Is Slumdog Millionaire worthy of all the praise and accolades it has received in recent months? It won seven of the eight Academy Awards it was nominated for (it was nominated twice in the Best Song category and won for the song “Jai Ho!” It’s also a box office goldmine, raking in $290 million worldwide since its release. And with a budget of only $15 million, that’s a lot of money.
After watching the film after all the hype it has received, I can honestly say that it’s a good film. Well made. Engaging. A love story for the ages. But it wasn’t the memorable film that I was hoping it would be. It didn’t have the visceral impact I was expecting, nor did it leave me wanting to see it again.
For those people ready to send me yet another hateful comment, let me just say that I liked it. I just, personally, wouldn’t buy it. Is it worth renting? You bet. Worth seeing? Yes. More worthy of Best Picture than Crash? Hell yes! (God, I HATED Crash!!)
I think all of us, whether you’ve seen it or not, know the basic premise of the film, so I won’t go into detail. Dev Patel (Skins) is great in the lead role, and the rest of the cast also does a fine job. Like I said above, I recommend that you see it. I can’t recommend a purchase.
What amazes me about this DVD is the lack of any mention of its Oscar sweep. There’s no coverage, no interviews about it, nothing. What it does include are standard issue DVD extras. These include:
Audio commentary with director Danny Boyle and Dev Patel; a second audio commentary with producer Christian Colson and writer Simon Beaufoy.
Deleted Scenes
Slumdog Dreams: Danny Boyle & The Making of Slumdog Millionaire
Go behind the scenes and see what it took to make a film on the street and in the slums of India. The video quality at points pixelates, which can be frustrating.
Slumdog Cutdown
The music video for the film, featuring the Oscar-winning song “Jai Ho!”
While I may take heat for what I’m about to do, I give Slumdog Millionaire a B+. Worth seeing once; but again? Still not sure about that.
“slumdog = disney movie for adults”
Glad you didn’t say kids in that equation. Pretty violent stuff here.