The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

In F. Scott Fitzgerald's story, Benjamin Button is born as a feeble old man who ages in reverse. So when he is "old" he looks very young. From a well-to-do family in Baltimore, Maryland, Button finds life easier in the middle years, when his biological and chronological ages fit in with the rest of the world. It is only when he is far too young at the end of his life and far too old at the beginning that problems arise.

In the film version, Benjamin Button is born in 1919. He ages backwards from old man to baby, causing complications when he falls in love with Daisy, a thirty year old woman. The film is set in New Orleans and surrounding Louisiana.

Fitzgerald noted "This story was inspired by a remark of Mark Twain's to the effect that it was a pity that the best part of life came at the beginning and the worst part at the end." Both novel and film versions are dark portraits of romance and mortality.

Born with the body of an old man, Benjamin finds himself aging backwards as everyone around him ages "correctly". Living life in this fashion proves awkward and creates problems for Benjamin. His parents continue to treat him like a "baby", even though he smokes cigars and can't play like a normal child. His birth causes an uproar in society. It is when he turns 12 that he realizes he ages differently then the rest, growing younger the older he gets. But no one believes he is who he says, causing trouble when he tries to attend Yale looking like a 50 year old man when in fact he is only 18. In his "middle years" he finds life at its best, falling in love with Daisy. But as he continues to age backwards, more complications arise.

Brad Pitt as Benjamin Button
Cate Blanchett as Daisy
Tilda Swinton as Elizabeth Abbott
Taraji P. Henson as Queenie
Jason Flemyng as Thomas Button
Elias Koteas as Monsieur Gateau
Julia Ormond as Caroline
Ed Metzger as President Theodore Roosevelt
Elle Fanning as Daisy - Age 6
Spencer Daniels as Benjamin Button - Age 12
Madisen Beaty as Daisy - Age 10
Shiloh Jolie-Pitt (cameo)

American actor, film producer, and social activist William Bradley Pitt was born December 18, 1963. He became famous during the mid-1990s for roles in Thelma and Louise, Interview With the Vampire, Legends of the Fall and Se7en. Pitt received a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award nomination for his role in the 1995 film Twelve Monkeys.

Formerly married to actress Jennifer Aniston, Pitt is in a relationship with actress and activist Angelina Jolie. The couple are raising six children together, three adopted and three biological.

Australian actress Catherine Blanchett was born May 14, 1969. She came to international attention in the 1998 film Elizabeth in which she portrayed Elizabeth I of England. She is also known for her portrayals of the elf queen Galadriel in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Blanchett won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress after her role in The Aviator portraying Katharine Hepburn.

She is married to Andrew Upton and the couple have three sons. Cate is one of very few people to win all four major cinema awards, The Oscar, The Golden Globe, The SAG Award, and The BAFTA.