The Curious Case

I've finished reading F. Scott Fitzgerald The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I couldn't helped but cry when I've finished this short story. It's not a peculiar reaction from me. I've cried over novels, mangas, animes, movies and korean dramas (especially when my favorite character, usually the cute male one, died or not having that very good ending). Anyways, about this short story, its already been made into motion picture long ago, with the same title, starred by Brad Pitt as Benjamin Button. I haven't watched the movie, but I saw the 81st Academy Awards when this movie was nominated in almost all categories. Brad Pitt was also nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role. Well, they've got the Best art Direction, Best Make up, and Best Visual effects. The movie tagline was "I was born in an unusual circumstances". So, I've already been curious about this movie. What's about this case? What are these unusual circumstances? Well, I just got curious, but did not watch the movie after all. Hihi.

I've read reviews about this movie.The film received positive reviews. It scored 70 out of 100. Some criticized this film by saying that it resembled Forrest Gump that only goes backwards. Well, I can't tell. I've seen Forrest Gump twice (I did not enjoy it though). Before  I started this short story, I've already know this curious case, this tale is about a man born at the end of his life and has the rare opportunity of growing young, living his life in reverse as it were. That's all I know and that's what the story's all about. The usual life stages of a man, just in a reverse order. Fitzgerald states in the beginning of that story that it was inspired by a Mark Twain's statement that the best things in life happen at the beginning and the worst at the end. With "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" plays the cynic, exploring how living life in reverse can be seemingly beneficial yet ultimately devastating.

Benjamin's character here is just a normal man for me. He was born in an appearance of a threescore and ten old man. At 12 years old, his family discovered that he is aging backward. He is an intelligent boy, so at the age of 18, but looking like a fifty-year dirty old man, he passed and enrolled at Yale College. He was sent out by the officials because they think Ben is a 50-year old lunatic, claiming to be an 18-year old teen. I loved it, when after he'd been kicked out, he still managed to walked with dignity, and before the officials and the undergrads he said in a firm voice: "I'm eighteen years old". I bet he surely looks lunatic saying that.

At 20, he falls in love with a beautiful young girl. How will I say this, hmm, fortunate? lucky? I mean, this girl actually likes men older than her. Not just older, but men around 50. She states her reasons behind that. So they've got married and had a child. As years passed, the wife gets older and unattractive, and Ben's getting younger and handsome. At first, Ben thought that when he reach the stage when his bodily age is equivalent to his age in years, it would stop there. But he grows younger each year and felt uneasy instead of delighted.

To cut this short story short, you can already  picture out what will happen if someone grows younger instead. He had a grandchild, but he looks like a little brother. He entered kindergarten with his grandchild and stayed there for years, while his son's little boy accelerates. Benjamin was very happy. This is the most tear jerking lines for me: Sometimes when other tots talked about what they would do when they grew up a shadow would cross his little face as if in a dim, childish way he realized that those were things in which he was never to share. The days flowed on in monotonous content.....he cried because the other boys were bigger than he, and he was afraid of them.......He tried to understand he could not understand at all.

The last three paragraph of the 11th chapter  gave my way to tears. I really don't know, I just felt the loneliness for Ben. Being alone in a crib, doesn't remember anything. Then it was all dark, and his white crib and the dim faces that moved above him, and the warm sweet aroma of the milk, faded out altogether from his mind. I don't know what happened. Did he die or just fell asleep? Anyways, whatever happened, I can't stop my  tears  from falling.