Spring Break
Boyle portrays realistic slum scenes in 'Millionaire'
Tyler Pietz
Issue date: 11/21/08 Section: Arts & Entertainment
Awards season has found another contender in "Slumdog Millionaire." From director Danny Boyle ("Trainspotting", "28 Days Later"), comes the unlikely tale of Jamal Malik (Dev Patel), an 18-year-old from the slums of Mumbai who tries to reconnect with his lost crush by competing on the Indian version of "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?," her favorite show. Boyle fills in the story gaps piecemeal.
Jamal, who is in the middle of being interrogated by the local police on suspicion of cheating, is forced to explain how he, an orphan working as a lowly assistant at a call-center, has made it so far on the toughest game show in the country. Each answer he gives them is a different piece of the puzzle, and reveals something else about his troubled life.
Orphaned after their mother is brutally beaten to death in a religiously motivated attack on their Muslim-neighborhood, Jamal and his older brother Salim are forced to flee and bring along Latika, a girl their age who has also lost her parents-and who Jamal eventually goes on TV to try to find.
They manage to survive but are soon lured away by a sadistic man-reminiscent of a Dickensian villain-who runs a pseudo-orphanage where the children are forced to beg for money in the streets in order to earn their keep. After Jamal is nearly mutilated by the man who runs the camp, he and Salim escape, unwittingly leaving Latika behind. After a brief reunion years later, they are separated again and Jamal is on his own.
The acting is spectacular all around, especially considering that the children used for the flashback scenes were almost exclusively local children actually living in the slums themselves. Anil Kapoor is excellent as the conniving game show host-and makes you wonder what Regis Philbin used to say to his contestants during commercial breaks.
Despite the script being dominated dark material, Boyle is able to make it surprisingly up-beat. In a recent interview with the director, he described his treatment of the film.
Jamal, who is in the middle of being interrogated by the local police on suspicion of cheating, is forced to explain how he, an orphan working as a lowly assistant at a call-center, has made it so far on the toughest game show in the country. Each answer he gives them is a different piece of the puzzle, and reveals something else about his troubled life.
Orphaned after their mother is brutally beaten to death in a religiously motivated attack on their Muslim-neighborhood, Jamal and his older brother Salim are forced to flee and bring along Latika, a girl their age who has also lost her parents-and who Jamal eventually goes on TV to try to find.
They manage to survive but are soon lured away by a sadistic man-reminiscent of a Dickensian villain-who runs a pseudo-orphanage where the children are forced to beg for money in the streets in order to earn their keep. After Jamal is nearly mutilated by the man who runs the camp, he and Salim escape, unwittingly leaving Latika behind. After a brief reunion years later, they are separated again and Jamal is on his own.
The acting is spectacular all around, especially considering that the children used for the flashback scenes were almost exclusively local children actually living in the slums themselves. Anil Kapoor is excellent as the conniving game show host-and makes you wonder what Regis Philbin used to say to his contestants during commercial breaks.
Despite the script being dominated dark material, Boyle is able to make it surprisingly up-beat. In a recent interview with the director, he described his treatment of the film.
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