There are a few films I picked out of this year’s festival guide without even reading past who the director was. Slumdog Millionaire (tiff), directed by Danny Boyle, was one of them.

My faith wasn’t misplaced either. I thought Boyle masterfully melded humour, violence, near-obsessive love, and an affection for Mumbai strong enough to show it as it really is: enormous, dirty, loving and in a period of real transition. The child actors (some of whom were, like the titular character, slum kids) were amazing, as were the actors from the others stages of the kids’ lives. The spectacularly beautiful Freida Pinto (the fuzzy faraway picture above just does not do her justice) who played the female lead was a first-time film actress. There was real edge to the film, but humanity too, and a sense that we should view this journey through and out of slum life through a joyous, triumphant lens instead of a tragic one.

Shit, I didn’t even mind the big Bollywood dance number at the end. I gave it a standing ovation like everyone else. Favourite film of the festival so far.

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[tags]tiff, tiff08, slumdog millionaire[/tags]