Didn't quite fulfill its potential, IMHO

Rating: 7/10 (25 February 2009)

I feel that this is a worthwhile film that has some beautiful moments, especially in the first half hour or so. That said, while it seemed at first that Slumdog might actually live up to the enormous hype, things started getting a bit silly when the boys reached Agra. Having spent several months in India over the course of two trips, the Taj scenes were far-fetched at best and I was never really hypnotized by the film again after that. Security is very tight at the Taj and street urchins operating a stolen shoe ring simply wouldn't happen as you don't take your shoes off until you're well past the military style checkpoint that "slumdogs" would never be able to pass. This in itself didn't ruin the film or anything, but starting with those scenes my suspension of disbelief generally faltered and the whole thing began to feel somewhat contrived. I suppose the writer's desire to plug in the trusty old "rags to riches" story was probably the main reason for this as VERY FEW Indian street kids ever climb the social ladder. I feel that Jamal losing out on the money but finally rescuing the girl would have made for a more realistic (and artistically apropos) ending. Concerning Jamal, I also failed to see any physical resemblance between the adult version and the two younger ones. Actually, Dev Patel has a significantly lighter complexion than any of the actors who played Salim, Latika, or the younger Jamal.
Ultimately, it seems to me that the gaggle of Oscars might actually damage Slumdog's reception somewhat as they inevitably lead one to believe that this is a once in a generation type of film. Simply put, it's not. For my money, City of God was a better executed film about street kids and Born into Brothels (while a documentary) was a superior chronicle of the Indian variety. Oh well. Slumdog is still worth seeing, it's just not quite worthy of the hype. 7/10