Destiny Fulflilled; Danny Boyle’s “Slumdog Millionaire” Inspires

  

   I can’t remember the last time a movie genuinely hit me. I mean really, really hit me. The last time it happened was probably my first viewing of Schindler’s List when I was around 10 or 11. I can remember feeling the gut-wrenching pain in my heart, watching this gorgeously depressing cinematic masterpiece Steven Spielberg created back in the early 90s. Emotions poured out from me. It was the first time I’d shown such outright emotion while watching a film.

   For every tear of sorrow Schindler’s List made me cry, double that amount were shed out of sheer joy and pleasure while viewing Danny Boyle’s epic inspirational masterpiece, Slumdog Millionaire, an engrossing tale of fate, virtue, and destiny amidst a world of greed, money, and sin.

    With it’s backdrop in the slums of Mumbai, the film first struck me as an eerie juxtaposition with the horrific events that occurred in Mumbai just weeks ago.  A place that is now burned into people’s minds as a place of death and suffering is unintentionally-refreshingly painted as a place of hope, perseverance, and happiness in Danny Boyle’s latest film.

    The film tells the not-so-conventional tale of young Jamal Malik (Dev Patel), whom we see in the opening shot in the hot seat on India’s hit version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. He’s a young boy who’s –honestly- not so interesting upon first glance. He works at a call center as an assistant, has little money, and is quite plain in appearance, all of which are poked fun at by the show’s happy-go-lucky (well, seemingly) host. In essence, we are supposed to look down upon Jamal Malik, right? He’s a boy with nothing going for him…well, except destiny, that is.

   Jamal has become somewhat of a phenomenon throughout  India…the only contestant to ever make it as far as he has on the show. Is he a genius? Is he cheating? These are all questions posed by those who are in disbelief, and even leads to Jamal’s short-time interrogation by violent disbelievers…but Jamal simply has fate on his side.

   Throughout the film, each question Jamal is asked on the show somehow traces back to a different event throughout his young yet unbelievably experienced life.  Whether it’s a question about a song he was made to sing by a con artist who threatened his life, or the simple name of a childhood movie star he idolized as a child, Jamal’s life seems to finally be making sense to him.

   But there’s one thing he still doesn’t have; the love of his life. Latika, a young girl whose been at Jamal’s side ever since he was a boy, has recently taken up the life of a repressed housewife wasting away serving a vicious drug lord.

   I don’t want to reveal too much of what happens next, but I will say that the ending, while it might seem pretty obvious to someone who hasn’t seen the film, is quite another experience entirely when taken into context with the rest of the movie. And that’s one thing that Danny Boyle is able to do throughout the entire picture; take something totally average (I’m not going to lie, the film’s concept isn’t that fresh or interesting) and craft it into an exciting and inspiring work of modern art that’s truly one of the best films in years.

   Simon Beaufoy’s masterful adaptation of Vikas Swarups’ novel comes with a few bumps near the end, but remains a steady and expansive tribute to humanity. Encompassing a vast majority of Indian life, the film plays more like a revolutionary tribute to the people of a nation rather than a glorified love story set amidst another pointless backdrop, which could have easily happened.

      But what what makes the film that much more interesting is actually Boyle himself. What makes the British cinema veteran such an extraordinary director is his ability to master a polar opposite genre from the last film he did, showing his prowess not only as a filmmaker but as a true visionary as well. He’s a man who knows what he wants to do, how he wants to do it, and the results are fantastic. Just look at the difference between 2003’s superb modern horror masterpiece 28 Days Later and the epic that is Slumdog Millionaire. For every bit of horrific tension and emotional-atmospheric  isolation he creates in the former film, there’s double that amount of emotional jubilation and heart within the latter.

    Just looking at the growth Boyle has made between these two films is reason enough to call him a filmmaking genius, but take a look at his other works as well. Each film Boyle does is an experimentation in a genre. You’ve got the already-mentioned mastery of horror and fear within films such as 28 Days Later and Sunshine, and the heartwarming and jovial nature of films such as Millions. But Slumdog Millionaire is the true pinnacle of Boyle’s filmmaking. It’s a pitch-perfect combination of genres that shows Boyle’s mastery of filmmaking in general rather than showcasing one specific genre. As corny as it sounds, the film really is one hell of a rollercoaster, exploring all aspects of humanity within its two-hour runtime. At once a sweeping epic and at others an inspiring journey of hope and destiny, Slumdog Millionaire is undoubtedly the best film of 2008 so far…and, dare I say it, certainly one of the best films of all time.

   It’s a film that has no genre. No niche. No classification. It’s humanity on celluloid. It’s a film with a deep lifeline and a heartbeat that can be felt within everyone who comes into contact with it. Instead of succeeding on one note only, Slumdog is a rare triumph in all aspects of film. From its taut screenplay, inspired performances, and superb direction, Slumdog Millionaire is now and will always remain a film that speaks not to one group of people, one person, or one way of life, but rather a film with universal appeal that speaks to one thing and one thing only; the human spirit.