A few months ago while I was still living in Montreal (I miss you baby) signs dotted the lamp posts on St. Famille street, where a couple of my buddies live. There would be no parking tomorrow because a film shoot was invading the strip. Then in the lobby of their building there was a notice to all residents saying the same thing, and that the film in question was THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON, directed by David Fincher and starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. I knew the production was in town, but the idea that one of the most anticipated films of 2008 was going to shoot on the very street that I’ve drunkenly stumbled across so many times was a thrill to say the least. Now as its release nears, the buzz is building and thank goodness it’s of the great variety. A costume designer on the film recently sent an e-mail tip to Hollywood Elsewhere and had this to say about the film’s production:
“Top to bottom she said the set and production was a dream, that both David FIncher and Brad Pitt were consummate professionals, and that the script was top-notch — the only script she can recall making her cry, she said. She added that the look and scope of design of the film while ambitious is also intricate and exacting.”
“Furthermore, she mentioned that some of the sequences they saw that had been edited were absolutely stunning. Her description of the mood of those who worked on it is that of bated breath — a near universal belief that they have made an outstanding and moving film, one that transcends and one they wish not to jinx by too much loose talk.”
Not even Jinxy McJinxerton can jinx this one honey, so no worries. BUTTON is based on an F. Scott Fitzgerald short story about an 80-year old man who ages backwards, from the first World War, all the way into our century. I’m excited for November 26th.