WELL DONE! KUDOS ME!

So apparently the previously rumoured US-bound version of one of the best shows ever made, Absolutely Fabulous, is officially a go now.  

Well, what can I say? Umm... It better not suck! Honestly, I can't imagine how it will ever come close to living up the original. We'll be watching this develop closely..

So last night Andrew and I finally found the time to settle in with a nice bottle of 2 buck chuck and a borrowed "for your consideration" copy of this year's buzziest film, Slumdog Millionaire.


So first off, I have to confess... I kinda had a chip on my shoulder when it came to this film at first because it seemed to kind of just come out of nowhere, totally stealing what to me should've been the darling of the award's season, the magnificent Milk. But I somehow had missed the memo that this was a Danny Boyle joint, so as soon as I put that together I was all over this shizz. I mean, it's really nice to see this insanely talented and genius auteur finally get the attention and acclaim he has deserved for so long.

I mean, the film has everything going for it. The premise is innately engaging from square one and it's all executed with Boyle's signature style and eye. But only a few minutes into Slumdog, I actually felt very surprised-slash-impressed by all of the Academy attention this film has garnered. I would honestly be surprised if the Oscar goes to Slumdog. While it's completely right up my alley, it just feels a little too slick and cool for the Academy. If the Best Picture Oscar does go to Slumdog, it will be a clear referendum on the image the Academy wants to project (like the year the Grammy's started rewarding rap and hip hop artists. The thing is filmmakers (Boyle in particular) have been turning out work like this for years, so maybe this style has just now been around enough that the Academy finally feels comfortable digesting cinema in this matter. Or maybe it's just a lucky movie, being released at the right time and place and thereby hitting just the right chord.

Much has been written about this film, so I won't drone on much more, but I also had to feature the brilliant music choices throughout. The soundtrack for this film really adds a magical element to it all and of course Boyle gets mad points for featuring M.I.A. during some of the film's lighter moments. The cast, of course, really pulls this attempt at epicness together and I gotta say the kids in this movie are some of the cutest I've seen on screen. (A-)

UPDATE: Oh shit, this can't be good.. So apparently the parents of some of the cast's young stars say their children are not getting their fair share of the pie. Had I known this before watching the film, it would've deeply affected my experience and my response coming out of it. Hmm... That's too bad.