Review: Slumdog Millionaire

Review: Slumdog Millionaire

Rating: ****

Nonna's Rating: $$$$

Rotten Tomatoes: 94%

The best movie I've seen this year. Hands down. And gentlemen, don't let anyone tell you that it's a "chick-flick." It is a love story, but it's more that. The narrative structure of the movie is clever and original, but the film would only be an interesting curiosity if it weren't for the power of the story and the compelling performances of a bevy of young first-time actors. It's rated "R," but that's not for sex or language; it's for violence -- and there are some very intense scenes depicting the cruel, tenuous life of orphans in Mumbai. Several critics have called the film "Dickensian," but Fagin's troop of orphans is sheltered and loved in comparison to the children in this "orphanage" in the streets of impoverished India.

And, make sure you stay when the credits start to roll for the joyful coda.

Nonna's Ratings:

$$$$ = Worth paying the Friday evening price
$$$= Worth paying the Matinee price
$$= Worth a rental
$ = Wait for cable
# = Skip it