<in Man
It’s a great weekend for SUMO this week, and if you’ve already seen Slumdog then you better go to Rain Man. I know I’m a little bit late to this bandwagon, since the Academy was just a bit ahead of me when they gave the film an Oscar in 1988. Anyway, I just want to tell everyone how great this movie is.
You know what it’s about: the phrase Rain Man has come to replace the older and just as politically incorrect idiot savant. Plus, you’ve probably already seen it, since, according to my friends, I’m the only one alive who hasn’t. But even if you’ve seen it before, and you know the toothpick scene by heart, go see it again. The movie is so heartwarming, and Dennis Hoffman’s acting so excellent, that I could watch it 26 times and still want to hear Raymond say “K-mart sucks.”
If you haven’t, here’s a little tease to get you to SUMO: Charlie Babbitt is a stressed out Tom Cruise, trying to save his business from bankruptcy–you can see where the monster from Tropic Thunder has its roots. Charlie learns his father has died, and is relieved; his inheritance will bail him out. ‘Course, (that was for you Raymond fans) Charlie hasn’t spoken to his estranged father in years, so he doesn’t get the money. The three million goes to Raymond, the autistic brother Charlie never knew he had. Charlie kidnaps Raymond to try to weasel some of the money into his own pocket: angst, anger, distress and happy family bonding ensue. Rain Man is “definitely” one of my favorite films now. Just go see it at SUMO this weekend, you’ll leave with your heart as warm as the weather outside (70 degrees and sunny??)
Slumdog Millionaire
I don’t know why I’m writing this review. If you haven’t seen Slumdog, this years’ best picture and totally bad-ass movie by Danny Boyle, then clearly you live under a rock from which you won’t come out–even for Anwar from Skins. There’s nothing I can say about how great this movie is that’s going to get you to SUMO when you’ve had more than enough time to get to a theater, and the film’s had more than enough praise to get you there. Just be ashamed, and also a little sad that you’ve missed out on this movie.
The story is nuts in the best way–in the too-perfect, have-to- suspend-reality-a-bit-to buy-in, Louis Sachar’s Holes kind of way. Jamal is a contestant on India’s “Who Wants to Be A Millionaire.” They think he’s cheating because he’s just a kid from the slums and couldn’t possibly know the answers to the questions they ask him.However, we see with each question a flashback memory that serves to tell the story of his journey in and out of the slums, and that provides the final answer. Fate is clearly at work, and so is Boyle who films and edits the film with incredible mastery. The shots are magical, and the score (MIA’s Paper Planes, among others) is fantastic.
I’m just saying, if you haven’t seen Slumdog Milionare after SUMO this weekend, I’ll judge you.