"Slumdog Millionaire" (2008, Dir: Danny Boyle & Loveleen Tandan)

The popularity of this film with American film critics associations just goes to show how wholly film critics are fazed by bright colors and loud noises. Sacrificing story for energy, wretchedly artificial and with not a lick of subtlety to be found, Slumdog Millionaire epitomizes the idea of "style over substance" in every way.

The cast is charismatic but there's no great acting to be found here. The writer seems to have no grasp of metaphor or nuance, hammering each point home as bluntly as possible. From the overly Western plotline to the almost patronizing way Boyle portrays the Indian slums, there is nothing here that seemed real to me in the slightest. It's a Westerner's approximation of the "real India", complete with a soundtrack (quite enjoyable, admittedly) of Indian songs remixed in a Eurodance style.

Cinematography is frequently interesting, but the abundance of cheesy slow-mo and the weird editing makes it seem as though we're watching a music video instead of a film. Slumdog Millionaire is basically the stylistic twin of Mamma Mia! with an Eastern setting and a European director. This, of course, automatically makes it worthy of awards.