You know, I was JUST saying to myself “we need another thread bitching about the Curious Case of Benjamin Button is on Criterion”…
Look, we all know. If you did a forum/thread search, there are already plenty of threads devoted to complaining about it.
Benjamin Button is just this month’s David Lynch.
I’ll agree with that Brandon. I can’t wait till this one passes.
Wait, Criterion is releasing this? Lulz to the excelsior, that’s like ewwwww! Slumdog is soooo much awesomer, rofl.
I wish I could type “Lollercoaster” in JUMBO FONT in response to this BB warbling.
This will have to suffice.
I’m glad to see others feel the same way as me. Not that I think Criterion is some Holy Book of Great Films, but…I do kinda think that.
Whoa. RANDOM!!
I haven’t seen Benjamin Button yet, but, that aside, does it occur to anyone that the Criterion Collection needs to make money, too, like any other business?
Right you are Phil, they need to make money too. Besides pleasing the few hundred people who are frothing at the mouth over three new Imamura releases (which I am one of), I seriously doubt the good people at Crite are saying, “that Armageddon movie was classic, let’s build a pedestal for it”. The eleventy-gadillion people who will buy Benjamin Button because the Academy gave their blessing will allow Crite to distribute a bunch more obscure foreign films for the next three years.
Please never refer to CC as CRITE
Please continue discussion of this topic in the proper thread, here. Thanks!
On one hand, it is hard to fathom why CC would handle the worst film from a brilliant filmmaker (OK, admittedly I haven’t seen The Game so I can’t really say that).
One the other hand — it IS an interesting failure — epic in scope, thematically ambitious, gorgeously shot, and probably the greatest visual and makeup effects in any film ever. Not every title from this label has to be canonical.
What’s really disappointing, though, is that, going through the extras, it is the same crap you would get from most studio DVDs — press materials, making-ofs, standard commentary (though Fincher does excellent commentaries) — so where’s the added value for the premium price you will pay for this DVD?? No scholarly material? How about a reprint of the Hemingway short story? Extra points for bravery if they did a Benjamin Button / Forrest Gump scene-by-scene comparison!
Tom, I think you mean Fitzgerald.
I think you’re right in pointing out that the extras are your standard studio type, but partly due to Button’s recent release; there hasn’t been enough distance in time to add any other retrospective features.
Whether cineastes liked the film or not, or Eric Roth’s Forrest Gump-rehash script (which I saw as the main problem of the film), it’s hard to deny that in a CG saturated industry, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a technical accomplishment complemented by Brad Pitt’s astounding performance of a man who ages backwards. Put this in the hands of any director and they would have failed. Imagine this in the hands of Zemeckis or Spielberg? The gripes would have mutliplied.
Even if film history dismisses the content of the film, it will always cite Button for its technical achievement. Think The Jazz Singer. As a film it’s mediocre, but it’s recognized for its achievement in sound. That’s why I think Benjamin Button is a suitable for The Criterion Collection: it recognizes films that have made contributions, in one aspect or another, to film. Even if they’re not perfect.
Why is everyone selling this movie so short? It is bravura filmmaking, if not a complete success, and the Collection is about displaying great works and the work of great directors. Fincher is absolutely one of our finest directors. He will absolutely be discussed as an auteur in the years to come and that we can experience his work in an immediate way (as I was unable to do with Kurosawa or Fuller or Welles or many others) is a joy and a privilege.
That the Collection is bringing us the work of great contemporary filmmakers is a fact to embrace. No. It is not Fincher’s best film. But the chance to see a flawed masterpiece in the best way possible and in the best possible context (which the good people at Criterion do provide) is fantastic. I am thrilled to see this release and hope it paves the way for more of our currently working auteurs to be seen in this, the best possible way.
I kinda hated the film for its sloppy story, but the effects are state of the art. Say what you will about the film its the kind of movie that changes a 14 year old into a film buff. I probably would have loved this film at that age. Its a good starting point in introducting the brand to newcommers. And Criterion needs to get their brand out there. They dont want to limit themselves to classic art and cult films.
Yes, CC does need to make money. Its as simple as… " if you don’t like it, then don’t buy it." CC still has one of the best catalogue of films assembled though.
I lykke sehccks.
I lykke sehccks.
Criterion can make good money by selling “Seven” or “Fight club”. “Benjamin Button”? When would Criterion release “The Green Mile”?
I think Curious Case is a very beautiful film and I don’t see any reason for all of this griping about it being part of the CC. I feel that Benjamin Button, over the years, will reveal itself to be a much love and cherished film. I feel it will be a film that people will look back upon and ask why did it not get the Oscar?
I thought the film was amazing and I am really looking forward to this release. Thanks Criterion!
The Criterion Collection should be ashamed of itself for releasing the Curious Case of Benjamin Button! The movie progressively worsened as the film continued. The under-acting by Brad Pitt and countless similarities to Forrest Gump lead me disappointed for days. Benjamin Button was the only unique character and was placed in a very boring setting. I have gained so much respect for the Criterion over the years with films like “the man who fell to earth” and " Ikiru". This is just another terrible American film added to a list of greats. Its bad enough that “Armageddon” and “Dazed and Confused” are Criterion. Shame of you Criterion…Shame on you
PLEASE CONTINUE DISCUSSION OF THIS TOPIC HERE and let this thread die, otherwise we’ll delete it. Thanks!
really dvkman? did you really just put armageddon and dazed and confused in the same sentence? how can you fault criterion for including an important, very very influential, beautiful, funny film like dazed and confused? to me it sounds like you are just being pretentious. we can all agree that we are baffled by the inclusion of armageddon or the rock, but leave legit classics that greatly changed film alone. and although, button was disappointing on many levels, we can’t deny that it is refreshing to see an american film unafraid of a slow pace, beautiful imagery, excellent non-intrusive acting (not reaching desperately deep to try and get a nomination), and a positive, uplifting, but heartbreaking story. i completely understand why criterion has chosen to release this important film.
They have released so many obscure movies that most publishers would even bother to give 1/90th the attention Criterion gave them, and you guys sit here and gripe because they are putting out Benjamin Button? Makes me wonder if Criterion was reissuing this 20 years from now rather than releasing it New if half the amount of people would complain. This a far classier money making choice than “The Rock” or “Armagedon”; you guys act as if they were releasing “Next” or something.
When are they announcing the Steven Seagal “Three syllables collection” Eclipse set? (Hard to Kill, Under Siege, Exit Wounds and Glimmer Man)
Oh wait, this Benjamin Button thing isn’t an April fools joke?
“Benjamin Button” is a movie that will stand the test of time. It is truly a new “Citizen Kane.” It has redefined filmmaking for a whole new generation and got completely snubbed at the 2009 Oscars. The fact that this movie did not even win half of its 13 nominations is an enormous insult to David Fincher and his vision. (The academy already snubbed him for his 2007 masterpiece, “Zodiac.”) As a film educator, I can promise all of you (to the delight of cinephiles around the world) that this movie will be the new standard by which movies of the digital age will be compared to. Mark my words!
http://www.theauteurs.com/topics/1798/comments
Seriously, let this thread die.
I think it’s a contractual agreement with David Fincher and The Criterion Collection, which released David Fincher’s ‘Seven’ and ‘The Game’ on laserdisc sometime back. I don’t care for ‘Benjamin Button’ in David Fincher’s canon despite the superb filmmaking and storytelling, but when I heard it was Criterion, I wasn’t that suprised. I think ‘Zodiac’ would’ve been a better title for Criterion, but the special edition rights to that title were already owned by Paramount, so Criterion couldn’t do that one. It’s the only Fincher title to be nominated for Best Picture, even though it’s his weakest auteurist effort since ‘Panic Room’. The problem lies within the writing by Eric Roth: ‘Forrest Gump’ from the director of ‘Fight Club’. It’s a shame that the scale of Fincher’s vision and the technical wizardly is undermined by a weak and, frankly, cliched story. The sailor might as well be Lieutenant Dan, and Cate Blanchett is Jenny Gump. There’s even a hummingbird that skirts about the characters here and there, echoing the feather that opens ‘Forrest Gump’ by landing on his shoe.
David Fincher is a great filmmaker, and ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’ is most certainly an example of filmmaking at it’s finest techincal quality and invention. But the story itself is so weak that by the end of it’s 2 1/2 hour running time, we don’t feel it’s intended transcendance but instead feel indifference and disappointment. My two cents.
Gordon Braithwaite
I just don’t understand why this is part of the Collection. I really thought it was an mistake on the several sites … guess not. From the fact that this is a mediocre film that will be forgotten by the time the next batch of Oscar bait films come out, to the generic and disappointing cover art … I constantly defend the inclusion of lots of questionable titles but this one seems like a potboiler dvd if I’ve ever known one…. and that’s really frustrating amidst the quality of films Criterion has been putting out recently. Whatever, I’ll get over it in a few weeks and just tell myself that it was all just a nightmare…