Movie Review: Slumdog Millionaire

After winning 8 Oscars and 63 other movie awards, Slumdog Millionaire has had a very successful year. Winning best picture at the Oscars has put it up with likes of Schindler’s List (1993), Forrest Gump (1994), and The Godfather (1973). Slumdog Millionaire, however, does not deliver the same level of perfection as past winners, and viewing it does not give a feeling of “this is the best picture of the year.”

Slumdog Millionaire is the story of young Jamal Malik, a teen from Mumbai that gets chosen to be on India’s “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” He does not have much education, but he answers many questions correctly based on life experiences. When a question is asked, the movie flashes back to the past to reveal why he knows the answer for that particular question.

Director Danny Boyle did do a good job with presenting the movie in a fresh way, but it did not have the expertise of a typical “best picture.” The story is fairly interesting, but there are not any surprises with the story’s direction, therefore the story is predictable for most of the movie. Best pictures should show audiences fresh and unpredictable stories, but Slumdog Millionaire does not. A question is presented when the movie first starts, and it is answered at the very end. The way this was designed, and the question itself for that matter, seemed tacky and irritating as well.

Flaws aside, Slumdog Millionaire is a good movie. I do recommend seeing it even though I do not believe it is best picture material. When it is released on DVD, rent it and decide for yourself.