Slumdog Millionaire (2008)

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 & 45 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:

This is the first film since Schindler's List (1993) to win Best Picture, Director and Screenplay at the Golden Globes, BAFTAs and the Oscars.

Goofs:

Plot holes: At the very end of the movie, after he wins the show and become famous on TV, Jamal waits for Latika in a train station. Yet none of the passers-by notices that he is the winner of the show and consequently a millionaire.

Quotes:

Older Salim: Left a message for you at work.
Jamal Malik: There was no message.
Older Salim: I definitely left a mess...
Jamal Malik: There was no message! There was no message! *There was no message*!
Jamal Malik: [Looks down at Salim starting to cry a little]
Jamal Malik: I will never forgive you!
Older Salim: I know.

Movie Connections:

References Zanjeer (1973)

Soundtrack:

Jai Ho

Must-See

This is an extraordinary film. From the original concept of the novel on which it is based (Q&A by Vikas Swarup), the screenplay by Simon Beaufoy (Full Monty) but especially the masterful creation and direction of the film by Danny Boyle. From the opening moments until the final scene, the audience was fully engaged. I was completely lost in the world that Danny Boyle created. This is not a story that has been told and retold, hashed and rehashed. It is fresh and engaging - all at once quickly moving, romantic, violent, culturally insightful, desperate and slightly fantastic. There are some comic elements to the film but to describe it as a "comedy" seems inappropriate. The film was shot on location in India, mostly in Mumbai. Slumdog Millionaire is yet another testament to depth and range of Boyle's artistic talent who has directed such diverse films as Shallow Grave, Trainspotting, 28 Days Later and Sunshine.

I saw the film on at the 2008 Telluride Film Festival as a "sneak preview." The film was introduced by Boyle who said that the official opening of the film would be the next weekend at the Toronto Film Festival. He also said that there may be some final tweaking of the film prior to Toronto.

In the discussion after the film Boyle strongly recommended three Indian made films: Satya, Company and Black Friday. He described each as superb. Boyle also stated that a portion of the Slumdog Millionaire was shot with a Canon EOS still camera, especially around the Taj Mahal, rather than a proper movie camera which creates unwanted attention while filming at popular tourist locations in India.

8.2