Slumdog Millionaire

Posted by Chris Campbell at Saturday, January 24, 2009

I think I'm losing the battle on this one and will likely be paying a matinee fee. There are certain "indie darling" films that hit the masses, and almost every single time I'm disappointed. I thought "Juno" was dreadful, "Once" was a sappy and vapid take on the meaning of music and that movie with Zach Braff and the Shins song was beyond painful (I honestly can't recall the name). "Little Miss Sunshine" was better after second viewing, but it was initially a disappointment.

Hollywood and the press have a tendency to take the most sterile of independent films and hype them to no end. And while this is happening, the truly great films remain, well, obscure. There are obviously some exceptions. "Sideways" was lauded to no end and it was deserving. Watch this movie again and tell me it's not a great take on friendship, addiction, heartbreak and the meaning of, dare I say, authenticity.

The same thing happens in music. For the last year or so we've heard endless praise for Bon Iver. I mean, come the hell on?? Have you heard Joe Henry, Kenny Roby or Matthew Ryan? This Bon Iver fella (I know, I know, that's his "band" name), doesn't hold a candle to any of them. Not even close. I listened to his record twice, and although it's ok, the flood of praise is quite laughable.

I've held out on Slumdog Millionaire for weeks now. By the end of the weekend, my guess is that I'll have surrendered. Please have this be "Sideways" and not "Crash".