Double trouble

Thought I’d combine two reviews given I practically saw them back to back. The first puppy (pardon the pun) I saw was Slumdog Millionaire. Yeah, you know the one. It’s pretty much taken out the top prizes at every awards ceremony so naturally with such an impressive wrap I was prepared to be disappointed. I wasn’t. Don’t get me wrong, if director Danny Boyle was in a football team I’d be at every game with a novelty foam finger that says `DB is #1’. I’m quite the fan (28 Days Later is one of my favourite films EVER and Trainspotting, Sunshine are also super). Slumdog Millionaire in comparison is a very different film. Perhaps, that’s what I like about Danny Boyle as a director, he’s always trying something different and no two Boyle films are the same. Based on the book Q&A, Slumdog Millionaire tells the tale of Jamal, a lad from the slums in Mumbai, India. The film opens with him being interroragated by the police as they try to find how an uneducated kid from the slums is able to get to the last question on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? For the remainder of the film we follow Jamal as he explains to the detectives how he knew the answers by drawing on events from his past. A great concept that could have fallen flat on its face if executed poorly. The film is magnificent and Boyle pulls out every magic trick in h

is directors hat. At times funny and action packed, in other moments sad and brutal. Combined with what I think is the best soundtrack of the year, the biggest wrap I can give Slumdog Millionaire is that it sincerely deserves every shred of praise it has gotten. If I had my own movie review show on the ABC at 10pm every Wednesday, I would give Slumdog Millionaire four and a half stars. A worthy contender for any and every best picture award.

Now to a completely different film, Role Models. The trailer for this comedy flick has been one of my favourites in the past few months featuring some of the funniest one-liners and scenarios I’ve seen since the Pineapple Express. In a nutshell Role Models is about yep, you guessed it bromance. It’s not as main stream as other big comedies this year (Tropic Thunder, Don’t Mess With The Zohan) but isn’t too far left of centre either. Basically the whole movie is full of that autistic humour I love. Paul Rudd, who not only stars in Role Models but wrote the screenplay, is in his element here and is probably one of the best things about this film (besides Ronnie). The finale is unexpected and hilarious, and Role Models is worth every cent of the ticket price. Don’t feel like getting all depressed by watching The Wrestler, Revolutionary Road or Doubt? Then laugh yourself in to a state of bromance joyfulness (which is the prescribed antidote to too many serious dramas). The best line I’ve heard in relation to Role Models is from Empire Magazine reviewer Michael Adams who gave the film four out of five stars. He summed it up with the following: “Constantly funny, sometimes eye-wateringly so, this is a great example of familiar comic material made fresh with affectionate irreverence.”