Great all around and no contrived pap of a plot line...

Rating: 10/10 (26 January 2009)

While my wife was pregnant, someone told us not to watch this movie because there was all of this "child abuse" going on. Say what? There's no child abuse in this movie. At all. Poor street and slum kids doing what street and slum kids do. It's amazing that Americans' perceive this as abuse. Sorry to shatter your tiny world but the rest of the world lives differently than the US. OK, my rant is over. From what I gather this is based on the book Q&A. Never did read the book but this story plays out great and reminds me a Lot of City of God (which was stellar as well). In a nutshell the movie starts out introducing you to our main hero and his brother who are slum kids that go about grifting for basic survival and kicks. A mysterious and creepy guy named Maman takes in orphans and has sinister intentions. He takes the boys in as well as their new friend Latika but they escape. However, Latika is left behind. Without getting into the plot too much or spoiling the movie, we see our hero and his brother grow older and change all the while we see Jamal hoping to find Latika. Overlaid on this back story we find Jamal in the present and on an episode of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire.
Danny Boyle directer a winner and all the accolades and awards this movie will get are well deserved. There are great comedy moments, tension, high drama, and action in this movie. The acting is not forced and comes off very natural and the cinematography is five stars. I find it impossible to believe that someone would not like this movie if only out of spite.