The Oscar buzz has already started and it’s only been one day since “Slumdog Millionaire” was released. So far, the new offering from British director Danny Boyle (of Trainspotting fame) has been referred to by The New York Times as a film that “could be the breakthrough work that leads the world to focus on the genre …of Parallel Cinema, a more personal narrative type of film like Mira Nair’s art house hit “Monsoon Wedding.” 
And, Roger Ebert predicts the film will win an Best Picture Oscar nomination, calling it “a breathless, exciting story, heartbreaking and exhilarating at the same time [whose] universal appeal will present the real India to millions of moviegoers for the first time.”
When you read gushing reviews like Ebert’s, you can’t help but walk into the movie hall with high expectations, wondering whether a film can really live up to all the hype. The answer is: Yes.
“Slumdog Millionaire” is being billed as a film about “first love, determination, and realizing your destiny.” Not quite the pitch that you’d expect from a mainstream film about a kid from an Indian slum. This is a film that will surprise viewers who think they’re going in to watch a movie about India’s tremendous poverty and rich-poor gap. It switches swiftly between scenes that take you into an India that is at once poor and wealthy, moral and crime-ridden, developed and undeveloped, hopeful and disappointing. And, though the story is laced with a trace of Bollywood romance, goondas, and some implausability, it is for the most part, as Roger Ebert says, “real.” Add to that a soundtrack by A.R. Rahman and Danny Boyle’s directorial talent for bringing India’s sensory overload and motion to life without the typical exoticism or “oh those poor things” mentality and you have a winner.
More of my review below the fold. The premise of “Slumdog Millionaire” is the same as that of Vikas Swarup’s 2005 novel Q&A where Jamal Malik (admirably played by British-born Dev Patel), an 18 year old from the slums (in Swarup’s book, it’s Dharavi) gets a spot on India’s version of the international hit show, “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.” (That would be “Kaun Banega Crorepati?” which became a national phenomenon in India in 2000 and was hosted by Bollywood bigtimer Amitabh Bachchan.)
In Boyle’s onscreen version, the host of the show is Prem Kumar, a Bollywood star (played by Anil Kapoor) who also rose through the film industry from the slums. Prem Kumar does not find it plausible that Jamal, a poor “chaiwalla” who works at a call center, could actually know the answers to questions like “Who is the US president on a $100 bill?” or “What does the Hindu god Ram always hold in his right hand?” or “Who invented the first revolver?” and has him arrested after he makes it to the Rs. 10 million marker.
I have been holding on to Swarup’s novel “Q&A” since this summer and picked it up after watching the movie to see how the two compare [read Amardeep’s review of the book here.]
I usually don’t like to say that a film version has improved on a a book, but in this case I have to admit it’s true. The screenplay of “Slumdog Millionaire,” adapted by Simon Beaufoy (Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, The Full Monty) takes Swarup’s intriguing premise and brings it to life in a plot that is less complicated, which is a good thing for the big screen. In Swarup’s novel, Jamal is Ram Mohammad Thomas, an orphan who is raised in Delhi by an English priest. I’m glad that the film starts and ends in Mumbai, for it allows viewers to witness the transformation of “Bombay to Mumbai” over the past decade and a half. 
In Swarup’s novel, the protagonist’s questioner is a female attorney, Smita Shah, and the questioning takes place in the comfort of her home.
“Look, Ram, don’t get agitated. I meant no offence. I really want to help you. But if you didn’t cheat, I must know how you knew.” “I cannot explain.” “Why?” “Do you notice when you breathe? No. You simply know that you are breathing. I did not go to school. I did not read books. But, I tell you, I know those answers.” “So do I need to know about your entire life to understand the genesis of your answers?” “Perhaps.”
The dialogue in “Slumdog Millionaire” is snappier, more natural. The movie opens in a prison cell where Jamal is being prodded, pushed, and tortured to reveal how he “cheated” on the game show. When even electric rods do nothing to get him talking, the police inspector (played by Irfan Khan who never ceases to impress me) takes him into his office, pops in a DVD of the gameshow, and begins to grill him on how he came up with his answers.
As Jamal tries to explain, his life story unfolds in a series of flashbacks. I don’t want to give the surprise away, so I won’t tell you more about this story, but suffice it to say that you will meet a street-smart, sensitive, and intelligent protagonist who is capable of diving into a pond of feces to meet his favorite Bollywood star (a scene that will stay with you for a long, long time) and savvy enough to survive as an orphan on the tough streets of Bombay. This is a story of sibling rivalry, but it is also a story of love that takes you into crime dens, call centers, entertainment sets, and tourist traps. And, it has a funny side. All this makes for fascinating viewing, and during the two-hour run, I rarely lost interest.
But, there was one question that kept popping up in my mind: “How is it that Jamal speaks such good English?” (The first half of the film alternates between Hindi and English and the second-half is mostly English). So far I haven’t read any reviews that question how it is that an uneducated boy who has spent most of his life on the streets can speak English in an Anglo-Indian accent, similar to grads of The Doon School. Maybe it doesn’t matter and it’s a matter of suspending disbelief. After all, if this was to be a commercial film, language was likely a consideration. And, yet, I keep being reminded of “City of God” where the language of choice was Portugese. I wonder whether sticking with Hindi would have added a layer of authenticity to the film?
In Swarup’s book, I did find an answer to why his main character speaks English:
Father Timothy was from the north of England, a place called York, but had been settled in India for very many years. It was thanks to him that I learnt to read and speak the Queen’s English. He taught me Mother Goose Tales and nursery rhymes. …
So, here’s my advice: Go see “Slumdog Millionaire” as soon as it comes to your city (it’s being released on a staggered schedule) and pretend that a scene that explains how Jamal learned the Queen’s English was cut for a very good reason. You’ll enjoy it much more that way.
Update: Thanks to “inothernews” for the link to the NPR story. I learned that the original screenplay was all in English, so that Boyle and team could get funding, but when they arrived in Mumbai and started shooting, they were convinced by the Indian co-director Loveleen Tandan that the film wouldn’t work unless they added Hindi. Apparently that caused a bit of a problem with his French and English backers.]
There are a couple of free screenings coming up: New York – 11/18 Los Angeles – 11/14 and 11/15 San Francisco – 11/25
And, here’s a trailer for your viewing pleasure.
Slumdog Millionaire opens in India on Jan 23.
Right now it’s playing in NY, LA, SF, DC, Chicago, and Toronto. Next weekend on 11/21 it will open in a bunch of other cities like – Boston, Dallas, Philadelphia, San Diego, Seattle, Denver, Baltimore, Minneapolis, Phoenix, and Vancouver. The film’s web site has all the other cities and dates.
50 · louiecypher said
Hmmm…now you got me confused. Because I really liked Mr. and Mrs. Iyer a lot. This year at one of the festivals I saw Firaaq by Nandita Das and it was on a similar issue. I loved that film a lot too. (I am sorry I am going off topic here). Both these films although very left seemed very very genuine to me. I completely bonded with Konkana Sen Sharma and with Deepti Naval in Mr. and Mrs. Iyer and Firaaq respectively.
I am not against the fact that the problem does not exist and that media should shy away from presenting them. But it was the way these issues were presented in Slumdog. The presentation had a tone of sarcasm in it. The presentation was exaggerated. The presentation was insensitive and non genuine. I just did not bond with any of the circumstances. They just put off completely. So rather than questioning the accuracy, I would question the sensibility of the filmmaker. I thought the film making was lame, shallow and insensible.
Um, hello…Darjeeling Ltd anyone ?
Actually, I thought Q&A the book was so full of cliches that it could have only been written by an upper middle Indian who hasn’t engaged the police in any fashion other than ordering them around. That the book depicted police-brutality or communal riots isn’t a problem, but that it did so in such a cliché-ridden, superficial manner is the problem. Judging by the comments here, seems like the movie also runs along those lines.
That and, Jamal’s accent (of what little I can hear in the trailer) is bothersome; it’s not even Doon-School English, it’s more Brit than anything else. I really don’t see how Mumbaiyyas, English-speaking or otherwise, can identify with such a character.
I don’t think the movie was anti-Hindu at all — just anti-communal. Some thought the movie was heavy-handed, but I don’t recall anyone complaining that the movie was anti-Hindu.
also: why do you want to read the movie as an allusion to ww 2 and the nazis, when it’s not? the jewish character is circumcised. he knows the thugs will kill him if they decide to ask the men to pull their pants down (which they do). to prevent being lynched, he points to the elderly couple as the only muslims on board. the jewish character was a plot device that highlighted the presence of many religions in india, and that there is no easy physical way to distinguish one kind of indian from another. so pogroms will no doubt end up affecting all kinds of people, whether they’re ‘targets’ or not.
No doubt Slumdog appears to be a well made entertainer, never mind the stereotypes and sensibilities. A film that for wide release internationally HAS to do use these devices for it to have a chance of commercial success.
I watched “Mohandas” (a hindi film) at SAIFF (in NY) late last month and it was amazingly well made, completely authentic, and engrossing for the 120 minutes it lasted (I think it is superior to Lagaan, India’s last entry for best foreign film). Without any big name stars or directors, one wonders if it will ever get any type of mainstream release (in India) in 2009. People who have lived in India will completely get it but it wont be as easy for people who havent experienced India directly (it is still entertaining).
Pali,
Coconut, please. Do you really think white people don’t think this way. Were you in America when the white woman said she can’t vote for Obama because he’s an “Arab”. Apparently you think everyone sings Kumbhaya and can’t wait to share a coke and a smile with you. You know what I’d really like to see is a movie about the L.A. Riots directed by a guy from Delhi but written by a caucasian and then go to a predominantly white site and see how they react. Or better yet a story about Appalachian Hillbillies detailing how incest and pedophilia is a way of life. Yeah I know it makes you feel repulsed, but you probably think only “brown’s” can be like this.
Open your eyes. You want to go see the movie, that’s fine with me.
56,
and that there is no easy physical way to distinguish one kind of indian from another. so pogroms will no doubt end up affecting all kinds of people, whether they’re ‘targets’ or not.
Wow and everyone thinks I’m the racist. Touche. So I guess a 6’3″ Punjabi Sardar look just like the 5’7″ Malyalee guy. Ok I get it Connie Chung.
It was an entertaining movie, fun to watch, unfortunately it adheres pretty strictly to the dark skin = bad, light skin = good rule.
Latika’s transformation from dark skinned slum-dwelling lemurian to vanilla scythian goddess was astounding. Salim went bad and, appropriately, stayed dark skinned, sweaty and curly haired. Jamal started lighter and got lighter as his virtue grew. Grating.
I was hoping to catch this movie at the 3rd I film festival this weekend in the Castro of San Fran – but ended up watching it at Kabuki in San Fran because it was sold out at the film fest in an HOUR — I JUST got back and thought it was a GREAT movie. I think I’m going to have nightmares though – a little too much violence to have me sleep well at night. Not bad, just, you know. Did anyone else think the female lead in her third casting looked Bengali? I couldn’t get over that fact throughout the third half of the movie…
59 · Desi_Like_You said
Please tell me you are kidding. Because yeah, those words do reek, of racism and other ugliness (as does your assertion that desis who like this flick want to bleach their skin).
SM is four years old. We’ve had dozens of threads where insecure, tact-free idiots put down the North, or the South, or the darkies, or the pasties, or the midgets, or the giants. For the love of whatever deity it is you prefer, please stop generalizing about what a Punjabi or a Malayalee look like. There IS NO one “look” for an entire group. To keep insisting that there is is annoying, pointless and pathetic.
This message was brought to you by the letters “W”, “T”, “F” and the number “1”. MC Oscar the Grouch, out.
Try making an argument without making racial comments and employing racist steroetypes and using racial slurs against me. Thanks.
Same advice to you. Try and make your argument without making racial slurs on individuals who you may disagree with on the a value of a work of cinema. Also, try and do so without making generic, racist presumptions about the background of the film maker himself. Making racial slurs and expressions of race betrayal and Uncle Tom-ism just shows a mind in a red mist that is blocking thought.
You know what I’d really like to see is a movie about the L.A. Riots directed by a guy from Delhi but written by a caucasian and then go to a predominantly white site and see how they react. Or better yet a story about Appalachian Hillbillies detailing how incest and pedophilia is a way of life. Yeah I know it makes you feel repulsed, but you probably think only “brown’s” can be like this
Well what about Boys in the Hood, or the Godfather, or Los Olvidados, or City of God?
60 · wallabee said
Inspired by Picture of Dorian Gray ?
50 · louiecypher said
I don’t think the Jewish character was afraid of being identified as a Jew, but to be mistaken as a Muslim. Both Jews and Muslims circumsize – how could he convince the Muslim-haters that he was not Muslim (short of singing Havah Nageela)?
55 · mal-content said
i think like in that kamala thread loucipher thinks everybody is out to get him…
great movie. the scene where the kids are in the rain was heart breaking.
It’s a brutal movie. If you just watch the trailers and note a few reviews, you miss the very dark brutality at the core of this film. Anil Kapoor plays a real SOB of a villian. There are other characters engaged in horrific acts of torture. A lot of the movie is hard to watch. But in the end, out of this urban nightmare, a Bollywood feelgood movie springs to life.
It’s a masterful director’s performance. You will see echoes of “Salaam Bombay,” “City of God,” and “Bombay.” Much of it seems to have been inspired by “Maximum City” (which does, in fact, include a long scene where Suketu and his wife witness a police inspector torturing a suspect in custody). The casting is exceptional–those kids are amazing. I thought the acting was great and was not put off by the use of English or Dev Patel’s accent. The movie drills down into apparent superficial connections that are shown to be based on deep and traumatic experiences. It made sense to me that Patel’s character Jamaal would have learned English if he needed to. He is someone who has lived by his wits and by his large heart. Connecting with people has kept him alive — speaking English is just another way of connecting.
I was very unsettled by the movie. I admired it, of course, but was also repulsed mostly, I think, because I have seen all of its characters on the streets on Mumbai, in the train stations, begging at car windows, sleeping on pavements, populating other movies like “Salaam Bombay.” But I had never seen the backstories so richly and violently drawn. The kids’ journey out of Mumbai and to the Taj Mahal is like the reverse of “Heart of Darkness.” But they are coming out of a really, really dark heart.
Preston, interesting you say that. Because this reviewer felt it was fluffy (albeit in comparison in drawing comparisons to olde London and the Edinburgh in Trainspottng. I’m especially intrigued though by all the references to Anil Kapoor’s performance. It must be something else for him to be getting the attention in a movie with some very photogenic characters (mumbai included). The movie’s winning at least an oscar or i’m going to eat my favorite tuque.
This movie perpetuates an ongoing problem that Indian society already fuels: you cannot make lightheartedness out of the atrocity that is the lives of “slumdogs.” Not only would Malik never be on that show, he would definitely not know English, or have the confidence to present himself on the stage like that. Entirely too far-fetched and a potentially dangerous representation of the “real India.”
Piya, the plot of the movie is to show you how the slumdog does it — why he has the confidence to be on TV (which he really doesn’t; he’s terrified and practically frozen on the show), how he knows what he knows, how he came to be on the show in the first place. The movie presents Jamal as a victim not really understanding his circumstances. He is a hero who doesn’t know he is a hero. So, yes, it’s far-fetched. But the movie tries to show a plausible route from the slums to TV riches.
khoofia, thanks for the link.
preston. you’re welcome. I am intrigued by the movie because every reviewer has tried to cast the movie in a different mold. it’s like the viewer really wants to express his or her reaction to the movie in context of some other deep work of art… but it defies description. this is a sign of a winner. So! credits to doyle, and really to anil kapoor for the impact he seems to have, despite the fact that most reviewers are likely not aware of his presence in indian cinema.
Like a lot of people commenting, I had mixed feelings about this one. There is a definite ‘made in USA’ feel to the movie, as most of the production/funding/adaptation was done by non-Indians. It’s the direction the country (and the industry) is taking. And in any case, Bollywood has borrowed from plenty of western movies. The book is written by an Indian, the flashy cinematography captures not just the ‘colourful, vibrant’ side of India, but the wading-through-shit-to-meet-a-filmstar side too. The soundtrack is by an Indian (and they even threw in a few MIA songs on the soundtrack for the kids, though these days ‘paper planes’ is becoming our ‘hey ya’ or, more appropriately, our ‘mundian to bach ke’).
My problem was with the attempt to show a ‘real India.’ The film presents several versions of India (poor and honest, rich and corrupt, generous and western), and all of them have elements of realism. But for Slumdog to say that it’s story is more real than others is ridiculous. Especially when those ‘real’ characters are speaking in crisp English accents, act in set good vs. evil roles, and are never held back by religious, social, or economic background. This is ‘real’ India for those who don’t speak the language, who believe in the idea of righteous poverty, who want to see a hero succeed against incredible odds. Maybe this is the real Bollywood.
@louiecypher “please hange me depressingness of Ray movies” – This is a critique of Ray I hear quite often and honestly it is quite ignorant. I don’t know how many Ray movies you have seen but baring a couple most of them are not even close to “depressingness”. Infact a large majority has great sense of humor and hope embedded in them. And I say this because I have seen ALL his movies.
Anna at # 62:
For the love of whatever deity it is you prefer, please stop generalizing about what a Punjabi or a Malayalee look like. There IS NO one “look” for an entire group. To keep insisting that there is is annoying, pointless and pathetic.
This message was brought to you by the letters “W”, “T”, “F” and the number “1”. MC Oscar the Grouch, out.
I have some letters for you as well “S” “T” “F” “U”. Please read the post carefully. I was referring to someone generalizing about Indians so I pointed out an example. Yes I will go and worship whom I wish to. You should also go worship your white god as well.
Ravi,
No not like: Well what about Boys in the Hood, or the Godfather, or Los Olvidados, or City of God
These movies don’t use Stereotypes, they are ground breaking. Slumdog Millionaire is not groundbreaking, just rehashing the same stuff we’ve seen in every Mira Nair film,ad nauseum.
I wonder how many have ever visited the following website. http://www.goodnewsindia.com. Just to let all of you I’m not a downer.
More like Rang De Basanti. I like Amir Khan, a good storyteller and frames things well from an Indian prespective.
it’s a great movie. it’s a movie based on hope. there may be inconsistencies in the way some things are depicted regarding india, but the movie was not meant to be a documentary on india. it was meant to tell the story of a boy with india as the setting. to that end, some things were oversimplified but you walked away with a reasonably accurate general idea about the background and continued to focus on the primary story of the boy.
again, it’s a great movie. you get completely immersed in jamal’s world……..if you don’t walk into the theater with your “i’m an indian and know all about india and this movie should adhere to every opinion i have about india” hat on.
I knew just from the fact that a Briton directed it that it would be a negative movie about India.
I don’t even read books anymore by anything written by a Briton writing about India, because I already know it will concentrate on the negative.
If I remember correctly, once Jamal is 20 years old (where he is portrayed by Dev Patel) there aren’t any dialogues of his in English. Even the hawaldar speaks to him in English which is weird. I believe this is because Dev Patel being a brit doesn’t speak Hindi fluently. And that’s why all his dialogues are in English.
By the way, I would have loved to see Imran Khan try out this challenging role 🙂
Rang De Basanti was an absolutely horrible movie. Typical cheesy Bollywood. Please tell me that’s not your idea of a good movie.
Hello Mutineers,
I saw “Slumdog Millionaire” this past Saturday, Nov. 22nd, in Brookline. It was great. I totally loved the use of the song “Paper Planes” by M.I.A. That song, for me anyways, captured the mood of the song for some reason. Maybe because the song was based on The Clash’s “Straight to Hell.” All I know is that I appreciate M.I.A.’s music a lot more than I did when I first became familiar with her on July, 2005, when she appeared on Conan O’Brien.
Also, A.R. Rahman’s songs fit the scene and mood perfectly as well with an nuevo-Indian feel to it. His music is less formal than classical Indian music, but very fresh, and by no means is it “musical slang”. It is just as serious, academic, and complex as Classical Indian. But more soulful. It’s comfort foods for my tympanic membrane.
I thought this film was cute, stylish, and gritty. My only complaints of the film are: 1. Dev Patel is a handsome preppy boy. He doesn’t look a bit like any of the beggars that I’ve ever seen. He only looks like the pre-med majors of University of Michigan (and that’s a compliment to U.Mich pre-meds since Dev was quite handsome). 2. Also, his beatings at the hands of the police was somewhat disjointed to the film and the film’s development. Where were his bruises the next day and where were psychological scars? I would have been scared, bruised, and I would TRIED to fail the next day. 3. Elementary school Jamal and Salim; teenager Jamal and Salim; and adult Jamal and Salim all look quite different. But, hey, all desis look alike anyways.
77 · Desi_Like_You said
Why don’t YOU go and worship your blue-eyed, white-skinned Hindu gods.
60 · wallabee said
Thanks for typing what I was thinking. That aspect was more cognitively dissonant for me than Jamal’s suddenly crisp English.
As for the actual film, I’m happy to report that I was pleasantly surprised. The cheese was slathered on fairly thick towards the end, but I don’t necessarily think an Oscar nod would be out of place.
As one born in Bombay, I thought this movie was just great! It is what it is; its not meant to be a documentary or super-realistic. Does it have elements of realism? Yes. Elements of fantasy? Yes. But goddammit, its just a glorious piece of moviemaking in its old-fashioned sense. Fate, villains and destiny, etc. but still girded by the visual landscape of bombay. I enjoyed it too much to nitpick and whine.
If you’re complaining that this movie focuses only on the bad, and that it’s not realistic you’ve got a problem – for it to be realistic obviously Jamal could not have arisen to his position in the way he did (it’s a story! unlikely rise! in fact, they point out that it is unlikely in the movie itself, duh). realism could, and would, probably yield a much harsher more depressing story about his life. (I’d argue for example that city of god was far more depressing and harsh than this) instead this movie is, ultimately, uplifting. and its a story that’s much more than just something about slums, bombay and india – it’s an entertaining film.
Does anyone know when this film opens in Mumbai?
Jan. 23, 09 in India.
I absolutely had that same question when I saw it last month! The fact that Jamal could speak English definitely detracted from the authenticity of the film. And the fact that Jamal could actually forgive Salim for in effect raping Jamal’s sweetheart was a little far-fetched. To be honest, I didn’t find radically different from any other Bollywood film. The characters where a little more gray than the usual black and white. Lalita was not an unspoiled virgin. Jamal’s friend Salim could be both terribly evil and good. A little late commenting, but I loved your remarks Hemal.
The nice thing about this movie is that by the end, you get an euphoric feeling that makes you forget the flawed and grotesque scenes about Bombay. Clearly these were added for shock value and could have been done more subtly. Most people in the theater had their eyes closed for those scenes. This is a Bollywood style movie in the long run and will therefore not win any academy awards. Some ideas may even have been copied from Traffic Signal, a Bollywood movie about street kids in Bombay (http://ww.smashits.com/news/bollywood/movie-review/5981/traffic-signal.html).
Desi_Like_You, Anna is Christian. The last time I checked (scripture), the God of Abraham had no detailed form or color, much less white.
I’m skeptical of Cinderella stories, but I enjoyed this one overall. I just wish the director had explored the issues of poverty, communal violence and abuse in a more thoughtful way. The treatment felt cliched and formulaic: Anil Kapoor asks a question = insert heartbreaking flashback.
“Though Boyle’s “Slumdog Millionaire” is a screen adaptation of Swaroop’s novel “Q & A”, Beaufoy says he had completely rewritten the original story.
“I took the initial concept of a slum kid who wins all the money and gets arrested from the novel. But the book is like a series of independent short stories. That didn’t work for ‘Slumdog Millionaire’. So I went to Mumbai to look for new experience and to invent a backbone for the film. I turned the film into a love story. So I invented Latika, Frieda Pinto’s character, as the spine of the story. Latika doesn’t even exist in the book,” Beaufoy said.” http://www.bollywoodsargam.com/hollywood_news.php?newsstory=802548320–0-latest-Slumdog_Millionaire_India_is_so_exciting_Simon_Beaufoy_Hollywood_news.html
Can anyone who has read the book and seen the movie talk about which of the stories that led him Ram Mohammed Thomas to know the answers(Q and A novel character that was a child of a Hindu/Muslims relationship who became a Christian) differed from the stories that led Jamal Malik (Slumdog Millionaire character who was Muslim) to know the answers? Is the original Indian author’s Ram Mohamed Thomas character and life experience more real than the Beaufoy’s completely re-written story’s Jamal Malik character?
Gotham Chopra interviewed Danny Boyle – http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gotham-chopra/danny-boyle—emslumdog-m_b_148916.html
SPOILER
Slumdog Millionaire is a completely inauthentic film. First, that wooden latrine out in the open does not exist in Mumbai slums–does not exist anywhere in India. People go out in the open, by the railway track, or in closed brick or concrete built latrines that have a septic tank attached. I think the movie makers so much wanted the young Jamal to be immersed in poo that they had to make up a contraption like that.
Then, I don’t think it is the practice that when a religious pogrom is launched, a child with blue make up is sent in to look like Rama–first of all, it would not be safe for the child, he would get kileld or beaten by one side or the other. An Indian in Mumbai–even a Muslim–is very likely to see a picture of Ram holding a bow and arrow at a roadside “temple”, a shop selling calendars, or any notebook cover, or at the paan/bidi shop. The filmmakers did not need to have this contrived scene–INAUTHENTIC.
And it had colonial overtones–no, not in the sense of an architectural style, but as in COLONIALISM. Please imagine if you will: A couple of rich Japanese tourists in Harlem, NY–a young kid gets beaten up, the Japanese are surprised; the kid says you wanted to see America, this is the real America. The Japanese then hand him a wad of cash and a digital camera and say “Son, we want to show you the real Japan.” Imagine watching this film at your local movie theater. Would you acccept that as the real America and that as the real Japan???
This scene with the white American tourists really made me wince.
Just because Jamal could sing that bhajan and knew a blind kid who sang it does not mean he knew the name of ther person who wrote it. Actually I know that song too, and I did not know who wrote it till I saw the movie. I doubt singing beggars in India know the name of the poet who wrote those songs.
Finally, the completely inauthentic Bollywood dance at the end. Even as a wanna be Bollywood dance, it was insipid–lacked the gusto, verve, and vibrancy of real Bollywood. Even the young Jamal who did a 5 second dance before Latika earlier in the movie had greater authenticity and punch packed in those 5 seconds.
watched the movie today and enjoyed it; though felt eerie seeing the station where the terrorist massacre took place recently.
SPOILER Based on the book “Q&A” with sufficient dramatic (and geographic, and dialectical) license, the film made us cringe for nearly its entire running time. Awash with broadly telegraphed portrayuals and stereotypes that exist for a reason, it marinates in cliches and batters us relentlessly with scenarios of children-in-peril. However, the makers acknowledge that the violence is cartoonish as nearly all instances of grievous injury (murder, rape) occur off camera, you do not recall seeing actual gore, and nobody is bruised or limping after horrific physical endurances.
Oh, and I see nothing wrong with the name Loveleen. For obvious reasons.
I just saw the movie today. Given the movie’s meticulous efforts to superficially touch on every IMPORTANT ISSUE in the last 20 years in India, I was surprised that there wasn’t the mandatory scene contrasting Dharavi squalor with India Shining. 500 points off for incompleteness, especially since the actions of important supporting actors were so incoherently motivated, and could not be explained by anything other than the imperative to advance the plot to the next PRESSING SOCIAL ISSUE.
Vibrant cinematography and editing made the movie distracting enough to sit through though, and it was a director’s movie through and through (so great work by Danny Boyle! – I really hope that somebody who could make a movie as brilliantly subversive as Trainspotting does not go down the route of making pat audience strokers like this one), with very little for the actors to do, and most of them comfortably meeting that expectation. I do not think this movie will age well, months from now, when the poverty tourism value has worn off, there will only remain a superficial shell with abysmally motivated characters (did I mention that before?) and mediocre dialogue.
hemal at#18 i think your comments perfectly reflect so much of what i too felt about this movie. seeing the sikh family stuff their faces on the train and yet throw off the young child beggar??? and the white saviours come into help? pls. i have seen indians in india being kinder to their own kind than most western tourists. i have seen those with giving so much to those without in india, not ripping children off trains and throwing them in the dirt. yes, there were a lot of underlying messages and subtelties, of see how awful these people are to their own kind (which does have some truth to it) but not in the way depicted in this film. i wanted to love this film. i wanted to walk out feeling like i knew more about the slums, but i did not. jamal’s english was curious but agree one must just supend disbelief to enjoy the msg…which was…
If I’m not mistaken, Ben Franklin is on the $100 bill, and he wasn’t ever a president 😉 Excited to see the movie, though, thanks Sandhya.