Slumdog Millionaire (2008)

User Rating:

8.4/10   

Directors:

Danny Boyle
Loveleen Tandan (co-director: India)

Writers:

Simon Beaufoy (screenplay)
Vikas Swarup (novel)

Release Date:

23 January 2009 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Love and money... You have mixed them both.

Plot:

A Mumbai teen who grew up in the slums, becomes a contestant on the Indian version of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" He is arrested under suspicion of cheating, and while being interrogated, events from his life history are shown which explain why he knows the answers.

Plot Keywords:

Question | Cheating | Slum | 2000s | Millionaire

Awards:

Won 8 Oscars. Another 93 wins & 40 nominations

Cast

Dev Patel	...	Jamal K. Malik
Saurabh Shukla	...	Sergeant Srinivas
Anil Kapoor	...	Prem
Rajendranath Zutshi	...	Director (as Raj Zutshi)
Jeneva Talwar	...	Vision Mixer
Freida Pinto	...	Latika
Irrfan Khan	...	Police Inspector
Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail	...	Youngest Salim
Ayush Mahesh Khedekar	...	Youngest Jamal
Jira Banjara	...	Airport Security Guard (as Hira Banjara)
Sheikh Wali	...	Airport Security Guard
Mahesh Manjrekar	...	Javed
Sanchita Choudhary	...	Jamal's Mother
Himanshu Tyagi	...	Mr Nanda
Sharib Hashmi	...	Prakash

MPAA:

Rated R for some violence, disturbing images and language.

Runtime:

120 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English | Hindi

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #44838) | UK:15 | Ireland:15A | Australia:MA | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Czech Republic:15 | New Zealand:R13 | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Norway:11 | India:A (cinema release) | Finland:K-15 | Hong Kong:IIB | Singapore:NC-16 | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade) | Netherlands:12 | South Africa:13V | Brazil:16 | South Korea:15 | Peru:14 | Argentina:16 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | Germany:12 | Japan:PG-12 | Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) | Belgium:KT | Mexico:B | Iceland:12 | New Zealand:R16 (DVD rating) | France:U

Filming Locations:

Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India

Company:

Celador Films

Trivia:

Local Indian authorities decided to step in and move the children and their families from slums to new houses.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the final question, the apostrophe is shown as after the s in Dumas'. However, when it shows Javed on the phone, the television in the background shows the question, and Dumas' is spelled as Dumas's.

Quotes:

Prem Kumar: So are you ready for the final question for 20 million rupees?
Jamal Malik: No, but maybe its written, no?
Prem Kumar: Maybe...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Jeopardy!: (#26.7)" (2009)

Soundtrack:

Latika's Theme

One of the best cinema offered in 2008

Danny Boyle has come up with some interesting cinema, certainly defining himself as someone above average. What he achieves in "Slumdog Millionaire" is transcend the line between inspiration and a miracle, awakening an emotional connection to the very special element great cinema can deliver. The packages might have changed, and the contents are more controversial and maybe a bit more tied to reality, certainly taking us to an exotic local, teaching us that our world extends beyond our freeway and limited perception of how more than the other half of the world's population has to deal without certainly preaching to us.

The tale of two brothers' lives is told to us through episodic flashbacks tied to an episode of India's "Who Wants to be a millionaire?". At first, the story introduces one of the brothers as being the subject of a very strong interrogation to find out whether he is being truthful about some knowledge that might be relevant to the game. As he answers the questions, we discover that this young man's life story might be more interesting than we originally expected.

There is an element of freshness in the way the story is presented, as we accompany Jamal through his life odyssey from a young child in the slums to a man who is determined to save those he loves. There are some strong emotions in the film, and Boyle's direction keeps the film dynamic and engaging.

Prepare yourself to be overtaken by emotions as varied as joy, pity, happiness, anger, revulsion, surprise, and an exhilarating conclusion rarely seen in movies anymore. This film has made me grateful to be alive and that we still have people in cinema like Boyle who understands the power and beauty of the medium. He knows that the perfect mix of a great story and the respective imagery can provoke unforgettable memories in its audience.