enter production until after Fincher and Pitt signed on along with the rest of the cast in 2005.

Principal photography began in November 2006 and wrapped up in September 2007. Principal photography was targeted to last a total of 150 days. Additional time was needed at visual effects house Digital Domain to make the visual effects for the metamorphosis of Brad Pitt’s character to the infant stage. The director used a camera system called Contour, developed by Steve Perlman, to capture facial deformation data from live-action performances.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was released in North America on December 25, 2008 to positive reviews, with major praise for Fincher’s directing, Pitt’s performance, production values, and visual effects. The film was a box office success, grossing $335.8 million worldwide against its $167 million budget.

The film received a leading 13 Academy Award nominations at the 81st Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director for Fincher, Best Actor for Pitt, and Best Supporting Actress for Taraji P. Henson, and won three, for Best Art Direction, Best Makeup, and Best Visual Effects.

Budget & Box Office Collection: