Two Thumbs Up!

We're not film critics. In fact, John & I rarely see movies before they come on our Directv pay-per-view channels. But after watching Slumdog Millionaire yesterday, we find ourselves recommending it every chance we get. We are still thinking about it, discussing characters, trying to grasp what made it such a wonderful film, and comparing it to other great stories. John pointed out that it has amazing gospel parallels; it's a story of love, pain, sacrifice, perserverence and redemption. It is rated R, but to be honest I'm not exactly sure why. When I think of other movies that get PG-13 ratings, or even some of the shows on network TV in the evenings, I don't know that this movie was much worse. There was some bad language, and it was definitely dark at times. It contained violence and adult content, but both were more implied than explicit. It's definitely not for young viewers, but I think it is much better than most of what is playing in theaters today.

I first heard of the movie right after Christmas, and I read a lot about it. One interesting review I read was on pluggedinonline.com, a ministry of Focus on the Family. I have to be very honest- I am not a fan of this ministry or Dr. Dobson. Maybe someday I'll explain why in another blog. But I was actually very impressed with the treatment of this movie, especially given it's R rating. There are a lot of plot spoilers, but the article is worth reading if only for the concluding paragraphs. Here's a paragraph that offers insight into the theme of the movie:

Working as something of an optimistic counterpoint to F. Scott Fitzgerald's short story about living life backwards, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (or at least its cinematic reinterpretation), Slumdog Millionaire's Jamal spends his childhood as an adult, then finds himself at 18 with a lifetime of experiences behind him and a wide-open future ahead. Even our worst memories don't have to suffocate us, Danny Boyle says. Instead, they can—as they do for Jamal—set us free.