Firstly i would like to adress the question of genre.The different conventions of the film confused me as to what the genre was specifically. Some reviews state that it is 'Wildly funny' refering to it as a comedy. I have also found quotes such as
The film included drama, comedey and romance. Perhaps it is a sub genre film however this in itself directly contrributed to my dissatisfaction.
I found that the humour in it was awkward and provoked an enlightened feeling, later construed i figured it did not leave me wanting to watch the film again because of it.
The music confused me and its vigorous loudness seemed to just make up for poor acting.
Also the violent episode in the beginning seems hefitier weighed up to the parody of humour that is distributed through the film. However, i found nothing about the film humorous. I feel like the staged TV show( The indian version of Who wants to be a millionaire?) clashed somehow with the non linear structure of the film. The flashback technique showed the audience the story backwards but i felt like the story unveiled was an anticlimax.
Is it really conventional for a child so horrifically brought up to end up winning both money and the woman he loves? I recall the statement 'God is good' refering to both scenarios, of Jamal winning the money and his brother Salim being shot in a bath filled with money. I fail to see the significance of this and if 'God' was good then why does one brother lose when the other wins?
Normally I would appreciate the 'goodie' and the 'baddie' in an action film, where the ending would consist of a rightful ending where the baddie dies. However, through the film we travel along with the story of both brothers. If one was swayed to be bad by the boundaries of society and effectivley seeing it as the only way out then surely the ending is unfair.
It is not misconstrued to think that the film evoked a variety of emotions from its audience, as everyone appeared to be(quite loudly and colloquially) expressing their opinions to the entirety of the cinema audience and choking on their popcorn after quite horrific imagery. perhaps my opinion is not followed
The entire hollywood cliche love vs money is inhabited through this film, with the main character Jamal following questions to unveil his fate. Each question asked of him had a special significance thanks to the life he lead. I did not enjoy the dialogue through various parts and the time period between parts in the film were too obvious and left the audience disorientated. For example,
The time between when Jamal last see's Latika( his childhood friend) in a hotel where he, his brother and her stayed to escape to where Jamal finds her again living within a violent relationship. The gap made me wonder about how Latika had progressed into that kind of a relationship when ironically the audience thinks she had escaped a violent relationship with a man who used her to make money.
The romantic relationship between Latika and Jamal is not obvious or significant in any part of the film until this bit. Why, how does the instant on screen romance excell the film?
I would like to oppose from the guardians review as i did not think that the storyline was grasapable. I find that I was swayed consistently into different assessments throughout the film which generally antagonised me. One moment i though that the drama was strong and triumphant to the film directly and then was dissapointed at the outcome of an event. For instance, Jamal calling his brother was emotionally gripping and im sure a range of the audience felt sympathetic for this child who had been changed through the years externally yet at this pinacle in the film we can see subliminally he still loves his brother. The outcome of their meeting was disenchanting.
When I said about poor acting, for example i refer to the character Irrfhan Kahan the brutual detective who attempts to torture any kind of truth out of Jamal. I find his character subdued considering his supposed dominance.
In some ways, I have respect for this review.
Admittedly, it is plausable that my perspective of the film frays from my existing outlook on exploitation of human beings. Perhaps also it is my own ignorance of the slumlife in mumbai where children are exploited, abandoned and abused in the depths of extreme poverty. This is true, in a way this story brings enlightnement to the different paths and answers we must go by to survive. Also I enjoyed the cultural dexterity; that was a refreshing aspect of the film.
