Ah, finally, a firm and proper release date and another great film to add to the fall festval schedule. Danny Boyle’s “Slumdog Millionaire” – which is a co-distribution deal between Warner Bros. and Fox Searchlight – is coming to theaters on November 28.
We were worried there for a second because ‘Slumdog’ was almost lost in the shuffle when Warner Independent Pictures was shuttered in the spring and it looked like the picture might get thrown into film purgatory, but it’s premiere was announced for the Toronto Film Festival and then was shared by Warner (who absorbed WIP) and Fox Searchlight (who released Boyle’s excellent, but grossly underrated psychological sci-fi drama “Sunshine.”)
“I am grateful to Warner for their careful handling of the film,” Boyle said in a press release. “I had a great time making this movie and I look forward to working with my old friends at Searchlight to ensure that audiences at Toronto and beyond have a great time watching it.”
Based on a true story, the film is about an illiterate boy from the Mumbai slums who wins a ton of money on the Indian version of “Who Wants to be a Millionaire,” in hopes of winning the affections of his ex-girlfriend.
SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE is the story of Jamal Malik, an 18 year-old orphan from the slums of Mumbai, who is about to experience the biggest day of his life. With the whole nation watching, he is just one question away from winning a staggering 20 million rupees on India’s “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?” But when the show breaks for the night, police arrest him on suspicion of cheating; how could a street kid know so much? Desperate to prove his innocence, Jamal tells the story of his life in the slum where he and his brother grew up, of their adventures together on the road, of vicious encounters with local gangs, and of Latika, the girl he loved and lost. Each chapter of his story reveals the key to the answer to one of the game show’s questions.
We’re excited for this one. Boyle had a few missteps around the time of “The Beach,” but he’s been on serious point ever since “28 Days Later,” including the kids film, “Millions” which actually quite fantastic too. We’ll hopefully see it during the Toronto film fest in a few short days.