Matthew ShallueSlumdog Millionaire
Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
Director: Danny Boyle
Starring: Dev Patel, Anil Kapoor, Freida Pinto
When the young tea servant and former slum-dweller Jamal teeters on the brink of the biggest prize in Who Wants to be a Millionaire, questions are asked about how he came to know the answers without the benefit of an education. We journey between brutal police interrogation scenes and flashbacks in which Jamal explains the events of his chaotic young life that have provided him with the answers to each question.
The storyline sounds improbable, but the delivery of Slumdog Millionaire thrills the viewer with enough slick dialogue, captivating action, and representations of the sights, sounds and smells of India as to avoid too much contemplation on the likelihood of the premise. Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, 28 Days Later) has constructed a film that takes the audience on a visual, aural, and emotional rollercoaster ride. It is hard to remain detatched from Slumdog Millionaire; it simply reels you in with its thrills and delights.
As young children, Jamal and his brother Salim witness the destruction of their Mumbai slums in an attack fuelled by religious fervor, and after a night of violence the boys are left alone and orphaned. A combination of ingenuity, desperation, and circumstance keeps the boys together and alive, but their childhood is displaced by their mission to merely stay alive. Occasionally the children find sanctuary, such as when they are taken to an ‘orphanage’ for organised begging. But when Jamal almost has his eyes gouged out so as to earn more money, the brothers are forced to set off on their own once more. When they flee, their friend Latika falls behind, and Jamal finds that as he grows older, he can’t shake his drive to find her again. The search for Latika runs through the story, and it is this obsession that eventually leads Jamal to appear on the game show.
Dev Patel (Skins), as the adult Jamal, proves himself to be a subtle and effective medium for Jamal’s story. His fear is palpable as he sits in front of the hyena-like host of Millionaire (Anil Kapoor) while coming to the realization that his original goal has been surpassed by the increasing national interest in his ongoing winning streak. Kapoor is perfect as the slick host who is increasingly bemused by the ‘slumdog chai wallah’ who has a seemingly impossible breadth of knowledge. The children who play the young Jamal and Salim give delightful performances beyond their years and experience.
Slumdog Millionaire is a riot of colour and action, an exciting and emotionally demanding film. For an English director, falling into the pit of cliché when making a film about India’s slums was a sizable threat. But Danny Boyle has produced a film that – to this Westerner, at least – feels honest, confronting, and devoid of exploitation. And, if you stick around for the closing credits you’ll be treated to a Bollywood-style dance number.
Director: Danny Boyle
Starring: Dev Patel, Anil Kapoor, Freida Pinto
Photo courtesy of Google. Image may be copyrighted.
When the young tea servant and former slum-dweller Jamal teeters on the brink of the biggest prize in Who Wants to be a Millionaire, questions are asked about how he came to know the answers without the benefit of an education. We journey between brutal police interrogation scenes and flashbacks in which Jamal explains the events of his chaotic young life that have provided him with the answers to each question.
The storyline sounds improbable, but the delivery of Slumdog Millionaire thrills the viewer with enough slick dialogue, captivating action, and representations of the sights, sounds and smells of India as to avoid too much contemplation on the likelihood of the premise. Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, 28 Days Later) has constructed a film that takes the audience on a visual, aural, and emotional rollercoaster ride. It is hard to remain detatched from Slumdog Millionaire; it simply reels you in with its thrills and delights.
As young children, Jamal and his brother Salim witness the destruction of their Mumbai slums in an attack fuelled by religious fervor, and after a night of violence the boys are left alone and orphaned. A combination of ingenuity, desperation, and circumstance keeps the boys together and alive, but their childhood is displaced by their mission to merely stay alive. Occasionally the children find sanctuary, such as when they are taken to an ‘orphanage’ for organised begging. But when Jamal almost has his eyes gouged out so as to earn more money, the brothers are forced to set off on their own once more. When they flee, their friend Latika falls behind, and Jamal finds that as he grows older, he can’t shake his drive to find her again. The search for Latika runs through the story, and it is this obsession that eventually leads Jamal to appear on the game show.
Dev Patel (Skins), as the adult Jamal, proves himself to be a subtle and effective medium for Jamal’s story. His fear is palpable as he sits in front of the hyena-like host of Millionaire (Anil Kapoor) while coming to the realization that his original goal has been surpassed by the increasing national interest in his ongoing winning streak. Kapoor is perfect as the slick host who is increasingly bemused by the ‘slumdog chai wallah’ who has a seemingly impossible breadth of knowledge. The children who play the young Jamal and Salim give delightful performances beyond their years and experience.
Slumdog Millionaire is a riot of colour and action, an exciting and emotionally demanding film. For an English director, falling into the pit of cliché when making a film about India’s slums was a sizable threat. But Danny Boyle has produced a film that – to this Westerner, at least – feels honest, confronting, and devoid of exploitation. And, if you stick around for the closing credits you’ll be treated to a Bollywood-style dance number.
