Monday, January 12, 2009

Yay Slumdog!

I'm not, like Danny Boyle put it, "full of pulsating affection" for this movie but I am happy for its success. I love its optimism and its color and its Dickensian feel. The narrative is epic, winding from place to place and it's really a coming of age love story. And yet I suppose it's a little melodramatic for my taste and I found the acting uneven in spots.

Why then am I celebrating its good night at the Globes? I love the pride that India (Mumbai in particular) feels for this movie. I love when other filmmaking cultures get their due and I love that Boyle and co. succeeded in making something authentic and commercial. And it's a great template for the project I'm producing. I met with a very experienced producer-manager recently who said soak up everything about this movie. Figure out how to market and position yours along the same lines.

I was also happy for "The Wrestler" which I haven't seen but whose Cinderella story I'm aware of. It just makes me so happy that a director was willing to go to the mat for his talent. Darren Aronofsky's money for the movie fell through once he decided to make it with Mickey Rourke, so did he buckle and use Nicholas Cage? Nope. He went to France where Rourke remains loved. How awesome for the filmmakers on "The Wrestler" to have their faith so thoroughly vindicated.

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