What’s wrong with Slumdog Millionaire? Not a lot. But there is no way that this film should be known as a Best Picture winner, unless your idea of a Best Picture includes such tripe as Crash, Shakespeare In Love or the justifiably Elaine maligned The English Patient (“hurry up and die, will you!”).  Crash beat out Brokeback Mountain and Shakespeare In Love beat out Saving Private Ryan.  Head to head, Brokeback and Ryan run rings around the “winners” – and will be remembered in future years as “great” films. They explored old themes in grand new ways and were visually and emotionally stunning. They said something.  As for The English Patient well, if there was ever a more boring film, I’d be staggered…maybe The Phantom Menace just pips it?  But it beat out Fargo and Jerry Maguire. Enough said.

 

So why am I against a feel good “Indian” film (set in India, mind you, with Indian actors but financed and made by the Brits…) in a year of recession? I think that just sums it up. It is feel good, and we do need cheering up, but how about acknowledging great films rather than muddling stories of a feel good miraculous romance with an annoying bloody song that never makes it into the film until the credits roll and still wins best song? (Breathe, baby, breathe…). 8? 8? This is not an 8 Oscar pic.

 

So how did it win 8?

 

It won 8 the same way I would win 8 golf majors if the best players in the world were not included in the field. The Best Pic race this year was set up for an average film with a good back-story.  Where was The Dark Knight? Revolutionary Road? Shove them in there at the expense of say, Milk or The Reader or Frost/Nixon, and you would begin to see the makings of a real Best Picture.  Even Wall-E might have been another addition. Me? This would have been my top 5 for 2008:

 

The Dark Knight

Frost/Nixon

Revolutionary Road

Slumdog Millionaire (just to prove a point).

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

 

Now, there’s a good line up. Popular, artistic and broad.  And – by and large – good. Now out of that list, please, tell me how Slumdog would have conceivably received the Oscar? No way. Head to head, Slumdog would struggle to be the 4th best film on that list.  Or - and this is the most outlandish thing I can say - perhaps I have missed something? If so, please enlighten me. 

 

 

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