The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

First off I'd like to say this was one of the best movies I've seen. It owned up to the hype that generated around it. Although it was extremely long, by the end of the film, I did not feel like I had been sitting idle for 3 hours. To me that's an accomplishment. With that out of the way, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was a powerful movie and I completely agree with Phill Boogie on that one. However, I also agree with Randy Bandit when he said Benjamin himself was not all that interesting beside the fact he was aging in reverse. I think that a lot of the power behind the movie comes from the fact that personality wise there was nothing extraordinary about Benjamin. I think it kept the audience from feeling sorry for him or being overly sympathetic to him if something did not quite go his way. He was a person who just happened to be a little different. I really liked the fact that mostly everyone Benjamin came in contact with treated him as an equal. There was not a whole lot of the shock factor and what was included only lasted for a little while.
To speak on Taraji P. Henson's performance, I know a lot of people identify her as a sort of "Mammy" character. I did not really see that until someone brought it up. In the theater, I was truly enjoying the film for what it was. I can see how she displays some Mammy-like characteristics but I feel like to call her a Mammy is to say that every Black woman in a caretaking position is a Mammy and that is not necessarily true. Henson's character was not indebted to the people she took care of. She was not, in the traditional sense of the Mammy, neglectful of her own personal life. Like Phill Boogie said, she had control over what was going on. Although she put her romantic relationship slightly on hold for Benjamin, it was implied that it continued at a slower (maybe more physical lol) pace. Like many of the surrounding characters, she contributed to what was interesting about Benjamin.
All in all I truly think this was an amazing film. It incorporated romantic love, love for self, forgivness, selflessness, and adventure without confusing the viewer or making them feel bombarded.