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Movies / On DVD / Slumdog Millionaire
Slumdog Millionaire

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Slumdog Millionaire (2008)

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Reviews Counted:210

Fresh:196

Rotten:14

Average Rating:8.2/10

Consensus: Visually dazzling and emotionally resonant, Slumdog Millionaire is a film that's both entertaining and powerful.

Rated: 15

Runtime: 2 hrs

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:09-01-2009

Synopsis: British director Danny Boyle takes another intriguing career turn with this heartfelt underdog tale. Jamal Malik (Dev Patel) is a street kid (or "slumdog") who has landed an appearance on India's... British director Danny Boyle takes another intriguing career turn with this heartfelt underdog tale. Jamal Malik (Dev Patel) is a street kid (or "slumdog") who has landed an appearance on India's version of the hit TV game show WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE? Jamal exceeds expectations on the show, and the producers alert the police after they become suspicious of his methods. The young contestant is subsequently arrested and is interrogated at the hands of a nameless police inspector (played by Bollywood star Irfan Khan). As the interrogation proceeds, Boyle tells Jamal's story through harrowing flashbacks that both show the terrible poverty of Mumbai and help explain how he knew the answers to the MILLIONAIRE questions. SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE is a tightly woven story that has been expertly edited into shape. The contrast between Jamal's upbringing and his chance of escaping it on the show are adeptly juxtaposed. Mumbai is portrayed as a place of terrifying poverty and unforgettable brutality, and Jamal and his brother get into a never-ending succession of challenging situations. But the way Boyle ties together Jamal's life experiences with his answers on the show is quite brilliant, and the film really does run the full gamut of emotions as we see him growing up, falling in love, coming close to death, and teetering on the brink of escaping from his terrible predicament. The film belongs to Boyle's cast, who are mostly unknown outside of India. Patel, in particular, gives a startlingly mature performance that audiences are likely to remember long after the credits role on this affecting feature. [More]

Starring: Dev Patel, Irrfan Khan, Anil Kapoor, Madhur Mittal

Starring: Dev Patel, Irrfan Khan, Anil Kapoor, Madhur Mittal, Freida Pinto

Director: Danny Boyle

Director: Danny Boyle
Screenwriter: Simon Beaufoy
Producer: Christian Colson
Composer: A.R. Rahman
Studio: Fox Searchlight Pictures

[See More Credits]

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Reviews for Slumdog Millionaire

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81 - 100 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 >> >|
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Hardscrabble British director Danny Boyle does an astounding job at building and maintaining suspense.

Full Review Source: Arizona Daily Star | comment Comment
12/18/08
Phil Villarreal
Phil Villarreal
Arizona Daily Star

It's a joyous, moving, living work that propels Boyle to the forefront of filmmakers working today.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
12/17/08
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

we may feel somewhat bamboozled by the beguilingly colourful ride this film takes us on... but there is also a more real, altogether less salubrious Indian history on offer here for those who have eyes to see.

Full Review Source: Eye for Film | comment Comment
12/16/08
Anton Bitel
Anton Bitel
Eye for Film

Most fairy tales are rooted first in nightmares, and if this story is any indication, there are plenty of those haunting the people of Mumbai.

Full Review Source: Scene-Stealers.com | comment Comment
12/16/08
Eric Melin
Eric Melin
Scene-Stealers.com

Compelling and moving, bitter sweet and haunting, it's one of the best films of the year. Any year.

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
12/13/08
Andrew L. Urban
Andrew L. Urban
Urban Cinefile

It's a shame that Boyle and Beaufoy toss aside all innovation in order to bind the final half-hour into a straightjacket of rigid formula plotting ... Still, three-quarters of a stellar movie is nothing to sneer at.

Full Review Source: Creative Loafing | comment 2 Comments
12/13/08
Matt Brunson
Matt Brunson
Creative Loafing

Danny Boyle has hit the jackpot with this wonderfully uplifting rags-to-riches story that has so much of everything, I felt as though I had won 20 million rupees myself. Above all, it's a love story, but also a story of survival

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
12/12/08
Louise Keller
Louise Keller
Urban Cinefile

Like Mumbai, Slumdog pulses and throbs with raw, unadulterated life and the hope for a better Bombay, today. It's brilliant.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
12/12/08
Marc Savlov
Marc Savlov
Austin Chronicle

However improbable those circumstances get, Boyle and writer Simon Beaufoy (who adapted a novel by Vikas Swarup) keep us rooting for Jamal Malik to slay his dragons.

Full Review Source: Charlotte Observer | comment Comment
12/12/08
Lawrence Toppman
Lawrence Toppman
Charlotte Observer

Slumdog Millionaire is not the cure for all the world’s ills, but it comes close. It solves, for instance, such endemic global problems as: a) sadness, b) lovelessness, c) cynicism, and d) the waning cultural relevance of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
12/12/08
Amy Biancolli
Amy Biancolli
Houston Chronicle

It’s a diverting yarn, one pulsing with unexpected sights and sounds. Sometimes you’d swear you can smell this movie.

Full Review Source: Kansas City Star | comment Comment
12/12/08
Robert W. Butler
Robert W. Butler
Kansas City Star

From an early footchase in which the careening camera gives us a tour of the maze-like slums, to the ridiculously uplifting Bollywood dance number that plays over the end credits, Slumdog Millionaire makes for kinetic, exhilarating entertainment.

Full Review Source: Miami Herald | comment Comment
12/12/08
Rene Rodriguez
Rene Rodriguez
Miami Herald

At times, it feels somewhat schematic and overloaded. But the spirit of the thing -- both the narrative and the filmmaking -- is undeniable.

Full Review Source: Oregonian | comment Comment
12/12/08
Shawn Levy
Shawn Levy
Oregonian

Slumdog Millionaire bursts with life, delighting, shocking and constantly engaging through lively visuals and the rags-to-maybe-riches adventures of a young man who travels from the slums to the hot seat of the Indian Who Wants To Be a Millionaire.

Full Review Source: Sacramento Bee | comment Comment
12/12/08
Carla Meyer
Carla Meyer
Sacramento Bee

A kaleidoscope of multiplicity -- romance, memoir, coming-of-age, sibling rivalry, gangsterism -- accompanied by trains, always trains, carrying us in, around and through this masterpiece.

Full Review Source: Indie Movies Online | comment Comment
12/12/08
Kimberly Gadette
Kimberly Gadette
Indie Movies Online

Patel is likable as Jamal, and Kapoor and Khan are terrific as always.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
12/11/08
Jeff Vice
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

Its social realism is a far cry from the escapist fare created by the Bollywood fantasy factory, but the percussive score by Bollywood veteran A.R. Rahman and a rousing dance number finale add cultural specificity and vibrancy.

Full Review Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | comment 1 Comment
12/11/08
Duane Dudek
Duane Dudek
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

[A] taut, tense and witty tale of human tragedy and triumphant humanity set against the sweep of modern India.

Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel | comment Comment
12/11/08
Roger Moore
Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel

An unapologetic modern fairy tale ... The construct is so appealing, it's almost instantly classic.

Full Review Source: Window to the Movies | comment Comment
12/11/08
Jeffrey Chen
Jeffrey Chen
Window to the Movies

With a good feel for environment as character, Boyle brings his customary vitality -- throbbing music, jaunty editing, showy cinematography -- and an aptly, rousingly silly Bollywood-style dance number for the closing credits.

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
12/11/08
Jonathan Kiefer
Jonathan Kiefer
Sacramento News & Review
 
 
81 - 100 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 >> >|
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Latest News for Slumdog Millionaire

June 09, 2009: Danny Boyle and Simon Beaufoy Move to Maximum City Opens in new window
Danny Boyle will be staying in Bombay -- and reuniting with "Slumdog Millionaire" writer Simon Beaufoy -- for his next project, an adaptation of the non-fiction book "Maximum... More...

May 05, 2009: 2009 MTV Movie Awards Nominations Announced Opens in new window
The nominations for the 2009 MTV Movie Awards have been announced, with "Slumdog Millionaire" and "Twilight" each earning nominations in six categories. More...

March 31, 2009: Five Favorite Films with Slumdog Millionaire's Anil Kapoor
Slumdog Millionaire's American audiences were enticed to watch by the name of director Danny Boyle or the movie's kinetic exploration of an exotic, far-away underbelly. In... More...

March 30, 2009: RT on DVD: Exclusive Slumdog Millionaire Clip, Seven Pounds, and The Matrix 10th Anniversary Blu-ray
Jai Ho it up with the DVD debut of Danny Boyle's multiple Oscar-winning film, Slumdog Millionaire! It's also your week to catch films you might have missed in theaters, from... More...

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