The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

What is it with me and movies that are based on short stories? Not since the 2006 (released in 2007) movie Away From Her- based on Alice Munro's short story "The Bear Came Down the Mountain" have I loved a movie this much. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is based on the F. Scott Fitzgerald short story of the same name published in 1922. The movie is the story of a man who ages backwards. Brad Pitt shows and especially Cate Blanchett again proves their awesome ability at taking on a character and making them their own. Taraji P Henson confirms her much-deserved nomination as Queenie, Benjamin's mom. Mr. Daws (as played by the late Ted Manson) is the comic relief of the film at his plight of being struck by lightening--seven times! Besides the wonderful acting, the makeup is amazing. We know that Brad Pitt is not as short as a child but the makeup is seamless in its depiction of an old man played by Brad Pitt on a child's body. The score accurately depicted all of the years of Benjamin's life. The story was easily followed, true to the short story and well-directed by David Fincher. You walk away from the movie almost emotionally spent from laughing, crying and especially concentrating on the thought-provoking master of dialogue. You will also walk out in disbelief that you just spent 2 hours and 40 minutes sitting in a theatre. I give this movie two HUGE thumbs up in awesomely representing its own tag line: "Life is not measured in minutes but in moments."