Slumdog Millionaire

If you can put all desire for realism to one side you’ll find Slumdog Millionaire an enjoyable enough fantasy romp. For fantasy is what it is; having grown up in the slums of Mumbai and orphaned from an early age, Jamal finds that the key moments of his life have serendipitously come together at this point in time for one purpose: to provide him with the answers needed for the big win on India’s version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? Yet the money is the last thing on Jamal’s mind, who instead is only interested in the search for his childhood sweetheart Latika. Danny Boyle has created a colourful film with that all important feel-good factor. Bizarrely, though, the opening scenes (where Jamal is questioned and tortured by police in the belief that the only way he could have got so far in the show is through cheating) are uncomfortable to watch and appear tonally at odds with the rest of the film, which for the most part sways towards rom-com territory. Those accustomed to the inconsequentialness of game show/reality TV will find themselves well-placed to enjoy this melodramatic, Bollywood-inspired offering. [Gail Tolley]