The scene with the kid jumping into the biffy was the best part. Simply Horrifing!

End Spoiler*********

Characters believe “it is written” but so what? that’s nowhere near enough to justify calling it a fairy tale. Might as well call every movie based on fate/destiny or overcoming adversity, or anything that stretches believability, as a fairy tale. That’s way too easy an out.

Now “Millions” is a mix of realistic storytelling and fairy tale, which leans more and more to the latter as it progresses. But as much as I love that movie, there’s only so much critique you can write off of it by saying ‘fairy tale’

There’s a girl I know who is way into the Secret and stupid shit, and only digs massively inspirational feel-good movies, so I can’t help but be influenced into that sort of wondering. I’m sure someone out there really grasps on to the destiny/fate elements.

The entire movie and every question throughout is based on a some guiding force providing Jamal with the answers. You’re talking as if it is only the ending, so either I am misunderstanding what you are saying or you weren’t paying attention to the film.

@ “I wonder a bit if to have that extra connection people have in this movie, you have to be someone who believes in fate and destiny. I don’t.”

That’s just fucking stupid, Goon. I am the biggest disbeliever in destiny and fate this side of the Mississippi, but that has nothing to do with the way I view a story, especially a story in a film like this. I could go on about the asininity of this comment, but I’m drunk, so maybe tomorrow.

I’m not sure Slumdog really knows what it wants to be, there is a lot of elements that are not really fairy tale-ish, and so it becomes harder to excuse the film on the basis of it being a fairy tale, unlike Benjamin Button which is more consistently so.

And there are liberties given to a film according to the genre specifics it employs… its like the tone of voice, if someone has a sardonic tone of voice you react and understand it differently, likewise, a film that depicts its ideas in fairy tale ways is asking of the audience to respond to its story in a certain way. That way includes a resistance to realism nitpicking, to requiring fully dimensional characters, and plausible scenarios. This is why I think Benjamin Button is good for what it aspires to, but given the choice I much prefer more ambitious films set in reality.

I think its much like the Dark Knight, in the sense that there’s so much going for it that people overly forgive the flaws. But I think the flaws here are much more pronounced.

“So much going for it that even the harsher critics should find redemption with the ending.”

Whats so particularly redemptive or unique about Slumdog’s ending that isn’t available in so many other movies? This movie isn’t much more than a regular boy-meets-girl story, and telegraphs everything.

I wonder a bit if to have that extra connection people have in this movie, you have to be someone who believes in fate and destiny. I don’t. There’s been cases where a movie could put me there for a short while, but again, Boyle simply didn’t earn it.

Agreed. Also, I don’t remember that character ever doing anything other than getting rescued over and over. There are several moments where this movie earns its sentimentality, but the romance is absolutely not one of them. His brother’s final scene isn’t earned either, it’s tacked on and not properly explored, it’s shot/treated like he’s frigging Boromir, and overdoes it with the poetry.

I guess it’s a bit like what I’ve been saying about Benjamin Button, about how much you can buy into something to make you forget certain things, and whether or not the director’s treatment transcends some of the devices/flaws in the script. Obviously I felt Fincher delivered, and Boyle didn’t completely hit the mark. I still liked it overall, but like a lot of his other movies, the last 25 minutes made me wish he had a do-over.

I find a lot of people are calling this a ‘crowd-pleaser’ – man, I hate that term. It’s kind of a backhanded compliment if you thing about it, every time I see it it’s like someone who isn’t into it saying “This oughta please the morons”.

No.

This is an excuse for Benjamin Button, but Slumdog is trying to tell it a la Usual Suspects, except this time it’s true. Only the ending goes into any sort of other world.