March 28, 2009 1:22 am

"Slumdog Millionaire": Best DVDs of April 2009

What it is:
We all agreed that it may seem redundant to name Slumdog Millionaire
as the best film of the month, but it just really is that good of a
film. The golden child of this year’s award season (hands down), this
story is unlike any other films of 2008. For those of you who have been
living off the grid in a small hovel in the woods (because that’s
probably the only circumstance in which you might not know about Slumdog), it revolves around a teen growing up in the slums of Mumbai who becomes a contestant on Who Wants to be a Millionaire?
Arrested under suspicions of cheating, events from his life are shown
in a series of flashbacks that explain how he knew the answers to all
the questions on the show.

Why it’s significant: Needless to say, with all
the hype and buzz, I had high expectations going into this film and
therefore prepared myself for the inevitable disappointment. But Slumdog
prevailed over my pessimism. It was both humorous and tragic, creative
but honest. Boyle did a superb job of portraying an exquisite but
tormented modern-day Mumbai where the beauty of its citizens is offset
by stunning images of poverty and conflict. The film could have very
easily come across as almost cheesy in a sense, but maintained itself
as realistically hopeful. Director Danny Boyle (Sunshine, Trainspotting, 28 Days Later) earned his first Oscar as Best Director for Slumdog and I must say, it is well-deserved. If you are like me and keep a list of movies (new and old) to see, bump Slumdog to the top. It is not to be missed. —Kelsey