The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

I saw David Fincher's beautifully realized The Curious Case of Benjamin Button today, mainly because of the multiple Oscar nominations and also because members of the Filmspotting forum whom I respect had recommended it. What an excellent film! Yes, it's a love story, but it's also an affirmation of life in general and of aging in particular. The text of the film looks death directly in the eye and doesn't blink.

Cate Blanchett is amazing as Daisy, and Brad Pitt is compelling as the aging-backward Benjamin. The scenes of Daisy dancing and Benjamin on the motorcycle are worth the ticket price.

The art direction and cinematography are flawless. Snowy scenes, seascapes, New Orleans' Bourbon Street and other sites are all beautifully shot.

It's a grand experience. I hope you'll go and enjoy it as much as I did.

Filmspotting!

Filmspotting is a great movie podcast. Two hip guys, Adam and Matty, discuss film for an hour each week. They review recent releases, conduct a film marathon, give very mediocre performances of a movie scene (that segment is called Massacre Theatre for good reason), and designate their picks for a weekly top 5 on some film topic. Their film board is the best around. Many film students and film aficionados plus regular folk like me discuss every aspect of film and play film games like movie trivia and name that screenshot. All my movie-viewing recommendations come from these two sources.
Filmspotting is heard every week on NPR radio as well as in the podcast format. If you're into film and have no one to share your film knowledge with, you should check out Filmspotting and the Filmspotting boards. Good times!