“A book turned into a film is like a daughter given away in marriage and the film is like a son-in-law. A wise man never says a bad thing about his son in law” said Sanker Mujherji a famous Bengali writer whose books were adapted by Satyajit Ray.
Slum Dog 
Millionaire, the most written about, talked about movie of recent times, feels just that a daughter given away in marriage. The location, crew, sets, actors……all Indians, the winner of Golden Globe awards and having ten oscar nominations. Feels good except for a annoying twinge of a thought that keeps popping up, is it due to a white man being at the helm of affairs? :( There have definitely been more hard hitting movies than this one which Indian Cinema can lay claim too but not any which have awards of this status to back up this claim.
But to give credit where it is due, the movie is a wonderfully woven tale, with the answers to each question that leads the hero to being a “millionaire” being shown as a phase in his life. The visual feast that’s offered in the beginning of the movie when the children run with the police close on their heels is amazing. The shots come in from aerial and ground view and it’s done amazingly well. That one chase sets the ground for the tale to be told.
I personally fell in love with the last scene where the question is a double edged sword – “What is the name of the third musketeer?” A question that holds a world of meaning to the hero…. :)The cynic in me, however, just can’t digest the fact that everything was for love. Especially when a penniless Jamal suggested running away to Latika only to be turned down due to economic reasons, has the very same Latika frantically running to him once he is on “THE SHOW” with a good chance of winning.
And of course the question that baffles me..........how could it be that a child at a tender age forms a strong attachment which would then have him searching the red light area of Mumbai in his pre teens to recover her? Help her escape from the red light area with the aid of a pistol and a trigger happy brother and then relinquish her to the brother.....and then years later still have the "STRONG ATTACHMENT" in place......so much so that he goes on to be a millionaire just for her.......
D. Its written
Destiny the mother of all unanswered questions!! The ultimate Indian paradox :)
Millionaire, the most written about, talked about movie of recent times, feels just that a daughter given away in marriage. The location, crew, sets, actors……all Indians, the winner of Golden Globe awards and having ten oscar nominations. Feels good except for a annoying twinge of a thought that keeps popping up, is it due to a white man being at the helm of affairs? :( There have definitely been more hard hitting movies than this one which Indian Cinema can lay claim too but not any which have awards of this status to back up this claim.
But to give credit where it is due, the movie is a wonderfully woven tale, with the answers to each question that leads the hero to being a “millionaire” being shown as a phase in his life. The visual feast that’s offered in the beginning of the movie when the children run with the police close on their heels is amazing. The shots come in from aerial and ground view and it’s done amazingly well. That one chase sets the ground for the tale to be told.
I personally fell in love with the last scene where the question is a double edged sword – “What is the name of the third musketeer?” A question that holds a world of meaning to the hero…. :)The cynic in me, however, just can’t digest the fact that everything was for love. Especially when a penniless Jamal suggested running away to Latika only to be turned down due to economic reasons, has the very same Latika frantically running to him once he is on “THE SHOW” with a good chance of winning.
And of course the question that baffles me..........how could it be that a child at a tender age forms a strong attachment which would then have him searching the red light area of Mumbai in his pre teens to recover her? Help her escape from the red light area with the aid of a pistol and a trigger happy brother and then relinquish her to the brother.....and then years later still have the "STRONG ATTACHMENT" in place......so much so that he goes on to be a millionaire just for her.......
D. Its written
Destiny the mother of all unanswered questions!! The ultimate Indian paradox :)
