The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Published: 1921 Copyright: 2007 Pages: 32

My Rating: 3 stars - short story 4.5 stars - movie

Inspired by a comment made by Mark Twain ~ "Life would be infinitely happier if we could only be born at the age of 80 and gradually approach 18" ~ the short story of Benjamin Button was born. This is an odd, kind-of-sad, fairy-tale like story, short in pages and on descriptive detail and character development. While a unique story, I found it quite a stark, blunt tale of prejudice, disillusionment and rejection. Obviously you have to consider that this was published in 1921 but frankly I much preferred the movie to the short story which you can download for free here. Set in Baltimore, the story begins in the 1860 as Roger Button rushes to the Maryland Private Hospital for the birth of his first child, only to discover his newborn is a full-grown, walking, talking old man, complete with beard, crotchety nature, & many of the health issues of the aged. (let's not think about the logistics of that!) With horror & embarrassment Roger takes Benjamin home expecting him to shave, dye his hair, eat baby food and play with baby toys. Benjamin eventually discovers he is aging backwards, he begins work for his father, marries the beautiful Hildegard & enjoys a degree of happiness, but as his wife ages & he grows younger, Benjamin becomes disenchanted, yearning for freedom. The majority of the story is really about the lack of acceptance from not only society but Benjamin's own family. In the film, Benjamin is born in 1918, an average sized baby with wrinkles and old-man health issues. While in the story Benjamin grows younger both physically and mentally; in the movie, he ages mentally as he grows physically younger. Abandoned by his father on the steps of a boarding house for the elderly, Benjamin is cared for by the good-hearted Queenie. Benjamin grows and flourishes surrounded by the wisdom, love, and acceptance of Queenie and the other housemates. He departs for a life of adventure on the sea, returning to once again meet Daisy, a little girl he he formed an emotional connection with as a teenager. Daisy is the emotional pivot for Benjamin throughout the tale, a passionate love affair blossoms into tender romance but you'll have to watch this one yourself to see what else is in store. Daisy, a dancer and free spirit recalls much of Benjamin’s life from her deathbed which obviously makes you aware of the bitter-sweet ending but does nothing to detract from the visual and emotional impact of the film. Unlike the short story, I loved this warm, sentimental love story which features Brad Pitt as Benjamin, Cate Blanchett as Daisy and Taraji P. Henson as Queenie. While it shares only a title and a basic premise with its literary source, the movie is a tender, poetic piece of story telling with attention to detail. Mind you at almost 3 hours long, there is plenty of time for detail.