Slumdog Millionaire

2008

2h 1m

IMDb RATING

7.7/10

11K

YOUR RATING

Rate

POPULARITY

Play trailer

25 Videos

94 Images

Drama

Romance

A teenager reflects on his life after being accused of cheating on the Indian version of "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?".

Directors

Danny Boyle

Writers

Simon Beaufoy(screenplay by)

Vikas Swarup(novel by)

Gulzar(lyricist by)

Stars

Dev Patel

Freida Pinto

Madhur Mittal

See production, box office & company info

Top cast

Older Jamal

Older Latika

Older Salim

Prem

Javed

Sergeant Srinivas

Police Inspector

Maman

Middle Jamal

Ayush Mahesh Khedekar

Youngest Jamal

Ashutosh Lobo Gajiwala

Middle Salim

Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail

Youngest Salim

Middle Latika

Youngest Latika

Director

Vision Mixer

Prakash

Adele

Directors

Danny Boyle

Writers

Simon Beaufoy(screenplay by)

Vikas Swarup(novel by)

Gulzar(lyricist by)

All cast & crew

Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Dev Patel is great here as "Jamal", a young man from the Mumbai slums who shot to fame by winning the first ever jackpot on the Indian version of "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" only to be accused of cheating. It's not an unreasonable allegation - this lad comes from a background that suggests little, if any, education and yet he is answering some tough questions that, theoretically, he should not know the answers too. It's during this (actually quite brutal) interrogation, which is interspersed with flashback and with each round of the television quiz, that we discover a little of the childhood and upbringing of this young man and about how he has amassed the knowledge to, legitimately, get the answers correct. It's a story about humanity and decency, this - and the ensemble cast, especially the street urchins, help to deliver an authentic glimpse at not just the poverty in which they lived, but of their sense of community and loyalty to each other as they grew up together. Now there's no point in pretending that the writing is great - it isn't. It's doesn't really allow for any in-depth character development. Somehow, though, Patel's sheer screen presence and optimism, coupled with the overall style of the film cover up for that more than adequately leaving us with a solidly entertaining, occasionally thought-provoking, rags-to-riches story that I suspect many people can readily identify with. It's a bit too long, and maybe the romantic elements could have been ditched, but all told it's still well worth watching.

Geronimo196702 Apr, 2023