Movie Analysis Of Slumdog Millionaire Film Studies Essay

Movie Analysis Of Slumdog Millionaire Film Studies EssayThe object that I eat up chosen is a depiction ho wont called Slumdog Millionaire (2008). The movie, directed by Danny Boyle, received 8 Oscar awards for excellence in the fields bid Direction, Cinematography, Film Editing, Sound Mixing, Original Score and Original Song. The movie is an adaption of a novel Q A written by the proclaimed Indian author and diplomat, Vikas Swarup.The movie is set in an Indian backdrop and the story revolves around an uneducated Muslim son named Jamaal, and about his locomote from the slums in a typical rags to riches background. The story begins with Jamaal and his brothers life in slums, and how they were left dispossessed after a Hindu Muslim riot which kills their mother. It continues with their travel to other cities and finally fires at Kaun Banega Crorepati (Indian adaption of Who Wants to be a Millionaire) where he wins the contest using the knowledge he had picked up during his imp overished life. Other than the several accolades, the film also faced criticism for the ugly potrayal of India and the abusive language that was used. In the following paragraphs, I would be analyzing the movie in terms of genres that it potrayed.Genre is a French term used for type. It is a term that has existed since very early times in cinema. Some frequently used genres argon romance, crime, comedy , fondness or actuality, drama, thriller, horror, suspense, cowboy, art/ independent(class none). Basically it is a repetition of certain features while making a film, that later act as a genesis for its solidisation under a specific genre. But gradually, it was realized that such a narrowed down approach of filmmaking and compartmentalization lead to productions that were repetitive and predictable. Thus arose the submit for genre films to be not just more of the identical but also something different.This lead to an interesting phenomenon of categorizing the same movie in va rious genres like drama, action, mystery etc. Such movies are called multi genre films. It has been claimed that the more recent movies target consciously for genre cross-over. This concept of cross-over results in multi genre films that can be described as postmodern in terms of cinema. The amalgamation of genres leads to mixing of the already existing genres and thus generates new possibilities. The mixing together of genres is often referred to as bricolage, and such films are called hybrids. In bricolage, one can often observe elements of various different films that are grouped together. Why? Why limit a film to one set of emotions when it has the potential to explore so much more? Danny BoyleThe concept of multi genres can be clearly seen in the movie Slumdog Millionaire. The genres determine are romance, drama and crime. The story told in the film seems to be a retold from the movie Salaam Bombay, which is story of a young boy Chaipu who is left homeless and lives on the s treets of Bombay. The story is about how he survives by doing odd jobs at a very young age and struggles to overcome the harsh reality of the metropolitan that is Bombay. One can easily draw a parallel between Chaipu in Salaaam Bombay and Jamaals character in Slumdog Millionaire (Infact the first reaction of Indian audience to Slumdog Millionaire was its similarity to Salaam Bombay). The other elements of the movie such as the underworld, crime and Hindu-Muslim riots in the city of Mumbai throw been portrayed in a far more practical way in movies Satya INSERT YEAR , Sadak and Bombay. The ending of the movie is rather happy where Jamaal finally reunites with his ladylove and also miraculously wins the show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. These joyful endings have been prevalent in cinema for a long time. The theme of the movie is formulaic and seems to be a repetition of the previous movies based on the same lines.Genres can also be discussed in relation to industry, market and the audience. The industry makes film as long as there is a demand from the audience. The categorization of films into genres basically enables the industry to divide the range of movies that be do and thus sets a clear demarcation. The study of movies of different genres in the market gives a well-grounded idea of the response of the audience and thus on the basis of this study of most profitable response, movie of the same genre are made. A extra type of genre movie tries to specialize at the majority of the levels so as to maximize the possibility of profits. Analyzing Slumdog Millionaire in this light we can notice that the use of locations, props, actors has been carefully chosen according to the genre and script of the movie. As the movie is about a young, homeless, uneducated Indian boy and all the hardships he goes through, it was very crucial for the movie to use the appropriate locations and props. The location chosen for the shooting was the city of Mumbai itself. The you ng star cast of the are the in fact children of the slums which lends a very original effect to the movie. The director very cleverly chose the other actors as well keeping in mind the International and the Indian audience. The actors are mostly debutants and fit completely in the non-glamorous portrayals of the roles. The international audiences have a stereo typical image of the Asian cinema and the director has kept this in mind while choosing the various aspects of the movieGenre films have a deep impact on the social and cultural contexts. These films act as cultural products which expertness carry the dominant and prevalent ideologies of the company in which they are produced. Though more than often films are not a reflection of the real ball club but instead are based on common perception of the society.The following two texts relate to the genre in movies. I have tried to analyze Slumdog Millionaire in the light of these two textsMoral issues are raised, questions are a sked and answers given. We are invited to evaluate a characters actions and imaginary solutions are offered to real problems inwardly the societyIf we look at the movie Slumdog Millionaire, it has showcased many problems like poverty, crime, trickery and deception in a rather exaggerated way and in the end the solution offered an imaginary solution would make sense only in a fantasy land. An instance of the imaginary solution in the movie is that the boy who grew up without any education whatsoever starts tricking non hindi speaking tourists with impeccable English and later in the movie locates his brother using a computer. This is just something fantastical which fills people with hope and optimism, and makes them believe that there is a solution all problems. This is something that definitely does not happen in the real world, but the movie came out at a time when the world was witnessing one of the greatest recessions of all time, and almost everybody faces a bleak future. At t his time, the movie gave the solution to the society that it so much wanted to believe.It could be claimed that such films (genre movies) are not reflections of society but are particular perceptions of a society. How we see such films might ultimately be determined by whether or not recurring patterns and themes can be identifiedIn Slumdog Millionaire, the director has made use of the emotions of audience. It is made in way that it draws sympathy from the Western world and re-affirms their age old opinion about India. The plot in the movie doesnt speak about anything that a modern developing economy boasts of (a common example of this is the fact that many foreigners still think of India as a land of snake charmers in US, whereas I am yet to see a single snake charmer in my 24 years of stay in India). Genre films sometimes argufy dominant ideas, question cultural values and this just leaves a more positive and optimistic effect on people as they do not find themselves helplessly t ied to a societys belief system. In this context the film Slumdog Millionaire challenges the fact that an uneducated and lowly placed person in society can get as big a success as winning the mega jackpot. This theme subtly re-assures the audience that despite their short comings, they could also be the next Jamaal. Also, in an underlying theme of the Good overcoming the evil makes the movie adjust to the perception of the audience. The fact that Jamaal even after being embroiled in so many nasty incidents and pot holes of crime and vulgarity, remains good, and ultimately wins the jackpot. This plays on the audiences wish to see the ending that they sub-consciously believe in, and want to see on screen, even if that doesnt make much sense in reality.To conclude, we can say that Slumdog Millionaire is a movie that was packaged very deftly into the genres that were decided for it by the movie-makers. From the intend of view of culture, audience and industry, the movie weaves itself p erfectly into the landscape it aspires to project itself into. The movie was hit on a global scale, and after analyzing the intelligent inter-play of genres, the underlying rags to riches theme, satisfying the audiences sub-conscious desires irrespective of location and releasing at a time when the world was in recession, seems but a powerful potion for a massive on on-screen success.