AFTER ?The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford,? Brad Pitt once again throws himself into another epic movie.

?The Curious Case of Benjamin Button? is a minute shy of ?The Assassination?s 160 minutes; it moves faster and is full of moments about growing up, growing old and being alive. It is an extraordinary tale of someone who is born old and grows younger through time, with all the wisdom that comes with the journey.

Pitt has a penchant for these quirky films that truly provoke thought. From ?Seven? to ?Fight Club? to ?Babel,? he has made incredible film choices. Of course, there are the occasional Hollywood concessions like ?Ocean?s Eleven? and ?Mr. and Mrs. Smith,? but his star shines brightly when he tries to escape his good looks and his superstar status and just acts. Which, in Pitt?s case, is always an underappreciated thing.

If Pitt isn?t a draw for you, then Cate Blanchett should do the trick. Utterly mercurial, she is as convincing as a 23-year-old as she is as a dying old woman. We see her change through time, growing older in every scene even as sparkles.

Also in the amazing cast is another Oscar winner, Tilda Swinton, whose effortlessness as an actress lends an inevitable presence to any film she?s in, most especially here. It is a short but significant role and she leaves ripples throughout the film.

The amazing director is David Fincher, who gave us ?Seven,? ?Fight Club? and ?Panic Room.? The story jumps back and forth from the present to the past. The past is always presented in such a dreamy state, with treated colors and meticulous production design, whereas the present is cold and dark, almost devoid of color.

Some things last

But rising above the production is the story itself: Benjamin Button being born old and growing younger everyday. It is a thought-provoking question; one thinks it is probably the ideal way to live. After all, wouldn?t you prefer to be strong, healthy, and robust when you are finally old enough to know exactly what it is you want from life?

In the full blossom of your youth, at the height of all your frenetic energy, you spend your time doing things that, as you grow older, you may find yourself regretting. All that wasted time! But as you get older, wisdom sets in, you properly define yourself, and there are things you wish you could do, but you are now too old to do so.

An amazing line from the film: ?Life can only be understood looking backward. It must be lived forward.?

It would be wonderful if life were made that way. But as the film illustrates, whether growing older or growing younger, it doesn?t matter if you end up not doing what you?ve wanted to do in life.

Everyone?s life is just a collection of moments and memories. People will go away, people will die, you will love and you will fall out of love.

At one point, Benjamin says, ?Nothing lasts.? Blanchett?s Daisy replies, ?Some things last.?

They would include memories?what we leave behind and who we leave behind. Knowing that, growing older doesn?t seem so scary anymore.