Hidden Figures

Based on the non-fiction book by Margot Lee Shetterly, Hidden Figures is the true story of female African-American mathematicians who worked at NASA where they would provide the numbers for the right flight trajectories for the Mercury space missions in the early 1960s. Directed by Theodore Melfi and screenplay by Melfi and Allison Schroeder, the film is an exploration of the small number of people whose contribution to the 1960s space race to be as important as those that flew into outer space. Starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monae, Kirsten Dunst, Jim Parsons, Glen Powell, Mahershala Ali, and Kevin Costner. Hidden Figures is an enchanting and exhilarating film from Theodore Melfi.

Set in 1961 and 1962, the revolves around a trio of African-American women who work at the Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia for NASA where one of the women would find the right mathematic problems for flight trajectories for the upcoming Mercury space missions during the 1960s space race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Though these three women try to deal with the work they have to do at a time where everything is segregated at the time as men and women work at different buildings with African-American women having to work in one different side of the building with white women. They all have a role to play in order to beat the Russians in the space race as they’re having a hard time catching up with them. The film’s screenplay by Theodore Melfi and Allison Schroeder does have a straightforward structure as it play into the obstacles the mathematician Katherine Goble (Taraji P. Henson), the aspiring engineer Mary Jackson (Janelle Monae), and supervisor Dorothy Vaughn (Octavia Spencer) face.

Yet, the script focuses largely on Goble who is a widowed mother of three girls as she is a gifted mathematician since she was a child yet is still undervalued until she is transferred to work with the Space Task Group led by Al Harrison (Kevin Costner) who would see what Goble has to offer. Still, she has to cope with the fact that she has to run half-a-mile to go to the bathroom since the closest one is only for white women until Harrison makes the decision to get rid of the ideas of segregation by knocking down a “colored only” sign in the women’s bathroom. While Goble would also have to endure the fast-paced world of getting results as well as deal with a supervisor in head engineer Paul Stafford (Jim Parsons) who is trying to impose his superiority over Goble. The script also showcase what Jackson and Vaughn go through as Jackson would work with Karl Zielinski (Olek Krupa) whom he sees as someone with potential and would encourage her to get her engineering degree.

For Vaughn who has been taking on the role of acting supervisor for her team, she still has to deal with her supervisor Vivian Mitchell (Kirsten Dunst) who tells Vaughn what she needs to do though she’s unaware that Vaughn would be the one to figure out the new IBM 7090 supercomputers and how they work. There is also a subplot as it relates to Goble’s personal life as she falls for a military officer in Jim Johnson (Mahershala Ali) who would eventually become her husband which would help bring some happiness to Goble just as she’s starting to find fulfillment in her professional life.

Melfi’s direction doesn’t have a lot of stylish visuals in order to capture a moment in time where it was an era of civil unrest as well as this sense of change emerging. Shot largely at the Morehouse College in Atlanta, the film opens with a look into Goble’s life when she as a child and how she became this unknowingly gifted child that could do math problems beyond anyone’s expectation. While Melfi would use some wide shots including some key scenes set in space, much of the film would have Melfi employ more straightforward shots to play into Goble and the need to do her work and stand out among many. Even as she would wear colorful dresses while the rest of her co-workers are seen wearing white shits and a black tie. The wide shots that Melfi creates in some of the buildings show that sense of disconnect between blacks and whites and their roles in NASA but it eventually becomes more intimate once they start to realize the value these women have for NASA.

Melfi would also play into light-hearted moments as it relates to some of the individual moments that Jackson would go through as she would file a petition to be allowed to get her engineering degree as well as Vaughn taking a library book that would allow her to understand the IBM machine. The film’s climax which revolves around the mission with John Glenn (Glen Powell) who has taken notice of Goble’s work and wants her to do the math as he sees her as someone of immense value. Though Goble at first isn’t part of this mission, Harrison realizes that everything they have been relying on with the IBM show some discrepancies in the calculations forcing him to have Goble at his side. It all play into what one person could do and make a small but important contribution to the space race. Overall, Melfi crafts a compelling and riveting film about three women whose small contributions to the 1960s space race would make a major difference for themselves and everyone else.

Cinematographer Mandy Walker does excellent work with the film’s cinematography from the usage of colors for many of the exterior daytime scenes as well as how some of the interiors are lit including some of the scenes set at night. Editor Peter Teschner does terrific work with the editing as it is largely straightforward with some rhythmic cuts to play into the drama. Production designer Wynn Thomas, with set decorator Missy Parker and art director Jeremy Woolsey, does brilliant work with the look of the offices and labs as it play into the environment the characters work at where it starts off that is a bit oppressive but then warms up once everyone is on the same page. Costume designer Renee Ehrlich Kalfus does amazing work with the costumes from the colorful dresses many of the African-American women wear at work and off work as well as the clothes that the white men/women wear which are a bit colorless to display their buttoned-down look.

Visual effects supervisors Chris and Mark LeDoux do fantastic work with the visual effects for the scenes set in outer space including the film’s climax during John Glenn’s Earth orbits. Sound designers Wayne Lemmer and Derek Vanderhorst do superb work with the sound in the way rockets sounded as well as the sparse elements in the way chalk and typewriters would sound. The film’s music by Hans Zimmer, Pharrell Williams, and Benjamin Wallfisch is incredible for its mixture of Zimmer and Wallfisch’s orchestral music to play into some of the low-key elements of the drama without anything bombastic as well as some of the soul-based music created by Williams who would also compile the film’s soundtrack to feature a lot of the music of the times including some of the soul music that was emerging during those times.

The casting by Victoria Thomas is great as it feature some notable small roles from the trio of Saniyaa Sidney, Ariana Neal, and Zani Jones Mbayise as Katherine’s daughters, Aldis Hodge as Mary’s husband, Donna Biscoe as Katherine’s mother who watches over her granddaughters, Karen Kendrick as the younger version of Katherine’s mother, Lidya Jewett as the young Katherine, Kimberly Quinn as Harrison’s secretary Ruth, Olek Krupa as the Jewish-Polish scientist Karl Zielinski who encourages Mary to get her degree as he sees value in her, and Glen Powell in a terrific performance as John Glenn who realizes the value in Katherine’s gift for mathematics as he sticks with her results rather than what everyone says. Jim Parsons is good as Paul Stafford as a head engineer who gives Goble problems to work on and not realizing what she could do as he is forced to accept what she’s able to offer.

Kirsten Dunst is fantastic as Vivian Mitchell as a supervisor who supervises all of the women while having to deal with Vaughn whom she knows is qualified but often tells her about the rules as it’s a low-key yet effective performance. Mahershala Ali is excellent as Jim Johnson as a military officer who woos Goble as he is fascinated by what he does and wants to be there for her. Kevin Costner is brilliant as Al Harrison as the Space Task Group director who takes notice of Goble’s work and realizes her value while making changes that he feels is necessary for everyone including Goble whom he realizes is a much smarter person than everyone else. Janelle Monae is amazing as Mary Jackson as a mathematician who aspires to be an engineer as she has something to offer as a famed scientist realizes that and gives her the chance to get her degree as it’s a performance full of charisma.

Octavia Spencer is incredible as Dorothy Vaughn as an acting supervisor who heads the African-American women’s section who is trying to get promoted while she would be the one person to figure out how the IBM machines work giving her the chance to be valued by everyone. Finally, there’s Taraji P. Henson in a phenomenal performance as Katherine Goble Johnson as the gifted mathematician who knows any kind of problem needed as she is the smartest person in the room that no one is aware of while dealing with some of the demands in her work as well as the need to be there for her daughters as it’s Henson in one of her triumphant performances to date.

Hidden Figures is a spectacular film from Theodore Melfi. Featuring a great cast, a rapturous story, gorgeous visuals, and a joyful music soundtrack. It’s a film that showcases people whose small contributions to something monumental would prove to have a lasting effort as this true story of these three women isn’t just inspirational but also prove that even those behind the scenes matter. In the end, Hidden Figures is a sensational film from Theodore Melfi.

© thevoid99 2018

Hustle & Flow

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 2/10/07 w/ Additional Edits.

Written and directed by Craig Brewer, Hustle & Flow tells the story of a pimp from Memphis decides to become a rapper hoping to find a better life for himself. A film about starting over and redemption, Brewer explores the world of Memphis hip-hop as well as the culture that surrounds it. Starring Terrence Howard, Taryn Manning, Anthony Anderson, Taraji P. Henson, D.J. Qualls, Paula Jai Parker, Elise Neal, Isaac Hayes, and rapper Chris "Ludacris" Bridges. Hustle & Flow is a superb film of music and redemption from Craig Brewer.

Hustling through the streets of Memphis as a pimp, Djay (Terrence Howard) is still trying to make ends meet. Though being a pimp has brought him a bit of power and money, it only covers barely of what he is doing where he still lives in the ghettos of Memphis with a couple of prostitutes, Nola (Taryn Manning) and Shug (Taraji P. Henson) who is pregnant. Helping to make money as well is Lexus (Paula Jai Parker), but is often ungrateful towards him. While Djay is still a down-home boy to the locals, including bartender Arnel (Isaac Hayes), he ponders life without having to be a pimp. Even when he learns that a rapper he knew years ago named Skinny Black (Ludacris) has now made it big. After getting a little keyboard from a customer for cheap, Djay starts to become obsessed with music.

Running into an old school friend named Key (Anthony Anderson), he learns that Key is a recording producer who often produces church music to make a decent living. Djay realizes that Key is the chance he needs where he goes to his house and plays him a demo he made from the little keyboard as Key decides to be involved. Though Key's wife Yvette isn't sure about this, she understands it's a break from the monotonous job he’s doing. With help from a white musician named Shelby (D.J. Qualls), Key and Shelby create beats while Djay begins to flow whatever comes out of his mouth. Though Lexus didn't thing Djay's new thing would happen, Shug and Nola are intrigued. Eventually, Djay begins to evolve more despite some creative tension that’s settled by Shug. Shug's presence helped things where she created a hook for a song they've been working on and it becomes great although Key realizes they need better equipment to make it sound better.

Djay does some hustling with Nola to get a new microphone but Nola feels useless and frustrated with her role. Djay tells her that if they make it, Nola will become someone more important. With a new microphone, things start flowing as Djay's demo is nearly completed. Learning that Arlen is going to throw a private party that Skinny Black will be attending, Djay feels it's his chance to get that demo sent to Black. Arriving at the party with a new look and a gold chain, Djay hopes to make a chance thinking there's some history between him and black. Yet with the reality and Black's crass behavior, Djay wonders how far will it take for his dreams to come true.

The theme of redemption is a big engine that drives the plot of this film where it revels in its realism but also offers hope to audience. Writer/director Craig Brewer understands what it takes to make it into the music business in all of its harshness. Yet, it's really more about a man who makes a living dealing drugs and pimping hookers trying to see if there’s something more. Sure, Djay isn't a nice guys at times, making women vulnerable or being abusive towards them. Still, he tries to make something of himself and find some support from the people that surrounds him. Even if they’re dysfunctional, which is common in the South. Plus, Brewer's vision of a pimp reveals that not all of them wear suits or look intimidating and aren't always abusive towards their women. There's a complexity to the character of Djay while the support he has are characters that audiences can relate to. It's in Brewer's script and gritty, observant direction that really holds true.

Even in the environment of somewhere like Memphis, it really presents of what it's really like in the ghettos. There’s moments where it's crazy and it can be peaceful at times. Brewer shows both sides while he explores the world of music where in Memphis, it's very diverse. There's hip-hop, country, blues, and soul in this melting pot called Memphis and in parts of the film, there's a conversation of Southern hip-hop in relations to the blues and it makes perfect sense. Even in what D.J. Qualls character says that there's really a lot of similarities to a song like Backdoor Man to Back That Ass Up. While it may be a debate about the purity of Southern hip-hop among its fans and purists, it can't be denied of where it roots come from. Brewer understands that immediately and hip-hop is true definition of where that culture comes from. Even to the film’s plot where the music carries it to bring some excitement and entertainment to its audience.

Cinematographer Amy Vincent does excellent work in capturing the look of Memphis with it gritty, colorful camera work where it's not all bright or flashy. It's very real as is the art direction from production designer Keith Brian Burns and art director Alexa Marino. The look of the film from the dark bars, the streets, and the home of Djay where cup holder trays are used as sound proof walls are a fantastic touch to the film's authenticity. Costume designer Paul Simmons adds to that grittiness with these leather, short skirts that Nola wears or the kind of dirty, torn clothes that everyone else with the clean-like look that Key and Yvette wears. Editor Billy Fox does excellent work in the film's editing including a sequence with a lot of jump-cuts that involved Djay's supposed association with Skinny Black. Sound editors Greg Hedgepath and Frank Smathers with sound designer Brian W. Jennings do excellent work in capturing that atmosphere of recording and the world known as the South with train horns blaring and cars which speaks true to its environment.

Then there's the music that is a big part of the movie. Score composer Scott Bomar adds a moody, rhythmic texture to the score that adds the sense of tension and melancholia of where the film is. The rest of the film's soundtrack is dominated by touches of country music, blues, and soul music courtesy of the likes of Al Green and Buddy Guy. Then there's the hip-hop which features tracks written by Al Kapone, Lil' Jon, and Three-6 Mafia. The stuff that is performed by Terrence Howard like Whoop That Trick and the Oscar-winning It's Hard Out Here For A Pimp are catchy and memorable. The music is definitely inspiring and will make any audience go “Aww yeah!!!”

Then we have the film's cast that includes notable small performances from Josey Scott of Saliva as a store clerk, members of Three-6 Mafia as locals, and the legendary Isaac Hayes as the sympathetic bartender Arlen. Elise Neal is good as Key's supportive wife who doesn’t understand the ghetto world and believes to be neglected only to realize what's going on. Paula Jai Parker is pretty good as the combative, ungrateful Lexus who serves as an antagonist for Howard. Anthony Anderson and D.J. Qualls, both of whom are known for their comedic talents, give excellent performances that show more of their range in drama. Anderson as the more moralistic, cautious Key and Qualls as the more experimental, pot-smoking Shelby are two excellent, memorable characters that show the good and the bad of creativity.

Established rapper Ludacris gives a fine performance as the crass, egomaniac Skinny Black who seems friendly though he seems to be distracted by his own fame. Ludacris, who also appeared in Paul Haggis' Crash with Terrence Howard, proves that he can be a solid actor. Even in this performance of a rapper who seems to have betrayed his roots. Taryn Manning is wonderful as Nola, Djay's top earning hooker who is trying to find her footing as her character develops from a naive hooker to a woman who finds her own footing. Taraji P. Henson is great as the pregnant, supportive Shug whose vulnerability in her usefulness proves to have power when she sings. Henson shows a lot of development as someone insecure to someone who feels empowered when she sings.

Finally, there's Terrence Howard in what is truly an amazing role of not just 2005 but one of the best of the decade. Howard's complex, realistic, and engaging performance is truly inspiring to watch as a man who goes into this mid-life crisis and then, finds hope. Howard brings in all of the struggles, swagger, frustration, and warmth to a character that could've been sleazy since he is a pimp/drug dealer. Howard manages to find the humanity in the character to the point that he is relatable. When he's rapping and doing music, there is such joy in the performance that it looks like he's having a lot of fun. It's a fantastic performance from the talented Terrence Howard.

Hustle & Flow is a fantastic film from Craig Brewer that features a riveting performance from Terrence Howard. The film is definitely not just an inspirational story of redemption but also one that explores the world of Southern hip-hop and the world that is the American South. In the end, Hustle & Flow is a phenomenal film from Craig Brewer.

Craig Brewer Films: (The Poor and the Hungry) - Black Snake Moan - (Footloose (2011 film)

© thevoid99 2014

Talk to Me

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 12/18/07 w/ Additional Edits & Revisions.

In the turmoil of race riots and the Civil Right Movement in the mid and late 1960s, one of the best voices heard on radio is Petey Greene. Claiming he was "telling it like it is", Green's honest yet humorous take on politics and everyday life made him an unlikely voice for the African-American community from the late 60s to the 1970s. Though he died in 1984, Green's influence and life proved to be inspirational as his voice and saying what he got to say attitude remains relevant to this day. In 2007, a film based on life was released as it explored not just the impact of Greene's life but also his own personal life including his friendship with manager Dewey Hughes entitled Talk to Me.

Directed by Kasi Lemmons and written by Michael Genet and Rick Famuyiwa, Talk to Me is about Petey Greene's life as a reformed convict who gets paroled as he becomes a radio DJ telling the African-American community about what he has to say and winning fans along the way. Playing the role of the legendary radio personality is Don Cheadle, who also serves as one of the film's executive producer. Also starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Taraji P. Henson, Cedric the Entertainer, Mike Epps, Vondie Curtis-Hall, and Martin Sheen. Talk to Me is an inspiring, entertaining film from Kasi Lemmons and company.

Dewey Hughes (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is a radio program director from Washington D.C. who goes to visit his brother Milo (Mike Epps) at a state prison in 1966. During this visit, Hughes hears the voice of a raucous DJ named Ralph Waldo "Petey" Greene as Hughes meets him and his girlfriend Vernell (Taraji P. Henson). Though Hughes isn't sure about hiring a convict who is still serving time, Hughes is desperate as he needs someone to boost ratings against another local station as its worrying his boss E.G. Sonderling (Martin Sheen). Greene eventually gets out after helping a suicidal prisoner as he and Vernell make their way to the station to Hughes' shock. Though Hughes rejects him that is followed by Greene making some protests to be on the radio, Hughes makes a deal with Greene who gets to do the morning slot as he takes over the much-beloved Sunny Jim (Vondie Curtis-Hall).

Greene's first broadcast gains controversy as Sonderling fires Greene though Hughes realizes that the feedback he's getting is what he needs. Sneaking Greene back into the radio station and locking up everyone, Greene and Hughes take over the morning show where Greene is a star. Success arrives very fast until Greene gets himself in trouble with Vernell who decides to sleep with another DJ in the Nighthawk (Cedric the Entertainer). When Sonderling reveals that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had been assassinated, Greene talks to the people on air where he manages to calm things down as he also hosts a free James Brown concert the next night. With Greene being the voice of D.C., Hughes believes he can make Greene a bigger star as they did a local talk show with Greene hosting.

When an offer to appear on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson is happening, Hughes' dreams come true as he wants to see Greene on the show. Unfortunately, the night of Greene's appearance becomes a disaster leading to a fallout with him and Hughes. After Hughes becomes a successful DJ and the new head of the radio station, he realizes how much Greene has done so much for him while Greene becomes a recluse as the two ponder about their friendship.

While most stories about certain figures tend to be serious and dramatic but from the viewpoint of director Kasi Lemmons and the film's writers, they didn't go for that approach for the most part. Instead, they chose to portray an individual like Petey Greene as a man of excitement, charisma, and humor as the overall result is an entertaining bio-pic about the late DJ. While the film is filled with lots of humor and such, the core story of the film is about the relationship between Greene and Dewey Hughes. Here's two different men, one is brash, charismatic, and wild while the other is more clean-cut, eloquent, and ambitious. Yet, how they co-existed is the real revelation as they go into this journey from the streets of Washington D.C. to the Tonight Show and beyond.

While the film isn't perfect due to a minor shift in tone in the third act where the film is more about Dewey Hughes than Petey Greene, Lemmons' direction is still in line with the film's story of Greene. Particularly in Hughes' ambitions and what he wanted for Greene. It is there that Lemmons show the men for who they really are and not just some stereotypical caricatures that they seemed to appear. While Hughes may look like a clean-cut man who is trying to be white, there's a reason for his look and behavior while proving to his community that he is no sell-out. Greene meanwhile, may seem like a wild, tell-it-like-is kind of man, he is someone who prefers the simple pleasures of life and doesn't want to become some caricature. Lemmons' stylish direction filled with stock footage of the times of the late 60s to the early 80s is very solid as the result is a film that never gets dull and doesn't make it feel extremely nostalgic.

Cinematographer Stephane Fontaine does great work in capturing the film's distinctive look of the time periods from the bright colors of the radio station and Washington D.C. exteriors to the smoky, intimate lighting in the film's interior sequences in the homes of Hughes, Greene, and the pool halls. Fontaine's colorful, stylish photography is exquisite to capturing the look of the film's different periods. Editor Terilyn A. Shropshire does great work in the film's cutting style with the use of jump cuts, dissolves, side-split screens to capture the tone of the film's scenes including the riots and Greene speaking about the riots as he calm things down. Shropshire's editing is superb for its emphasis of style while maintaining its leisurely pace.

Production designer Warren Alan Young and art director Patrick Banister do a great job in capturing the look of the times with its furniture, cars, and appliances to give the film not just a feel of nostalgia of sorts but also a look as if the viewer is back in time. Costume designer Gersha Phillips does an amazing job with the film's clothing from the wild dresses of Vernell, the colorful suits and clothes of Petey, to the clean-cut look of Dewey that is very distinctive and stylish as if the 70s were alive again. Makeup artists Janice Tunnell and Geralyn Wraith do great work with the film's look of 70s from the mustaches of Petey and later, Dewey to the huge Afros that Vernell sports. Sound editor Jay Nierenberg and designer Stuart Provine do amazing work in capturing the spirit of the films' time while doing great work in the riot scenes and radio deejay scenes to convey that sense of the times.

The music score by Terence Blanchard is wonderfully diverse with its mix of 70s funk and jazz music helmed by Blanchard's trumpet to convey the sense of drama as well as excitement in those times. The soundtrack is filled with loads of soul classics from James Brown, Sly & the Family Stone, and others that isn't just amazing to hear but also capture the spirit of the times.

The film's cast is overall brilliant with notable small performances from Richard Chevolleau as a prisoner whom Petey talks to early in the film, Peter MacNeill as the prison warden, Herbert Rawlins as soul legend James Brown, and Alison Sealy-Smith as the radio station's secretary. Mike Epps is excellent in the few scenes he's in as Dewey's incarcerated brother Milo who introduces Petey to Dewey. Vondie Curtis-Hall is excellent as the old-school DJ Sunny Jim who is upset at his demotion only to be one of Petey's supporters. Cedric the Entertainer is great and stylish as the sexy-voiced Nighthawk who always has a fine presence while being a voice of sexiness. Martin Sheen is in great form as the fearful E.G. Sonderling who is the comic relief of sorts as a man upset over Petey's comments as Sheen is a scene-stealer.

The film's biggest scene-stealer is Taraji P. Henson as Petey's girlfriend Vernell. Henson's wild, energetic performance is the perfect complement to Cheadle's charismatic performance as the woman who supports Petey while doing her own thing and such as Henson's performance is just phenomenal in every scene she's in. Chiwetel Ejiofor is perfect as the clean-cut Dewey Hughes. Ejiofor's performance is filled with some charm as well as subtlety as a man whose ambitions to be like Johnny Carson conflicts with Greene's more urban, intimate world. Ejiofor is the perfect counterpart to Cheadle while proving he’s a good nine-ball player. Then there's Don Cheadle in what has to be one of his best performances. Cheadle's brash, charismatic, no-nonsense performance is filled with energy and excitement in every scene he's in while proving he can be subtle as Cheadle again proves that he is one of American cinema's finest actors.

The Region 1 DVD from Focus Features presents the film in 2:35:1 aspect ratio for anamorphic widescreen along with 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound for English along with subtitles in English, Spanish, & French. In the DVD are 30-minutes worth of special features including six deleted scenes. The first is a scene where Dewey talks to an associate about a slump with a reference to the Celtics. The second is an extended scene following Petey's talk on the riots that involved Sonderling talking an encounter he had with Dr. King a few years ago. The third scene is about an interview for Greene’s TV talk show where an executive is angry over comments Greene made for one of his guests as Greene says, he's just who he is. The fourth scene involves a dress rehearsal at the Tonight Show where Greene talked about a story of how he got himself out of prison, that's already been told before. The fifth scene is about Greene's love of booze and his call to Vernell trying to talk to her after being sober for six months. The sixth and final scene involves Greene making a speech at a high school about his lack of comfort towards success and change as his colleagues including Dewey, from afar, watch.

The 11-minute featurette Who is Petey Greene? is a mini-doc about the making of the film, Greene's life, and interviews with the film's cast and crew including director Kasi Lemmons. Lemmons and the cast discuss Greene's impact as well as the friendship between him and Dewey Hughes. A lot of the film's themes are discussed yet the cast are relaxed with clips of the film being made showing everyone having a good time. The 10-minute Recreating P-Town is about the film's look with profiles on production designer Warren Alan Young and costume designer Gersha Phillips. Phillips talks about the men's look for the clothes where for Dewey Hughes, the look came from Sydney Poitier while Greene is meant to be the opposite. Young talks about a lot of the film's production designs, notably the riot scene that took 2 days to shoot but 6 days to set up. The overall special features are great for the DVD and such.

Talk to Me is an inspiring yet entertaining bio-pic from Kasi Lemmons and company helmed by Don Cheadle's winning performance and a great supporting cast led by Chiwetel Ejiofor and Taraji P. Henson. While it's more entertaining than Lemmons' own 1997 directorial debut Eve's Bayou, though the latter is a superior film. This is a film that proves to powerful yet funny at the same time as the life of Petey Greene is finally told. Talk to Me is a wonderful gem of a film that keeps making people laugh while reliving the days of the late 60s and early 70s.

(C) thevoid99 2011

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 12/25/08

The short story of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Curious Case of Benjamin Button told the story of a man born with a body of an aging elderly. When he grows, his has the mind of whatever age he's in while he starts to look younger. The story is one of the most intriguing tales by Fitzgerald that an adaptation for a film project took years to create with several screenwriters including Charlie Kaufman and directors like Ron Howard and Gary Ross attached to the project. When the project finally found a director that will stick to the project, it seemed that it would finally be made though it would be in the hands of David Fincher. The man behind such provocative films like Se7en, The Game, and Fight Club. Yet, 2007's Zodiac about the Zodiac killings of the late 1960s marked a change of pace for Fincher that him the ideal director for the film version of F. Scott Fitzgerald's short story.

Directed by David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button tells the story of a man born as an elderly as he's under the care of people in New Orleans during World War I. Over the years, he ages backwards while falling in love with the woman he met when she was just a child as he lives throughout the world. Screenplay by Eric Roth, who wrote the adapted screenplay for Forrest Gump, the film version is different from F. Scott Fitzgerald's version as the time frame is set from the time of World War I to August 2005 when Hurricane Katrina arrived. With an all-star cast that included longtime Fincher cohorts Brad Pitt and Elias Koteas plus Cate Blanchett, Tilda Swinton, Julia Ormond, Taraji P. Henson, Jared Harris, Mahershalalhashbaz Ali, Phyllis Somerville, Elle Fanning, Madisen Beaty, and Jason Flemyng. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a majestic film from David Fincher and company.

It's August 2005 as Hurricane Katrina is approaching New Orleans. An ailing woman named Daisy (Cate Blanchett) is in a hospital bed with her daughter Caroline (Julia Ormond) by her side. Daisy tells Caroline a story about a man named Gateau, a blind clockmaker who created a clock that would run backwards that he unveiled one day to Teddy Roosevelt (Ed Metzger). Daisy asks Caroline to read a diary found in a suitcase which is about a man named Benjamin Button (Brad Pitt). Caroline reads Button's diary as he was born the day World War I ended. Yet, Benjamin's mother (Joeanna Sayler) died due to complications of childbirth as her husband Thomas (Jason Flemyng) listened to her final words. Yet when he sees the baby, he's in shock over the baby's grotesque look only to take it away and leave in to outer staircases of a retirement home run by a woman named Queenie (Taraji P. Henson).

Queenie takes in the baby despite his grotesque nature as she names him Benjamin. With help from her boyfriend and caretaker Tizzy (Mahershalalhashbaz Ali), Benjamin was in the care of various elders where he learned about the world despite looking old. Around the time he was seven, Benjamin finally got to walk with help from a preacher (Lance E. Nichols) while a Creole man named Ngunda Oti (Rampai Mohadi) took him on a tour of New Orleans. Then one day, Benjamin meets a young girl named Daisy (Elle Fanning) whom he befriends as she's visiting her grandmother (Phyllis Somerville). After learning piano lessons from Mrs. Maple (Edith Ivey), he also gets a first-hand lesson about death. When he starts to look and feel younger despite his old appearance, Benjamin notices that Queenie is starting to focus on her own daughter.

At 17, Benjamin meets a tugboat captain named Mike (Jared Harris) who gives him a job as Benjamin becomes entranced by adventure. It would be around the same time Benjamin would meet Thomas Button though Thomas wouldn't reveal his true identity yet. When Daisy (Madisen Beaty) visits again, she is amazed at the world Benjamin is starting to live in while she has dreams of being a ballerina. When Benjamin decides to leave home to work with Mike as a member of a tugboat crew, he writes Daisy many letters until his stop at Russia where he meets the wife of a British diplomat named Elizabeth Abbott (Tilda Swinton). The two first engage in late night conversations that proved to be fulfilling as Abbott once tried to swim across oceans. Yet, their conversations would lead into a secret affair only to end quickly as she leaves Russia.

When World War II begins for the U.S., Mike and his crew decide to serve for the Navy with Benjamin joining along. Returning home to New Orleans once the war ended, Queenie is glad to see him as he continued to work at the retirement home. When Daisy makes a visit, Benjamin is amazed at the new world and career she's in though it overwhelms him. Another encounter with Thomas Button revealed some truths as Benjamin becomes confused only to learn more about Thomas. When Benjamin goes to New York City to surprise Daisy, she is surprised by his visit while Benjamin gets a closer look into her new world including a boyfriend named David (Adrian Armas). For Benjamin, it's too much as he leaves Daisy behind to venture a world of his own. When Daisy gets injured in Paris in an accident, Benjamin visits but Daisy feels ashamed.

After having some time of his own, Daisy re-enters Benjamin's life where the two finally reach the point where they're nearing the same age. Just as life was going blissful for them, Daisy's news that she's pregnant starts to worry Benjamin. After the birth of their child, Benjamin who is aware that he's about to become younger makes a fateful decision that would impact the life of Daisy and their child.

While F. Scott's Fitzgerald's original short story is set in a different time and place. The concept of a man aging backwards does create an idea that is unique. While screenwriter Eric Roth and story adapter Robin Swicord created some major changes that differentiates from the original short story. Their approach does work in setting the story in early 1900s New Orleans to New Orleans 2005 just Hurricane Katrina is set to approach. Yet, not everything works with Eric Roth's screenplay despite its unique structure, character study, and time frame. There's a couple of big flaws in the script though it often depends on what the audience wants. One is that the script is predictable in connecting the dots to what is about to happen and a few surprises that aren't really surprises. Yet, it depends on how the audience can handle that approach to the plot which isn't really Roth's fault or the story. It's just that it creates a lack of suspense or the fact that it isn't surprising.

The other major flaw with the script and story is its relation to Forrest Gump. There's many similarities to the famed novel by Winston Groom and its 1994 film adaptation that was scripted by Eric Roth. Both films have a protagonist embarking on adventures through their own simple, curious commentary. Both are chasing women who live in different worlds while having a maternal figure that can impact their lives. Both characters meet unique characters along the way while living through different eras. Yet unlike Forrest Gump, Benjamin Button isn't a simpleton. Instead, Button is someone who is more aware of the world despite the fact that he's reversely aging. Button is someone trying to live to the fullest where the story is helped by its structure. The first act is about Benjamin as a child, meeting Daisy, and setting on his own adventure. The second act is about his encounter with Elizabeth, the war, and coping with Daisy's new life.

Then there's the third act which begins with Daisy's return and the new life they live in. Once there's a child coming, the audience knows what's coming. Unlike the character of Jenny in Forrest Gump who lived recklessly through certain trends and without any clear goals.

The character of Daisy comes to full effect in the third act in how she's trying to cope with Benjamin becoming younger knowing what would happen. Yet, it's all told with voice-over narration by Benjamin as Daisy's daughter Caroline reads it. While the script had those flaws, Roth's approach in moving the story back and forth from Benjamin's time to the final moments of Daisy's life works in creating a subplot about Daisy's relationship with Caroline. Though audiences do know what's coming where despite its flaws. The script and story definitely is wonderful.

The direction of David Fincher is truly remarkable and majestic. Fincher takes new heights to his direction where he presents the film in various locations, notably New Orleans. When the film progresses, Fincher shows New Orleans in its beauty from the early 20th century to the time just before Hurricane Katrina was about to hit. Every time a certain period is shown, Fincher does it with a majestic style to keep the story moving forward while creating an atmosphere for the period. There's parts of the film where Fincher takes a certain period and adds grainy scratches to the camera work to emphasize the atmosphere of that time. Notably the story about Gateau and his clock which plays a very important part of the film.

Fincher's direction definitely takes him places he hadn't been to like romance and drama while creating a sense of excitement in the film's World War II scene where the tugboat known as Chelsea faces off against a submarine. While Fincher does use CGI-based visual effects for some parts of the film, it's done wisely without looking very fake in its emphasis to create atmosphere for a location or a certain era. In the dramatic approach, there is the idea of sentimentality but it's earned because of what is going to happen. Instead of having to draw out the ending, he creates a slow momentum in having the audience expect the outcome. The overall result of David Fincher's direction is truly spectacular and magical as it's definitely some of his best work as a director.

Cinematographer Claudio Miranda does an amazing job with the film's unique visuals with the sepia-like colors in some of the film's nighttime, interior settings to the period, colorful pallette of the exteriors in Paris, New York, and New Orleans. Miranda's work in the daytime exterior shots of New Orleans without much tints in the colors work in creating a period and atmosphere through Fincher's direction as it's definitely gorgeous in its look. Editors Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall do great work with the editing in the film's Gateau sequence in a scene play in rewind while using swift, smooth cuts on a commentary by Benjamin Button about how fate plays into the world. With its transition cuts, slow-motion cutting, and rewinds. The editing is definitely phenomenal. The visual effects work of Eric Barba and company is great in the creation of a few key moments in the scenes like the stormy sky in a shot at the Gulf beach, a shot of a rocket, a hummingbird, and other visual effects that work very effectively.

Production designer Donald Graham Burt along with set decorator Victor J. Zolfo and a team of art directors do an amazing job in the recreation of the period look of New Orleans through the ages. With its look of the homes that Benjamin visits and lives in to the duplex he and Daisy stays in. The art direction is phenomenal in every location and setting to create an atmosphere to the time. Costume designer Jacqueline West does a brilliant job with the look of the costumes including the ballet leotards and dresses that Cate Blanchett wears to the period clothes that everyone else wears throughout each time. Makeup artists Carla Brenholtz and Stacey Herbert do an amazing job in having the young model actors look like an older version of Brad Pitt while giving Pitt a look of an elderly where one had him look like Marlon Brando. Cate Blanchett's makeup by Elaine L. Offers work to show her aging look in the film's third act is also great in how her character ages while Benjamin looks younger.

Sound editor Ren Klyce does an excellent job in the sound work, notably the battle scene and sea sequences. The sound is also great in its location settings and atmosphere while in the 2005 scene. Carries a sense of foreboding of what is to come. The music of Alexandre Desplat is definitely rich and majestic with somber pieces, flourishing arrangements, and Desplat's tingling melodies. The score is definitely amazing without being heavy handed or playing up to its sentimentality as it's a lovely score. The soundtrack also includes various music pieces of a certain time period including a wonderful use of a live version of the Beatles' Twist And Shout performed on the Ed Sullivan show.

The casting by Laray Mayfield is phenomenal with a lot of small yet memorable characters that have scene-stealing moments like Ted Manson as a man who had been hit by lightning seven times, Paula Gray as an opera singer, Ed Metzger as Teddy Roosevelt, Donna DuPlantier as Gateau's wife, Jacob Tolano as Gateau's son, Joeanna Sayler as Benjamin's mother, Patrick Thomas O'Brien as a doctor, Lance E. Nichols as a preacher, Yasmine Abriel as a prostitute, Rus Blackwell as Daisy's husband in the third act, Adrian Armas as Daisy's boyfriend in the New York City scenes, and Edith Ivey as the woman who teaches Benjamin how to play piano though Benjamin doesn't remember her name. Other small roles from Don Creech, Joshua DesRoches, Christopher Maxwell, Richmond Arquette, Josh Stewart, and Myrton Running Wolf as crew members of the Chelsea tug boat stand out as well as Phyllis Somerville as Daisy's grandmother.

Rampai Mohadi is excellent in a standout role as a Creole man who introduces Benjamin to New Orleans while Mahershalalhashbaz Ali is very good as Tizzy, the caretaker who teaches Benjamin a few useful skills in life. In the role of the young versions of Daisy, Elle Fanning is wonderfully delightful to watch as the seven-year old Daisy while Madisen Beaty is also great as 10-year old Daisy. For the physical roles of Benjamin Button meshed with Brad Pitt's facial makeup and voice, Peter Donald Badalamenti II as the 10-year old Benjamin, Robert Towers as teenage Benjamin, and Tom Everett as the 17-year old Benjamin are excellent in their physicality. Child actors Spencer Daniels and Chandler Canterbury are also good in their respective roles as the 12-year old and 8-year old versions of Benjamin. Jason Flemyng is very good as Benjamin's father Thomas who is curious about the man who is son while dealing with the regrets he had over abandoning him. Elias Koteas is brilliant in his small role as Gateau, the clockmaker who creates a clock that runs backwards.

Julia Ormond is wonderful as Caroline, Daisy's daughter who reads the diary of Benjamin Button as she tries to contend with her mother's past and the things she never knew about. Jared Harris is delightful to watch as Captain Mike, the tattooed tugboat captain who brings adventures to Benjamin as Harris' performance is fun to watch. Tilda Swinton is great in a small yet brilliant supporting role as Elizabeth Abbott, a wife of a British diplomat who shares great conversations with him as she gives Benjamin a taste of real love. Taraji P. Henson is amazing in a real break-out performance as Queenie, Benjamin's adoptive mother who has some funny lines and comments as she brings a real true maternal quality to the role. While it's a character that could've been played as a cliche, Henson's fiery, charismatic performance is full of life and wit as it shows that she's definitely becoming a real actress after such stellar performances in Craig Brewer's Hustle & Flow and Kasi Lemmons' Talk to Me.

Cate Blanchett delivers a graceful yet wondrous performance as Daisy, the woman who becomes Benjamin's dear close friend and lover as she is amazed by his reversed aging while dealing with how out of place he is. Blanchett's beauty and exuberance is wonderful as she develops from a woman with dreams to a woman becoming content except when she has to deal with Benjamin's approach to childhood. It's a great performance from the Australian actress who continues to morph into any type of role without playing the same character twice. Finally, there's Brad Pitt in what has to be one of his best performances to date. Though it doesn't top the subtlety that he displayed in The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford a year earlier. Pitt sells the curiosity and wonderment of the title character while managing to make himself look young and dreamy while doing it with such maturity and restraint. It's a testament to what Brad Pitt can do as an actor where 10-15 years ago, many claim he couldn't act. The performance Pitt gives in this film proves that he's come along way from being a 90s heartthrob.

While not a perfect film, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is certainly one of the year's best films from David Fincher. Thanks to Eric Roth's unique screenplay, amazing technical work, and a brilliant cast led by Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. It's definitely the right film to see during the holidays in its display of majestic imagery and atmosphere. Along with brilliant supporting work from Taraji P. Henson, Tilda Swinton, Jared Harris, and Julia Ormond, it's a film that is dazzling to watch from start to finish as David Fincher takes a new maturity to his work as a director. In the end, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a magical film that is likely to sweep the viewer into a great, majestic journey from David Fincher.

David Fincher Films: Alien 3 - Se7en - The Game - Fight Club - Panic Room - Zodiac - The Social Network - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Gone Girl

Related: The 15 Essential Videos of David Fincher - The Auteurs #61: David Fincher

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