Slumdog Millionaire [MA]

Jamal Malik is one question away from winning 20 million rupees. How did he do it? 

A: He cheated 

B: He’s lucky 

C: He’s a genius 

D: It is written 

Based on the novel Q and A by Vikas Swarup and brought magnificently to the screen by Danny Boyle and Loveleen Tandan, Slumdog Millionaire is a stunning film that grips its audience from the first shot and holds them in constant frenzies of delight, suspense, hope, and disgust. Earning its place in The Book, this is a magnificent film that everyone needs to see. 

Two brothers born in the slums of Mumbai defy and battle through the worst of odds to emerge as grown men and survivors. Jamal becomes a contestant on India’s version of Who Wants To Be a Millionaire?, while his brother Salim attains upstanding status as a criminal. Now, just one question away from winning a fortune, Jamal is arrested for suspicion of cheating. 

The first thing that, I think, deserves an accolade is the breathtakingly beautiful soundtrack composed by A. R. Rahman. It’s a wonderful fusion of traditional Indian sounds as well as modern ones, and the songs seamlessly change from Hindi to English, making it both atmospheric and powerful all in one go. Killing two birds with one stone so to speak. 

The film stunningly conveys many universals that set humans on their destined or chosen paths: poverty, racial war, love, success, peace, money, and truth. Add the ingredient of the incredibly romantic love story to play against the shocking and sometimes violent conflicts, and you have a film that is both incredibly enticing and repelling. 

The film starts on the night of the penultimate question, with Jamal being tortured so that he might confess to cheating. The film is set into motion when he does not, and from there it is a series of past and present memories, all which have some key detail as to how Jamal knows the answers on the show. 

The fusion of Bollywood and Hollywood was stunning and the film earned itself 8 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Soundtrack, Best Original Song, Best Achievement in Sound, and Best Adapted Screenplay. 

Featuring amazing performances from Dev Patel, Frieda Pinto, Anil Kapoor, Irrfan Khan, Ayush Mahesh Khedekar, Tanay Chheda, Saurabh Shukla, and Mahesh Manjrekar, Slumdog Millionaire is a stunning film that’s filled with action, poverty, violence, success, defiance, hope, and love. It’s an amazing piece of cinema and I highly recommend it!