An orphaned Mumbai slum kid tries to change his life by winning TV‘s ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?‘ in a feelgood fable from director Danny Boyle and the writer of The Full Monty, Simon Beaufoy
Jamal Malik (‘Skins‘ star Dev Patel) is being beaten by Mumbai police for allegedly cheating on hit TV show ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?‘ One question away from the ultimate 20 million rupee prize, no one, including slick show host Prem (Anil Kapoor), believes a chai wallah (teaboy) like Jamal could know all the answers. As the tough inspector (Irfan Khan) replays Jamal‘s appearance on the show, it‘s revealed that each question corresponds to a specific life lesson from Jamal‘s tragic past.

　　Raised in abject poverty in Mumbai‘s grimmest slum along with older brother Salim, then orphaned by a Hindu mob attack, Jamal and Salim are forced to fend for themselves on the streets through opportunistic petty crime. They pick up a young girl, fellow orphan Latika (Freida Pinto), escape the clutches of a vicious Fagin-like crime boss, lose Latika, and continue their picaresque adventures, one step ahead of the law. As adolescents, however, Salim becomes entranced by a life of crime and Latika‘s unexpected return sets brother against brother. Will Jamal salvage his girl, his fortune and his life on ‘Millionaire‘?

　　Adapted by Full Monty writer Simon Beaufoy from Vikas Swarup‘s hit novel ‘Q&A‘, Slumdog is an underdog tale. Beaufoy‘s lively screenplay scampers after Swarup‘s self-consciously Dickensian storytelling tradition, and is even built around the ‘Millionaire‘ show, as iconic a symbol of Western capitalist entertainment as exists.

　　Director Danny Boyle and cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle have evidently immersed themselves in India‘s sensory overload. The film revels in the sub-continent‘s chaotic beauty and raging colours, from Mumbai shantytowns to Agra‘s regal Taj Mahal. The thrillingly off-the-cuff digital imagery reflects a nation in a state of explosive flux, loo