Slumdog Millionaire' hits the jackpot
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November 13, 2008
By BRUCE INGRAM Film Critic
Slumdog Millionaire
Most
movies about the fulfillment of destiny are concerned with characters
rising to rule kingdoms or lead mighty armies or create immortal
masterpieces. Is it possible to realize your karmic potential by
attempting to go all the way on a TV game show? "Slumdog Millionaire"
says yes, indeed, and makes you believe it.
» Click to enlarge image
Life-schooled: Dev Patel and Anil Kapoor in "Slumdog Millionaire," the
latest from director Danny Boyle ("Trainspotting").
(Fox Searchlight Pictures)
» Click to enlarge image
Life-schooled: Dev Patel and Anil Kapoor in "Slumdog Millionaire," the
latest from director Danny Boyle ("Trainspotting").
(Fox Searchlight Pictures)
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The
stakes couldn't be higher in this beautifully crafted epic adventure
story involving a Dickensian struggle against cruel poverty, the
lifelong bond between two estranged brothers, true love that never
dies, the resilence of hope and the workings of fate -- and they
couldn't be resolved in a more dazzling manner. This one's a must-see.
Based on a novel by the Indian author Vikas Swarup and featuring a
screenplay by Simon "The Full Monty" Beaufoy, "Slumdog" was directed by
Danny Boyle (with Indian director Loveleen Tandan). Boyle has already
made remarkable films in a wide range of genres including the
Hitchcockian thriller "Shallow Grave," the black-comic junkie
horrorshow "Trainspotting," the zombie rave-up "28 Days Later," the
childhood fantasy-adventure "Millions," the apocalyptic sci-fi drama
"Sunshine," but he may have trumped himself with this
Bollywood-inflected rags-to-riches saga about modern India that could
almost stand as an update on "Oliver Twist."
"Slumdog" opens on the set of the Indian version of "Who Wants to be
a Millionaire," with the uneducated 18-year-old slum-kid Jamal (Dev
Patel) one correct answer away from winning the ultimate jackpot of
20-million rupees. While he ponders his choice, Boyle cuts away to the
previous evening, for scenes of Jamal being tortured and interrogated
by police, who are convinced he must have cheated somehow. Then he
poses the film's key question in "Millionaire" multiple-choice form:
How could a slum-kid who has never gone to school know the answers to
questions that should have stumped doctors, lawyers and professors? Did
he cheat? Is he lucky? Is he a genius? Or is it written?
The film then proceeds to demonstrate how Jamal's entire life has
led up to this moment -- with something much greater than a 20-million
rupee jackpot at stake. Each question flashes back to an episode in
Jamal's life-and-death adventures -- from the time of his birth in
Mumbai's worst slum, to the murder of his mother during an attack by an
anti-Muslim mob, to his recruitment with his criminally inclined
brother and his lifelong love Latika by a Fagin-like gangster (only
much, much more evil), to his separation from Latika and his desperate
search for her -- and demonstrates how he learned his answers,
sometimes at great cost.
"Slumdog" builds to a high pitch of excitement by cleverly
intertwining the nail-biting suspense in the various chapters of
Jamal's life with the cheesy, but not negligible, tension built into
the all-or-nothing stakes of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire." But it
also has a wealth of the cinematic virtues that can be found in most of
Boyle's previous films: Breathless pacing, flamboyant visual flair and
an almost old-fashioned, spell-weaving approach to storytelling.
If someone asks you to see "Slumdog Millionaire," there's only one correct
answer: Yes, yes, yes.
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