Slumdog Millionaire

April 25th, 2009

If you haven't heard the buzz surrounding Slumdog Millionaire, we'd like to know exactly which rock you've been hiding under the last few months. Let us catch you up: This touching, compelling drama from Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, 28 Days Later) was last year's critical darling and pretty much made a clean sweep of the awards circuit, ultimately taking home the Oscar for best picture. So if you are one of those people who are in the dark (shame on you), now you can see the movie in stunning high definition with this beautiful Blu-ray release. The sights and sounds of Mumbai come alive in the HD version, and everything (yes, even the public toilet scene) is stunningly crisp. Boyle balances his "kid from the slums (Dev Patel) goes on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, while also hoping to win his true love (Frieda Pinto, who is even more beautiful in HD)" plot device with tons of frantic action on the crowded Mumbai streets. That action is complimented here with an awesome soundtrack that also benefits from the Blu-ray upgrade. (If the end credits don't make you want to dance, we don't know you at all.) Most of the bonus features are your "making of" featurettes, but watching Boyle — who finally has gotten the praise he's deserved for so long — makes them interesting enough. There are also plenty of deleted scenes and even a "from script to screen" feature on that infamous aforementioned toilet scene. You may go into this movie expecting to have your life changed forever, and that's probably too big of an expectation, even given all the praise the film has earned. But its story will definitely touch you, and you should be entertained from start to finish. It's a solid movie all around, and a great way to spend an evening at home.