Sunday, August 2, 2009

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

It is a good movie indeed, but there a lot to complaint.
Benjamin Button, as a part is an original. Quite unique, a character that is built to be contradicts what we have known as natural creation for all this while. Benjamin has been born, and he was born old! Imagine you have given birth to a baby, but having an old body and senses at 80’s. The body was weaken by arthritis, the sight deteriorate by cataract and all old symptoms. What that would be? How will be the life of the baby then? Can you imagine?
This is a story about a Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Brad Pitts as its anchor actor.
The story begins, with a focus to a clock that has been build for a famous train station at New Orleans. The clock smith was a man, but completely blind which has a son. The son has been forced to go to war (World War I) and serve the country but die as a patriot. His father, the clock maker was heart broken but still has put all his effort to build the clock even then. At the opening ceremony, Teddy Roosevelt came and more of important people were there to witness and celebrate the new clock. But everybody was shocked when the clock strikes its first second, the clock needle went backward. It is not surprised to the clock maker then, he meant to build that clock that way. He said, “The clock is to remind for our sons that lost in war hoping they can come back, make a farm, having a family and raise children.”
That the story begin, focusing on a weird clock. A functioning clock to tell other what is the time but its movement is all backward or we can call it as counter clockwise. The story resemblance the clock is as not natural, odd, bad omen and weird and to some people considered it is offend. To accept such to society is might be really abnormal, tough, like swimming against the current, and even face total isolation from the society.
The baby was born in a very rich family, a family which having their own factory to make buttons and supplied to the southern America (New Orleans) and to all over the state. When the father has the opportunity to look at him for the first time, he was trembling and shocked to death. He thought that the baby is a monster. At the same time his wife died of given birth. Without hesitate he snatched the baby from the cradle and abandoned him at the old folk house. The father gave him 18 dollar and leaved him at the house stairs. Luckily, he was found by a color women, Queenie, the care taker of the old folk house and raise him as her own child. She loved him and does what a mother would do to raise a child. So the baby monster survived the odd. This is the beginning the whole story for Benjamin. The biological body has been reversed but his mind grew naturally as a baby, kid, teenagers, adults and old. Imagine what is life to Benjamin Button then? He will never be natural as he has to grow reversing other. People were born as a child and grow old, but to Benjamin he grows young. He will witness the one he love die one by one as he grew young, but the other they get old.
Isn’t this is a very interesting story? To me well the Benjamin Button character was unique and has been design par excellent.
However, I will not give any credit on how the story was told to the audience as it is obviously not unique. The originality isn’t there caused you can easily compare to Forest Gump actor by Tom Hanks. The story is about life from different angle. The story is about life from the perspective of abnormal person, Benjamin as he grew young and Forest as a retarded boy with complication in movement. Benjamin too has been portray that way, not be able to walk as he has arthritis at the beginning. The one which protects both Benjamin and Forest is the mother and been raised in a home with a lot of people come and go, exactly the same. Moreover, both Benjamin and Forest have the opportunity to see world in many circumstances and then come back to be home again and to find their true love.
They inherited a fortune but don’t have any single attention on it as money is not everything and sometime not connected for happiness. For whosoever has watch Forest Gump and being a fan to that film, you will find that Benjamin Button is just another version of ‘life is like a box of chocolate, you never know what you get’.
But still is worth to watch then. It is most amazing how man creativity will work for the same theme but at different angle yet they can still steal the spotlight from the audience.
However Hollywood movie still a Hollywood movie. Watching the movie produce from the famous industry with knowledge will eventually degrade you from the value and tradition that you have been upholding all this while. Watching Hollywood’s and believing what ever the story teller told you is true or at least you accept the value they sell to you as an absolute good, you will eventually let yourself of to become less human.
Why the story focus on a clock that the movement has been reversed because of the clock maker’s disappointment to the tragedy that has been put to his only son?
Why they portray contradict as a bad omen, and whosoever to face with that casualty will having a bad life and struggle?
Why they should give the idea being odd will eventually being isolated to the common society unless you have a home that suit with that?
They self claimed what ever natural to them is an absolute true. What ever contradictory with what they have accepted is reversing, not normal, not common.
The analogy lies on the clock that moved backward.
But have you ever stop and rethink, what is an absolute truth? The movement clockwise or the movements counter clockwise?
The whole universe if you at least learn some about the space and universe, you will always find that all of the objects are in the state of movement. Either they spin on their own, or evolve around others. The best example is the Earth herself. The Earth spin on its own and at the same time evolve around the sun to complete one cycle.
What is the movement then?
It is obviously counter clockwise. What is more obvious then?
If the world does not spin counter clockwise I will ensure you it will never support life and people will not have the opportunity to even exist.
So now you think, what is natural and what is not.

2 comments:

zf_zamir said...

I disagree, I'm sorry.

Its critical and analytic, but too analytic means we would lose human sights for value added.

Lets see, the title itself reflect the whole idea of that idea.

What if I choose to see from this part, the angle which the father (clock-maker) seriously make the clock backward, expose the desire of the writer's idea which revolt the rare, sole natural unimaginary of re-clock or see backwards.

What's beautiful here is, the writer's scheme purposely reject the normal idea's of time line.

In a semi-paradox imagination, the story is logical within our sense, its natural to have something that gone through time, separate the psycho absurdity of our own perception.

I see, Benjamin Button as ourselves, always wanted the past to catch us and fix time bond where hope is something we wish for.

In Benjamin Button, lies the hope, the will that could brought us, thousand times flies catch the apprehend of our vicious circle.

At least, this is my view.

We differ a lot in this case, hahah.

ASaL said...

well, surprisingly, i never get dissapointed if we contradict each other. That the beauty, we will see at different angle right. You contradict me with the Kite Runner and now for Benjamin Button.
Yes, i do feel the sensational after finishing Benjamin Button. Yes, i do feel the spirit and tragedy in Benjamin Button life, but he as the tragedy himself, against all odd live a happy life and teach other what is life look like. That the irony, a man with tragedy teach us how to be happy. But I have strong reasons not to support hollywood movie caused in any movie, I doubt the intention. They are not struggle to take control on media for nothing. Yes I live the prejudice and in absurdity, like you when you make your comment on Kite Runner. Remember?