The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a 2008 American fantasy romantic 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 as a man who ages in reverse and Cate Blanchett as the love interest throughout his life. The film also stars 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. Digital Domain worked on the visual effects of the film, particularly in the process of the metamorphosis of Pitt's character. 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.
Whether it's by accident or by design, there's not a thing we can do about it. A woman in Paris was on her way to go shopping. But she had forgotten her coat, went back to get it. When she had gotten her coat, the phone had rung. So she had stopped to answer it and talked for a couple of minutes. While the woman was on the phone, Daisy was rehearsing for a performance at the Paris Opera House. And while she was rehearsing, the woman, off the phone now, had gone outside to get a taxi.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Now, a taxi driver had dropped off a fare earlier, and had stopped to get a cup of coffee. And all the while, Daisy was rehearsing. And this cab driver, who dropped off the earlier fare and had stopped to get the cup of coffee, he picked up the lady who was going shopping and had missed getting the earlier cab. The taxi had to stop for a man crossing the street, who had left for work five minutes later than he normally did because he forgot to set his alarm. While that man, late for work, was crossing the street, Daisy had finished rehearsing and was taking a shower. And while Daisy was showering, the taxi was waiting outside a boutique for the woman to pick up a package which hadn't been wrapped yet, because the girl who was supposed to wrap it had broken up with her boyfriend the night before and forgot. When the package was wrapped, the woman, who was back in the cab, was blocked by a delivery truck. All the while, Daisy was getting dressed. The delivery truck pulled away, and the taxi was able to move while Daisy, the last to be dressed, waited for one of her friends who had broken a shoelace. While the taxi was stopped, waiting for a traffic light, Daisy and her friend came out the back of the theater. And if only one thing had happened differently, if that shoelace hadn't broken or that delivery truck had moved moments earlier or that package had been wrapped and ready because the girl hadn't broken up with her boyfriend, or that man had set his alarm and got up five minutes earlier or that taxi driver hadn't stopped for a cup of coffee or that woman had remembered her coat and got into an earlier cab, Daisy and her friend would have crossed the street and the taxi would have driven by. But, life being what it is, a series of intersecting lives and incidents out of anyone's control, that taxi did not go by, and that driver was momentarily distracted. Daisy! And that taxi hit Daisy. Daisy! Help! And her leg was crushed. Daisy?
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button