Two must see movies
Slumdog Millionaire
Directed by Danny Boyle and Loveleen Tandan
Cast: Dev Patel, Madhur Mittal, Freida Pinto, Anil Kapoor and Irrfan Khan
I was fortunate to have caught Slumdog Millionaire’s premiere at the MIAAC Film Festival this year which featured the two directors, writer Simon Beaufoy and the two lead actors in a Q&A. The movie itself is a vibrant and often frantic retelling of Jamal’s (Dev) life and how he knows the answers to the questions on the Indian version of Who wants to be a Millionaire. This is intertwined with his love for Latika (Freida) and his relationship with his brother Salim. Set in Bombay, it gives a great and accurate depiction of the chaos and tragedies in that city. The score by A.R. Rahman (with a new song featuring vocals by M.I.A.) adds to the excitement. Even though alot of it is in Hindi, the subtitles are not just placed on the bottom but boldly displayed in the middle. Stay through the first parts of the credits and you’ll see the cute young children dancing.
Slumdog Millionaire (imdb)
Slumdog Millionaire – Official Site
Danny Boyle’s “Slumdog Millionaire” Captures Mumbai, a City of Extremes – NYTimes.com
Review – Slumdog Millionaire – NYTimes.com
84/100 Slumdog Millionaire (2008): Metacritic Reviews
Rachel Getting Married
Directed by Jonathan Demme
Cast: Anne Hathaway, Rosemarie DeWitt and Tunde Adebimpe
Set in Connecticut, this story about Kym (Anne) getting out of rehab and attending her sisters wedding is very emotional and very well done. There are past emotional issues to get through and the story is never quite about Rachel as Kym usurps attention with her post-rehab issues. The characters never feel cliched and the story is kept simple though wrought with emotion albeit with moments of humor and levity. Music is a small but important part of the film, as the groom Sidney (Tunde) and his friends all seem to be musicians and Tunde himself is in the band TV on the Radio.
Rachel Getting Married (imdb)
RACHEL GETTING MARRIED (official site)
Review – ‘Rachel Getting Married’ – NYTimes.com
82/100 Rachel Getting Married (2008): Metacritic Reviews
Indie film I am currently hoping to see, The Pool.
