Who wants to see a riveting cinema?

December 31, 2008

Slumdog Millionaire - Who wants to see a riveting cinema?

Among the movies that you must not miss of 2008, the one movie that will be

on everybody's list has to be 'Slumdog Millionaire'. Based on the novel " Q

and A " by Indian Diplomat Vikas Swarup, this movie deviates a bit from the

original novel, but all for the better. While the novel concentrated more on

how the underdog from slums could answer complicated questions from " Who

want to be a Millionaire (KBC)? " the movie looks more at the dramatic

aspects.

Directed superbly by Danny Boyle, this movie starts off with the arrest of

Jamil, played wonderfully by Dev Patel, who is on the cusp of the last

question of the show. He is one answer away from 20 million rupees and the

cops are sure that he has cheated. From here the camera zooms back and forth

between the present and the past, telling you exactly how Jamil, an ordinary

slum boy " Chaiwalla " can answer complicated questions like where is

Cambridge circus and who scored the most test centuries.

Slickly interwoven with the dramatic story is the love story between Jamil

and Latika, also a slum child, who is forced into prostitution. There are

shades of Deewar when Jamil and his older brother Salim clash.

Despite competent acting by all the experienced and mature actors like Anil

Kapoor (who plays Amitabh Bachhan of KBC), Irfan Khan (Inspector) and Mahesh

Manjrekar (gangster), it is the younger cast, which goes away with the

accolades. Dev Patel is never overshadowed by any of these older actors and

his smoldering eyes just emit the right type of defiance. Frieda Pinto as

Latika has that fresh charm to keep you riveted.

However, all credit must go to the director Danny Boyle, who has brought the

slums of Mumbai alive, along with all the stink, screams and sweat, on

screen. The gangster related scenes are very realistic and bring a chill to

one's heart. See it for the roller coaster ride of emotions with a soft

backdrop of a gentle love story.

Kishore Shah 1974

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