Ryan McNeil
Danny Boyle’s SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE is:
A. A Lavish Story About The Determination of The Human Heart
B. An Intriguing Hybrid of Boyle’s Prior Films
C. One of the Best Movies of The Year
D. All of The Above
At the centre of the story is Jamal Malik. Jamal has fought his way up from an impovrished childhood in the slums of Mumbai and now works as an errand boy at an Indian communications provider. He has scored himself a spot on India’s “Who Wants To Be a Millionaire?”, and as the movie begins, he is one question away from winning 20 million rupees. But the question everyone seems most interested in isn’t the trivia tidbit he’ll soon be posed for big money. No, the question on everybody’s mind, including the game’s host – and even the police – is how in the world did Jamal get this far?
To understand that, we need to go all the way back to Jamal’s childhood. Watching him live his young life full tilt despite not having much to live for, we learn early on that Jamal isn’t the sort of person who will be easily deterred in life. His is the type of soul that could plunge into shit, and though he won’t come out smelling like roses, he’ll keep going as though he does. Orphaned early on, he learns to count on his fellow slumdogs Salim and Laitka to survive.
He tends to hopscoth between mischief and actual danger through much of his young life, along the way becoming the target of some very dangerous people. He also develops the truest love for Laitka, but can’t ever align the stars properly to be with her and be happy. As he unfolds his life story to the police mere hours before that fateful night on live television, he narrows the answer of how he got here down to a fifty-fifty option. On one side, smarts…on the other, fate.
SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE is a rich, multi-faceted film that made my heart swell. It is difficult to put it into context, because it is such an original story. On the one hand, there are moments that give a wink and a smile to feel-good movies of years past. However, layered in with these scenes are some rather rattling and violent moments that threaten to make those warm fuzzies a distant memory. It’s the balance of the two, the way the movie puts you through the entire emotional gauntlet that makes it such a success.
A violent and gritty story will come as no surprise to fans of Danny Boyle…after all, the man is the brains behind TRAINSPOTTING and 28 DAYS LATER. However, the innocence and tenderness of the love story, and the moments centering around the young children might seem like a stretch from a man synonimous with zombies and junkies. However, Boyle is only a few years removed from a delightful children’s story called MILLIONS. In that movie, as in this, his focus on the wide-eyed stubornness of children does much to remind us that even though we could easily walk, sometimes it’s much more exlerating to run.
It might not seem like it at first glance, but SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE is a movie that must be seen in a theatre. For starters, the visuals of this movie are rich and use just about every colour of paint on the palette. Whether the characters are hustling tourists at the Taj Mahal, or causing mischief on a passenger train, each scene pops like the pages of a storybook. Making the sensory experience all the more memorable is the soundtrack that serves as a pulse for this passionate story. The movie is going to get a slow roll out into theatres between now and Januray, and I highly suggest you watch for it to play at your theatre of choice.
What will make SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE stick with you, is the way it reminds you of being young, driven, and reckless. What the movie knows, and what we as the audience might sometimes forget, is that which is most vital to us when we are young. As we get older, our brains begin to take over our every move. Every choice we make is made with our heads, and seldom with our hearts. However, when we look back at who we were, it’s amazing to see the lengths we went to for love. That’s what makes this movie so good, and so successful: the ability to make you remember that lovesick younger version of yourself.
D.
Great review….and you’re right about the big screen. Too bad we couldn’t all see it at the Raj Mandir Cinema in Jaipur. Now that would be good!
Good review, it sounds interesting
You HAVE to write about the Twilight phenom. Every woman in my office is buying something pretty to wear to it. Looking forward to your perspective.
I can’t wait to see this, it’s not come to Salt Lake until Dec 3rd. Your review made waiting harder.
Indeed, excellent review. And until you mentioned it, I didn’t even think about how much this might lose on DVD. Those who don’t see for themselves will miss out!