Slumdog Millionaire

Slumdog Millionaire
Directed by Danny Boyle
Starring Dev Patel, Saurabh Shukla, Prem Kapur

Film of the decade in my opinion. Shot for a mediocre budget on HD handicams, on location in India. This film is a breath of fresh air. The story is quite insane; a young clever man from the slums of India wins the popular TV game show 'Who wants to be a millionaire' and so he is interrogated by the police who believe he cheated.

The brutal torturous interrogation uses flashbacks to explain how the contestant knew all the answers, we learn he is honest and see how he falls in love. The game-show and interrogation are basic framing devices for the heroic love-story at the core of this film, a love story set against the odds that lifts the heart at the climax of the story.

The end credit scene in the train station will bring a tear to anyones eye. Finally a cross-over Bollywood masterpiece brought to us by a man I consider to be the most relevant director of our Generation, Danny Boyle. This director can cross Genres like Kubrick and still command his stories.

The performances in this film are genuine and committed, a lot of non-actors again delivering brilliance; Boyle clearly knew what he wanted. The cast are also so interesting and beautiful to look at set against the primary color landscape of India. The film is very much so a visual treat.

Who would ever think a small indie film centered around the TV show 'Who wants to be a millionaire' would win Best Picture Academy Award. The reason is simple, Mr Boyle takes the impossible cliche and makes it stimulating, relevant, vibrant and exciting. The music is outstanding 'Jai Ho' is an intoxicating groove.. it won best song!

This is a must-own dvd.