A Letter to David Fincher

January 09, 2009

Dear Mr. Fincher,
I went to see your latest film "The Case of Benjamin Button" last night.
I have been awed by your films in the past, Seven, Fight Club, and Zodiac were all films that left me out of breath when the credits rolled. In each you had tremendous talent in your actors but that alone is not enough to make a great film. Your instincts, your ability to tell the story, made the films so real, the emotions so raw, the ideas so profound. I was almost traumatized.
My reaction to Benjamin Button was violent out of disgust, not awe.
Initially I saw the trailer for this film, without knowing your name was attached. I immediately dismissed the film. The trailer presents a feel good drama that makes leaps through history to tell the story of a man who's life becomes a mirror for society. Through his eyes we can experience the wonder and cruelty of humanity until we realize how short and precious life really is. It looked like a slick, well packaged, big budget, Brad Pitt vehicle for the holiday season. To that I said No Thanks, 9 bucks is staying in my pocket until the next Sean Penn film gets released.
It's been a long time since I've had any respect for Brad Pitt the actor. He's seemingly become lost in the little personality that he created for himself as an architect without any training, and expatriate, celebrity philanthropist. I really don't give a crap who he's screwing or marrying, or how many children he has. I'm talking about the actor, one who calls his own shots and can make any movie he wants and have any role he wants and The Mexican, Troy, The Ocean Movies, Mr. and Mrs. Smith - well these are just terrible films and Brad was dull, pretty, simple, predictable, flat, pretty -(okay the first Ocean's 11 was entertaining) enough about Brad Pitt, this letter is for you.
No, I hadn't the least inclination to go see your film until I saw you being interviewed with Pitt on the Charlie Rose Show. I watched the entire interview. Charlie spoke very highly of your film. You talked about the friend who was with their dying parent who inspired scenes and even dialogue in your film. You all talked about this film as though it was your Magnum Opus. I was intrigued and actually went out and read the short story. I had great optimism.
This was not your pet project as I understand, another director Spike Jonze was initially thought to take this, and then another director did and was fired and you came on board. This isn't your genre, it's your first time in the world of PG-13. It's also the first time you made a film that truly sucks. I'm sorry but there's no other way to say it. Your film sucks the life out of me. It had almost nothing redeemable. That's tough to do when you have Tilda Swinton, and Cate Blanchet in a film.
You took a little 30 page short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald and turned it into the longest, most drawn out, pathetic attempt to please the masses and rake in the cash that I've ever seen. You tried to take the Forrest Gump model and cross it with The English Patient, and throw a little of Tim Burton's Big Fish to make a film that would make millions in profit, and possibly get an Oscar. Way to play it. Except it was not Forest Gump, could never dream to touch the English Patient, and lacked the authenticity and spirit of Big Fish.
My largest criticism of your film is that it lacks authenticity. You changed the setting from Baltimore, Maryland to New Orleans, Louisiana. Was that because of Brad?Was it supposed to add complexity?The clock maker with the "creole wife", what the hell was the point of that? Just so we could see a backwards clock flooded by levy water in the closing shot? I thought you might go into that storyline a little more because the idea of a clock going backwards in a movie about a baby aging backwards, well it's interesting, there's potential. But you didn't explain or explore it. Inter-racial relationships were not commonplace or accepted in the deep South in the 1900's. No matter let's push on. How about dying Daisy in the bed? She's to the point of taking her last shallow breaths. She's on drip morphine. And yet she has the mental clarity, and ability to convey her life story as Hurricane Katrina whips it's way toward them. This was insulting. The little back and forth between the old woman and her daughter, the impossibility of it. The cheap device was so distracting as she narrated this cliche tale that meanders on and barely ties together. I kept thinking about my own family members close to death, in hospitals and hospice, on morphine who could barely mutter two words or follow your finger with their eyes. This made me want to slap you and every executive who greenlighted this project or was on set during production congratulating himself.

Finally I want to say if my letter was long, your 2 hour and 48 minute movie was longer. I can't believe I sat in that packed theater for nearly 3 hours getting spoon fed only to hear 'some people are mothers, some people make buttons, some people dance...'
I guess Life is really 'like a box of chocolates' wait that was Gump I meant 'you never know what's coming for you' I take this to mean, you're about to see a really bad film.

Sincerely,
JD