Word: slumdog
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...favorite scene in Slumdog Millionaire comes toward the end, in the tense battle of wits between the supercilious game-show host, Prem, and the hero, Jamal. Prem expects Jamal to lose, and when he doesn't, assumes that he's cheating. Once Prem realizes that a kid from the slums might win - fairly - he angrily tosses him off to a waiting police van. "It's my show," he says. In two tight shots, with just a few lines of dialogue, the film manages to capture the ambivalence and, sometimes, anger that Indians often direct at those who don't stick...
...quite Slumdog's tale of rags to riches - more like shining maggots to Oscar gold. The path that led Japan to take its first Oscar in Best Foreign Language film at this week's Academy Awards started with the film's lead actor, Masahiro Motoki, contacting author Shinmon Aoki to quote a passage of his novel Coffinman: The Journal of a Buddhist Mortician in the actor's own travel diary. "Maggots are life, too," the passage, in the voice of the novel's protagonist, reads. "When I thought that, I could see the maggots shining...
India has clearly been the flavor of this Oscar season. While Slumdog Millionaire predictably won eight of the 10 golden statuettes it was in the running for - including the Best Picture - even the low-profile Smile Pinki, a documentary about a girl from a village in India with a cleft lip, surprised with its win in the Short Documentary category. Indian TV anchors have been wildly ecstatic, but reactions outside newsroom are decidedly mixed. Some feel happy for Slumdog's Indian connection - especially for the awards for A.R. Rahman (best original score and for theme song Jai Ho) and Resul...
...What is significant for us in India is that Rahman won two Oscars, and Pookutty won, too," says New Delhi-based film critic Vinayak Chakraborty, "This officially recognizes the power of the songs and dances of Bollywood cinema. It is debatable whether Slumdog is Rahman's best work, but it does give cognizance to Indian talent." In addition to Rahman and Pookutty, many of the film's cast are already celebrated, respected names in Indian cinema. Gulzar, who won the Oscar for best original song along with Rahman for Jai Ho, is a venerated writer, poet and lyricist; actors Anil...
...Since its release here in late January, not everyone in India warmed to Slumdog the way western viewers did. "Initially when I saw the film I didn't like the parts where people spoke English and cracked American jokes," says Tony Deol, a Mumbai-based assistant film director. "For someone in India, living in Mumbai, it rang false." Those who liked the film, however, say they hope the Academy's accolades will help mainstream good Indian cinema. "By recognizing Indian talent, I hope people in the west will realize there's more to Indian cinema than just song and dance...