A beautiful thought provoking film

Rating: 10/10 (4 September 2010)

I have to say I was really looking forward to seeing this film. The buzz surrounding it made me curious to see what all the fuss was about and despite it not being my usual type of film (I'm more of a romantic comedy lover myself) I really felt like I took a lot away from it. It's not just a way to pass a couple of hours on a Saturday night, it was an experience you don't get from a lot of films. It wasn't a funny story, far from it, but it was funny in places where you have the young Jamal taking tourists for mugs, and the youngest Jamal covered in other peoples waste. Doesn't sound that funny but it was oddly cute nonetheless.
I was engrossed in the story of how Dev Patel's character Jamal, a contestant on India's 'Who wants to be a Millionaire' explains how, after being arrested on suspicion of cheating on the show, he came to know the answers most people wouldn't. With each question comes a torturous memory and how the experiences of his childhood with his brother in the slums of Mumbai leads him to be one question away from the jackpot. While he explains how he came to be able to answer such impossible questions he tells of Latika, the girl he loved and had let go. This is essentially to do with winning love over money and takes you through what people are prepared to do to get these things. The youngest actors in the film are amazing to me and could out act plenty gracing the red carpets of Hollywood these days. There was nothing about this film I didn't like. The sound track, the story, the actors, the setting - all perfect. It wasn't made on a ridiculous budget which kept the story realistic. It was thought provoking while entertaining all the same. It most definitely gets 10 out of 10 from me.