The Dismal Failure of Benjamin Button

In what may have been the worst movie-going experience of my life, I desperately am trying to forget about The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. The culturally vacuous dire straights of a military town were no match for Ben. The fatigue-wearing, jar-headed, government-issued soldiers accompanied by out-of-school thugs were in the wrong theater. The chronic, empty, and despondent opening of the film would turn any viewer out. The director’s attempt at period filming, in the failed and callous “reality TV” style, served up a poisonous, vinegary, and disconnected depiction of the precursor to the Roaring Twenties. Whence do these approaches come? Has no working film director ever studied their craft? Has no one ever mentioned that camera angle is meant to be a synonym for the human eyes? What is the purpose of television and film media’s blatant disregard for the human condition? If they beat the dead horse anymore, it merely will disappear. Certainly it lost its power less than a year after its inception. Understand this. The “Blair Witch” concept of filming, while appropriate for a juvenile, homemade, horror film does not translate to adults. No adult, no matter how long you continue to pitch an altered reality, ever is going to acknowledge that the haphazard and chaotic approach of meth induced ADD is normal. Bring out the dollies, the cranes, and the hand helds and learn your craft. I can’t wait to forget how big a failure Australia and Valkyrie will be. Suddenly the “I can’t act” disease is an epidemic. Spare us Rupert Murdoch. No matter how much you try you cannot subvert the artistry and integrity of American tradition.