Ghetto But Fabulous (Slumdog Millionaire (DVD))

Member Name: Great_reviewer07

Product:	Slumdog Millionaire (DVD)
Date:	27/07/09 (64 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Brilliant story, lots of tension, compelling

Disadvantages: Only minor ones (see review)

Jamal Malik (Dev Patel) is one question away from being a jackpot winner on the Indian version of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire when he is taken into police custody and brutally tortured. The game show host and the police think that he's cheating, after all how could a poor boy from the slums with no hint of an education know the answer to all these diverse and difficult questions?

The film then follows Jamal as a young boy growing up with his older Brother Salim and an orphaned girl Latika (Freida Pinto) as they struggle through life growing up in one of the roughest areas in India, watching their Mother get butchered to death, losing Latika and being betrayed by his Brother. Will anything ever go right for this kind-hearted boy with no one to turn to?

The hype surrounding Slumdog Millionaire late last year and early this year was simply impossible to escape, it ended up swooping 8 Oscars at this years ceremony with Danny Boyle winning Best Director awards left right and centre (where will he put them all?).

Despite all this, Slumdog Millionaire wasn't something that really appealed to me, there have been so many Oscar winning films in the past that have had numerous shining reviews yet I end up hating the film myself therefore I had avoided it until now. However on a Sunday afternoon when looking through the Sky Box Office movie list I decided I had nothing to lose (apart from £3.79) in watching this.

The film began quickly which I was surprised at, I was expecting this film to be long and drawn out however it drew me in straight away and from then on I was captivated for the next 121 minutes and I was utterly stunned at how much I ended up enjoying this film, infact if I said I loved it, it wouldn't be an overstatement.

Danny Boyle seems to be going from strength to strength, with only a limited number of films under his belt the phrase 'it's not quantity it's quality' has never been so true. Slumdog Millionaire shows off just how diverse Danny Boyle is with his other big hits being Trainspotting and 28 Days Later amongst others, Slumdog Millionaire is literally and metaphorically speaking a world away from his usual dark films.

That's not to say that Slumdog Millionaire isn't dark because it most certainly is, when I watched this film I first thought I was in for a feel good movie which I was however I never expected it to be so dark and gloomy throughout. This really paints a realistic picture of the poverty that tragically still goes on in India today and the way that the people in the film live is utterly unimaginable, it's a very humbling film for people who live in England who moan day in day out about having a hard life; watch this film and you'll get a glimpse of what hard really is.

Who'd have thought that the funny Muslim that was desperate to lose his virginity, Anwar from Skins (Dev Patel) would soar to such heights given that he wasn't even one of the main characters in the show, it's fantastic to see him rise to fame the way he did and I only hope that he can keep it up instead of crashing quickly back down to Earth like so many actors and actresses before him have done. Everybody seems to have raved about Dev Patel's performance in the film however for me the main stars were the young actors playing Jamal, Salim and Latika. They really brought the film to life and without them we wouldn't get such an inspiring insight into Jamal's life as were treated to. Dev Patel does do a brilliant job as a grown up Jamal though as he's in it from start to finish, at the beginning he comes across as pretty wooden though and the audience doesn't feel any empathy for him up until we get an insight into his childhood with the flashbacks.

Freida Pinto who played a grown up Latika also did a really good job however we never really got to know her character as much as I would have liked, of course the film revolves mainly around Jamal but as she's the love interest for him I'd assume it was necessary to include her story in the film a little bit more. There was just something about their relationship that didn't ring true for me, they met when they were very young, around 5 years old probably, when they were both orphans from then on they became close friends but were separated for a long time during the film. I didn't quite understand how it was that the two of them were in love with each other after not seeing each other since they were around 13, we never really saw their relationship progress, it was obvious that Jamal liked her but at 13 you like anyone of the opposite sex that pays you the slightest bit of attention! I just didn't quite understand how this automatically translated into love and this aspect of the film was a bit of a letdown for me. When the two older actors do have scenes together and there aren't many, you can feel their chemistry together so their love is portrayed well onscreen, it's simply how they got into that position that seemed a little contrived in my mind but I don't know how everyone else feels about this. The couple also seem a bit mismatched, I know in this day and age everybody likes to say looks aren't as important but in films you rarely see a huge divide in the looks department when it comes to onscreen relationships (Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie in Mr & Mrs Smith being a prime example), it just seemed as though if this were real life Jamal wouldn't have a chance with Latika, it's like the story of the princess and the poor boy (ironically). I've recently heard that the two main stars are actually an item which contradicts everything I've just said but of course it's just my opinion!

The story constantly moves at a fast pace, flicking back and forth from the present day with Jamal in police custody to flashbacks of his childhood where we come to find out where exactly he discovered all the answers to the very random questions that he's asked on the game show. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this concept because usually I find flashbacks in films very tedious and dull however the flashbacks were some of the highlights in the film. I like the way that you know Jamal survives all the terrible things that happened during his childhood as we see him in the present day however you can't help feeling tense and anxious whenever he's in any form of danger, this film really gripped me right from the start as I wasn't expecting something as moving and dark as this.

I liked the ending, I found it to be remarkably unpredictable which I think was a big achievement for Danny Boyle, on the face of it, it seems to be obvious what will happen at the very end however this film drags you in so much, includes so many twists and turns and evokes so many emotions that, for me it was impossible to tell what will happen. What slightly ruined it for me was the tacky Indian dancing during the closing credits... what was that all in aid of?

The film definitely isn't a tearjerker, well it wasn't for me anyway but it is still a very emotional film that will stay with you long after the credits roll. I really was astounded at how much I enjoyed this film and although I'm not giving it 5 stars because I don't think it's something that I could watch over and over and again and it does have it's minor faults it still remains a fantastic film and arguably the best film I've seen all year. Looks like the critics were right and I was wrong! I really can't recommend this film highly enough and for the minority that still haven't got around to seeing this yet you're missing out.

The DVD is currently available from play.com for £11.99, most definitely worth the price.

The DVD special features include:
Commentary from director Danny Boyle and Dev Patel
Commentary from producer Christian Colson and writer Simon Beaufoy
Deleted Scenes
Slumdog Dreams: Danny Boyle and the making of Slumdog Millionaire
Jai Ho Remix - Slumdog Cutdown
UK Theatrical Trailer

The CD soundtrack to accompany the film is also available from play.com for £4.49 and features:
O... Saya - A R Rahman & M.I.A.
Riots - A R Rahman
Mausam & Escape - A R Rahman
Paper Planes - M.I.A.
Paper Planes (Dfa Remix) - M.I.A.
Ringa Ringa - A R Rahman Featuring Alka Yagnik & Ila Arun
Liquid Dance - A R Rahman Featuring Palakkad Sriram & Madhumitha
Latika's Theme - A R Rahman Featuring Suzanne
Aaj Ki Raat - Sonu Nigam, Mahalaxmi Lyer & Alisha Chinoi
Millionaire - A R Rahman Featuring Madhumitha
Gangsta Blues - A R Rahman Featuring Blaaze & Tanvi Shah
Dreams On Fire - A R Rahman Featuring Suzzanne
Jai Ho - A R Rahman Featuring Sukhvinder Singh, Tanvi Shah & Mahalaxmi Iyer

Summary: A fantastic film and very Oscar worthy.