Is 'Slumdog Millionaire' Next in Line for Oscar Backlash?
Why do we hate on films so much?
Photo: Fox Searchlight
I remember back in 2006 when Superman Returns was released and the film scored a 77% Rotten Tomatoes ranking marking it "Certified Fresh" which means it joins the pantheon of films to have earned such a moniker including Citizen Kane, Toy Story, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story and, of course, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. It's a cornucopia of quality. Trouble is, I thought Superman Returns wasn't all that good. Not that I hated it or anything, I just simply thought it was slow and it was boring. However, the more and more I heard how good it was — or how this was great and that was amazing — I began to argue against the film. Sooner rather than later I found myself almost loathing it, until suddenly I had to ask why.
Arguments for Superman Returns included adjectives such as "breathtaking" and "emotional". My answer to this was simply, "No, it's not," but that didn't change the fact that hearing about how great it was helped matters. To get to the point, the love some people had for the film created debates in which I found myself hating on the film far more than I actually did. The people I was talking to argued for the film on such a level that I felt I had to match it just in order to get my point across. However, as it inevitably would turn out, neither person arguing convinced the other as much as we simply reinforced our own conviction and actually enhanced them. There was a time I had to say to someone, "I actually don't hate the film this much, but you are making me dislike it more and more." They returned the same sentiment, but in reverse, and so it goes… a mini-backlash was born. Even though it was an entirely self-aware backlash.
Last year Juno was the victim even though it ended up winning an Oscar. The passionate love for the film caused haters to come out of the woodwork. It's the same way it is now commonplace to hate Titanic. I guess the people that purchased those $600,788,188 worth of tickets have all died off. Either that, or people simply don't feel it deserved the acclaim it received back in 1998. I mean, how could a movie about a ship we all knew was going to sink, while Kate Winslet dragged Leonardo DiCaprio into the back of that car and made hot sweaty love to him, actually become the highest grossing film of all time and go on to win 11 Oscars? How dare it! I hate it!*
I can't help but wonder if Slumdog Millionaire is next in line or if it is "backlash proof" because I can already feel a mild annoyance with all this praise bubbling up inside of me.
I gave the film an "A-" when I reviewed it even though I wish I had knocked it down to a "B+" or even as low as a "B-". I think the review reads quite accurately as to my opinion and I certainly don't dislike the film, but at the same time I don't believe it is worthy of all the award attention it is receiving and certainly not as the frontrunner for the Oscar Best Picture, which is where it sits at this time. It just won four Golden Globes including Best Picture (Drama), was nominated for 11 BAFTA Awards and on the 25th it will compete for a pair of Screen Actors Guild Awards. How many Oscar noms will it receive on January 22?
Some project upwards of nine with the film as the frontrunner to win four, including Picture and Director. Is this the "little film that could" that actually can? Is it that good, or is it just a matter of it hitting theaters at the right time? Did audiences simply need an uplifting story of love triumphant and Slumdog just happened to be the best of the bunch as it mixed serious drama with a very hokey and formulaic ending? If that's the case then why was The Dark Knight so popular? Was Jamal the anti-Joker and therefore the two nullified each other?
It's a strange film for certain and I think in a stronger year there would definitely be a greater potential for backlash, but in a year with a rather weak crop of Oscar contenders there is no reason not to grab hold of the little guy and usher him into the upper echelon of films. I just wonder where it will fall in terms of film history. Will Slumdog be a film that is talked about ten years from now? I look back at recent Best Picture Oscar winners and see a ton of films people tend to get upset with including Crash, Shakespeare in Love, Titanic, Forrest Gump and even Braveheart. Hell, people get mad Return of the King won the Oscar in 2003 just because Fellowship of the Ring and Two Towers didn't win in their years. It's strange, I look back and it seems that ever since 1993 and Schindler's List won there are more and more people upset and dismissive with the Best Picture Oscar winner. Is Slumdog the next in line or is it the start of a new age?
Obviously the more popular something is the more people are going to dislike it, but in my case that's only true because I keep hearing how great something is and I don't particularly agree. Hellboy 2 has an 88% Rotten Tomatoes ranking and I have been very vocal about my opinion on that one, but the more and more I hear how great it is I get this natural human urge to say otherwise. Even Iron Man was praised more than I believe it should have been, but since that one's not winning any major awards people won't be scrutinizing it nearly as much.
In terms of Slumdog Millionaire I believe it will survive and not become the victim of too much backlash simply because it is a film that is hard to hate. It's an uplifting film with a great soundtrack and a unique way of telling a cliché story. I still believe it doesn't deserve all the love it is receiving and is likely to receive, but this is one film I don't believe has enough problems with it to ever really criticize too harshly. Especially since the final moment of the film offers up the emotional punch that leaves audiences with a smile.
*I actually love Titanic… I know, you hate me now.
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Titanic was great.The greatest piece of cinema the last century.If you think of movies like that…the dark knight, am man dressed in black hunds a man dresses as the joker and at the end everyone is happy….it doesn't make any sense.
i didn't like slumdog i don't why its getting all this love.
i hated titanic when it first came out and i still hate it.
I think you and I agree completely when it comes to Slumdog Millionaire.
I never understood all the backlash against Titanic. Sometimes I think people simply hate on it for the wrong reasons. It was definitely one of the best films of 1997, and certainly isn't the worst film ever made.
Shakespeare in Love and Saving Private Ryan were two of the best films of 1998, and I imagine it would be terribly hard for a fan of both to choose between the two.
There are some instances, however, when the backlash is well deserved and an undeserving film wins Best Picture. Crash would be a good example of that.
I can see Slumdog Millionaire inheriting backlash, but probably not on the same level as Titanic, Shakespeare in Love and certainly not on the level of Crash.
i can't remember the last time i have been baffled by a film's praise.
This is exactly why I hate Oscar Season, it makes you hate on films that wouldn't necessarily bother you eve if you didn't care for the film). I liked Slumdog Millionaire a lot, but it isn't my favorite movie of 2008. It also doesn't bother me that it is getting so much acclaim. I didn't like Crash, but did I really care that it won the Oscar for Best Picture. Nope. When I started Oscar Watching I began to start hating/bashing movies that I didn't like (Juno) and it really wasn't worth my time. For my New Years Resolution, I've vowed to stay out of the Oscar race and just watch because it's not that serious (that also means avoiding certain sites).
"Slumdog Millionaire" is a movie that I feel deserves all of the buzz. It was my 2nd favorite film last year, and should get the award buzz. It was such a fresh idea for a film, although it was adapted from a book. (Dont complain about it being an adaptation. You and I have never heard of the book, so lets leave it at that.)
It's rare I find myself thorughly enjoying a movie like this, and I enjoyed it very much. Movies like Milk, The Reader, and Vicky Christina Barcelona are ones I have a hard time believing are getting awards buzz, but Slumdog deserves all it can get!
Don't be hating on the Slumdog!!!
FROM BRAD: No one is hating, don't get worked up.
Yeah, I get this way with movies sometimes, too. I was like that with Slumdog Millionaire for a while, but I've gotten better with it. It is a very good movie, I just think it's getting a little too much praise. I'm currently getting this way with Benjamin Button, though. Good movie, yes, but whenever someone says it is a masterpiece or something of that nature I just start dishing out negative things about it and how I don't think it is a masterpiece by any means.
Anyways, good post.
I definitely get worked up this way with several movies, and Oscar years. I wish I didn't, and just enjoy them for what they are, but it's hopeless lol. I don't mind Slumdog winning the big picture, but when it's nominated for Best Ensemble at the SAG Awards, Best Supporting Actress at the Baftas, and all the other awards handed to it that aren't deserved, that's when I start to get annoyed and backlash. But again, the film wasn't that bad. Usually, after a long absence, I'll watch the films again and enjoy them a lot more once the Oscar politics fade from my mind lol.
Then again, I'll still never get the 1998's Oscar race out of my mind. I still refuse to enjoy Shakespeare In Love with it's bought off victory that year. I still hate Miramax and the Weinsteins for that year. And it's not just because of it beating out Saving Private Ryan, but how badly The Truman Show was screwed that Oscar year as well. Awards Daily posted an article recently, where if the current Academy voters could re-cast their votes for past years today, Saving Private Ryan would now be the winner of that year.
In retrospect, it's still horribly sad how personal I take that 1998 year, and every Oscar season lol. Why can't I lighten up?
Not too long ago, I was in my local arthouse video store looking for Mulholland Dr. (didn't have it – owner couldn't find it). I got to talking about Lynch to the store clerk, and we were discussing how anyone who finds Lynch just interesting, or just good, is immediately pushed to one side or the other by the Lynch fanboys or the Lynch hate club, and usually they're pushed to the latter. I dub it "Lynch syndrome", because he's probably the best example of the phenomena, but as you say, many films come to suffer this backlash because of groups on one side or the other. It's definitely not isolated – as you mentioned, Juno (which I really like), Shakespeare In Love (which I love – Tom Stoppard is just brilliant), Forrest Gump (which I've never been a fan of), Titanic (which I think is good, but not really my thing), and Crash (which I haven't seen) have all been victims of "Lynch syndrome" to some degree, as have No Country For Old Men, The Dark Knight, anything by Quentin Tarantino, American Beauty, Donnie Darko and many other films. I know I've not only suffered it with Forrest Gump, Lynch films, and Titanic, but more recently The Departed – I liked it on first watch, but my love for Infernal Affairs has combined with people saying The Departed is one of the best films of this decade and created a monster of bitter William Monahan-Jack Nicholson hatred.
Will Slumdog suffer the same fate? Hard to say at this point in time. I don't think the Best Picture Favourite hype for it is anywhere as the hype for The Dark Knight, and I think being released in the same award period as that eponymous superhero film has mitigated the backlash Slumdog could've suffered. I do think Slumdog has the legs to get Best Picture, from the sounds of things, but I also think there'll be a mild backlash – only mild because of TDK absorbing most of the hate.
Well said!
I did like the film (3/5). But the overpraise is making me hate it!
The same happened with Juno and, to a lesser extent, Little Miss Sunshine.
There have been few "great films", but I'm truly baffled at how Slumdog is dominating the awards circuit – especially now that it's gaining momentum in the acting categories!!!
I'm in love with revolutionary road. It had all the elements that good film needs, including an ending that was impossible to predict. Best picture for that one all the way, I hope it pulls a Crash. When Crash won, I was entirely baffled.
It's simple: Don't hate something just because it's popular. It isn't that hard. I loved the film and think it deserves the best picture win, but if you're going to let peoples praise for something change your opinion on it, you're just a tool.
you said what I've been feeling for the past few years. Whenever a movie or performance is being hyped up so much, I usually end up hating it. Last year's No Country for Old Men was a prime example for me. I saw it and thought it was pretty good and very intense. But once is took away from my favorite movie of the year's spotlight (Atonement), I began to despise it in every way. Now this year, Slumdog Millionaire is taking away from Curious Case's and The Reader's and Revolutionary Road's and Doubt's spotlight (which have been my most anticipated since late 2007). Now I found myself hating it when Slumdog Millionaire wins an award. I have yet to see it, but I simply cannot help myself. Perhaps it's the predictability that I loathe so much.
Well, what do you expect with a year so awful for dialogue. Slumdog Millionaire was certainly not my favorite film of the year, but it was by far the best. All the rest had serious flaws in consistency of tone (big no-no), and not-so-hot editing (from how Academy tastes usually run, I know the editors guild gave all the front-runners nominations)
I don't understand how anyone could have been surprised when Crash beat Brokeback…. Brokeback wasn't nominated for film editing. People seriously underestimate what an impact that has on a film, particularly in Academy standing. twice in 30 years has best picture not gone to a film editing nominee.
I think Slumdog is an underachieving film, but it is the only major contender to pull off basic skills like good editing and consistency of tone… So Surprise! It is this years Oscars Best Picture winner. Nothing at all to suggest it will receive a so-called "backlash", which in reality is all-too predicatble. This isn't one of those.
I don't think Slumdog's a viable candidate for 'backlash movie of the year'. I've talked to a lot of people who've seen it, and I did not find a single person who actually disliked it. Sure, there were a few 'overrated', but they're very, very rare. And it's really difficult to hate this film, like you mentioned. Really, all 'backlash' movies in the past years have a considerable reason to it…
Crash: Won over Brokeback mountain. Homophobia attacks, caused people to hate this movie for beating Brokeback.
The Departed: A remake.
Juno: Uber-hip 'teen movie', and people HATE teens. P
Shakespeare in Love: Beat Saving Private Ryan, is a 'romantic comedy'.
Forrest Gump: Robbed Pulp Fiction and Shawshank Redemption, both in the ImdB's top 10.
Star Wars Prequels: Strong change to the OT, goes against people's expectations. Backlash ensues.
Every big backlash movie has a direct reason for it, and there really isn't any reason to hate Slumdog Millionaire. Which brings me to my next point…
I think that the 'backlash of the year' award will go to TDK. Yes, I know it's incredibly popular (look at the ImdB ratings), but you have to dig a little bit deeper to see that there were a huge amount of people who felt it was immensely overrated and unworthy of the hype. Hell, there are about a billion '1/10' ratings on ImdB, from people who admittedly liked the movie but didn't feel it deserved to be rated this high. The fact that it received ridiculous praise causes more and more people to hate it. The fact that it is a 'superhero movie' adds snob aggravation to the mix, and before you know it, you have a brigade of haters who are only so vocal because of the gushing the movie received. And well know hating is more vocal than praising. Really, all of these 'haters' wouldn't say anything if it wasn't so goddamn popular; it's a typical 'reverse response'. Bloody silly one at that. For example, I knew a dude who felt it was 'pretty good', but when reading the praise, he begun calling it 'one of the worst movies ever'. See?
All of this uber-praising and backlash is going to harm TDK's place in history more than anything.
Are you a pessimist?
Hating all the movies which get hyped won't help……. they will win the awards because majority loved them….. and it's majority who wins.
My this years prediction is Slumdog Millionaire out of the three fantasies running their race……. The Dark Knight,The Curious Case of Bejamin Button and Slumdog Millionaire.
If you give Oscar to a fantasy movie then you give Oscar for entertainment not for social message and Slumdog has all of it……… bizzare story,all characters have bright and varying hues,A speedy sequence of events yet falling in so meaningfully and excellent music.
I think people go to theatres for refreshment…. to get rid of their daily worries of life…. to see good winning over evil always and to see all good things that really doesn't happen to them.Slumdog provides with all this.It makes you coming out of the hall not only happy but dancing to the tunes of our dear music director A.R.Rehman.
Those who are still hating Slumdog there i can just say onething THE HOST EVEN DIDN'T WANT THAT A SLUMDOG A TEA BOY(chaiwallah) WILL WIN SUCH A COMPETITION SO HE TRIED TO PREVENT IT IN EVERY MEANS POSSIBLE EVEN BECOMING A UNETHICAL(remember,?the break before second last question where Anil Kapoor actually provides a clue to misguide) out there at the Oscar Award panel there are some people like him who will try their best to defeat the representation of the poor country where it was shot YET,IN THE END SLUMDOG WINS THE PRIZE MONEY AGAINST ALL ODDS this Indian film will also win Oscars slapping against the face of those who ridicule Bollywood movies and India.
@FYI,: Slumdog is not a typical example of Bollywood. Although there are considerable influences, calling Slumdog as Bollywood is bit fetching to say the least
@Zinc:
Bingo!! You can't like or dislike something based who does or does not like it, or how many people do or do not like it. To do so is just incredibly stupid. Popular does not equal good and popular does not equal bad. People need to learn to think for themselves!!
As far as Slumdog goes, I liked it. I thought was really good, but not great/brilliant, movie. Do I think it's the best movie of the year? No. But does that mean the people who vote on the Oscars can't think it is? Again, no. And will that affect my opinion of the movies I saw this year? Once again the answer is no.
I'll watch the Oscars and root for the movie that I think should win (Button or TDK), but if Slumdog wins I'll just shrug my shoulders and be glad the honour went to a good movie from a good filmmaker that the world will benefit from being a little more exposed to.
@Shayan:
Slumdog is over hyped. Yes the music was good, but i didnt come out dancing or anything like that. It was a well made film, with a cliche ending (just like most crappy bollywood movies).
I really don't think Slumdog will receive as strong a backlash if it wins Best Picture Oscar as much as a Button upset would cause people to hate on BB on "Crash"-levels for beating both Slumdog AND TDK. I've come across a lot more people who consider Button to be over-rated and usually they are the same people who were horrified at Crash beating Brokeback.
I cant imagine Slumdog Millionaire winning Best Picture. It was great but no higher than a B-. I am pretty sure it will be nominated for the big categories(Picture,Director,Score, and Screenplay) but I wouldnt believe it if it won. Yet I lived through the GG's.
Overall, I think it is overrated,but good.
I didn't read all of your comments above, but I need to agree with Brett here. There are many times when a film receives a lot of backlash because of undeserving praise. Titanic received backlash primarily because it was very corny and it was a love story. But what made the movie so great was that it took place during an epic event in recent history that looked spectacular when put to film. I feel the film won more for it's tragic moments than it did the moments of sheer passion and love (and I will NEVER let go Jack, EVER).
I wanted to argue with you Brett about Slumdog Millionaire. I don't think it will receive the backlash you think it will because like you say, it is a film that is very hard to hate. I personally believe that the film that DESERVES backlash however is Benjamin Button.
Don't get me wrong, I need to see this movie again and fully analyze it because I enjoyed the movie less and less the further the story developed. I enjoy that Brad Pitt departs from his typical role as the arrogant asshole who is incredibly sociable to take up a more homey and warm southern man who seems to never do wrong. I enjoy the cinematography (lighting and shots and what not). And I really like David Fincher, I feel he is a great director. But this may be my least favorite david fincher movie that he ever created. The story makes less sense as it goes on and certain themes within the movie really drag it down. I have to get to class so I will finish this statement later. Sorry to end this so abruptly.
@Ethan:
i agree that TDK is the backlashed movie of the year, however, i disagree of it being misplaced in cimenatic history because of that, in fact i think the opposite will happen.
if what i predict is true, then TDK isn't going to get nominated for best picture come next thursday, and there will be ANOTHER backlash because of that. TDK is in a special and odd circumstance in where you have more that loved the movie and feel that it deserves to be nominated vs. the lesser which are the haters that may have pushed it enough for it NOT to be recognized.
it's somewhat a similar backlash to citizen kane which is now regarded by many as the greatest movie ever made, but had a huge backlash as well as being blackballed when it 1st came out.
not saying TDK is anywhere NEAR the level of citizen kane, but it's going to be remembered more fondly in the future, especially if gets snubbed. people will think of TDK when reflecting back to 2008. they're definitely not going to think of it being the year of slumdog millionaire
Success Breeds Contempt, it's as simple as that. When a person, film, or anything becomes out of this world successful with loads of praise and adoration bestowed upon it, there will always be that segment of the population that despises that and will do anything to pull it down. They will nitpick it to death or simply use the typical "cop out" excuse: OVERRATED
Good article. And true.
I loved Slumdog. After Dark Knight and Wall-E it's my third favorite film of the year. Iron Man is the movie this year that I keep shaking my head at when I see it on top ten lists. I…DON'T…GET IT. But I will never say I hate the movie. I thought it was fine.
Right… let this be the first comment from a guy who has read the book …
The film is based on Vikas Swarup's 'Q and A' ….this one hell of a depressing book to begin with … the first half is very bleak and shockingly noxious … the 50% of the second half is again bleak but it really picks up towards the end…and then there's a fantastic climax ….beautiful… now loads of folks liked the book, but i personally didn't like the excessive glumness in it
The movie was VERY DIFFERENT from the book … all the perverted/ugly stuff was trimmed off completely …. the format is the same, boy (named Ram Mohammed Thomas in the book, Jamal in the movie) is captured by police after winning money and interrogated by cops… he tells the story on how he knew the answers … in the book the stories are very meaty and very well outlined … there is a huge tangled web that gets formed and it all unravels at the end ( i dont wanna type a spoiler but in the book Jamal goes to the gameshow to hunt the game show host, NOT to get the girl).
The movie was turned into a love story and was bright and vibrant. And i was very happy to see the ugly stuff from the book (more on that below) chopped off. AR Rahman (who again hails from my country) is one of my fav musicians and produced a stunning soundtrack.
Coming to the ugliness of the book…sample this: the big movie star who Jamal meets covered with shit in the film… is molested by the star in the book in a movie theater. I definitely did not want to read such a book. So i think Beaufroy has done an awesome job. Although i wish they'd kept the twist in the end of the book in the movie as well.
I didn't have the patience to get through all of the comments, because I'm sick and misplaced my glasses, so reading is difficult. However, I will say that I think the reason critics don't like the great movies as much as others feel they should is a result of watching a movie critically. It's kind of a truism when beginning media studies that there are two methods of enjoying a film: a purely experiential side and a critical side. The more critically you watch a film, the less you can purely experience it. My fiancé was annoyed at me coming out of Benjamin Button because, while I loved the film, the first things I mentioned were its flaws; he said I sounded too much like a critic.
When I was a judge for Speech in Academic Decathlon, we were warned against giving scores that were too high too early on, because then when something really spectacular came along later, we'd have no way to judge it. I think film critics are the same, holding out praise for that hypothetical perfect movie.
It happened to me with The Dark Night. I don't think it's a bad film at all. But for me, Tim Burton's versions are way better than Nolan's.
The more people talk that The Dark Night is somewhat 'the best film EVER', I began to hate it. It's not just the young. I understand for young kids today who can't yet appreciate 'old films' like Batman or Batman Returns, but it's also the grown ups. I feel like we are living in two different worlds.
@gluvnast: Well, I don't know. I think that not receiving any 'big' nominations in the oscars will hurt TDK, considering it will forever mark its position with in the 'real' movies industry, outside of geek cred. Most of the films considered to be the greatest, or among the greatest, ever received at least nominations for best picture. A nomination will help secure TDK's place in history -that- much more. Hatred from the fanboys due to this will eventually die out, and TDK may just end up being another uber big-money movie.
I, however, do believe that TDK will receive a nomination, which will generate a massive backlash from the snobs. And, let's face- film 'intellectuals' (occasionally snobs) dominate a film's critical viewpoint and position in history. The Academy, the AFI, and most mainstream critics all fit into that category. Fanboys are reputed as sheep-like, childish morons, and all of their 'campaign' attempts certainly aren't helping- like spamming the Academy's mailbox with "Whi su sirious?!?!!?!1!!1" cards. Due to all of this, I feel that TDK's position in history may be forever damaged by the all-too-common perception of it being just a 'ridiculously overrated' movie.
Although, maybe I'm just being too much of a cynic, and eventually all the critical love and the popularity of TDK will drown out the haters.
I saw Slumdog Millionaire today. Boyle has really done a good job with this movie. While the movie deals with the gory details of the underbelly of Mumbai, it doesnt really leave you with a sick feeling. The story feels like a commentary and at the end you just feel good about the whole movie. Very well done I must say.
The music score by Rehman is amazing, the actors who played junior Jamal and Salim were the real stars. They were simply too good. Freida Pinto had just 15 mins of screen presence. I think she was overhyped.
Here's the problem: people who have negative opinions about something are always significantly more vocal than those who are positive so when some people don't like something they go ballistic when someone says otherwise. I remember how everything with Titanic went down. Huge hit, people professed loving it then more and more people started being negative. Then it became hip to hate it and the negativity grew louder until now you'd think it was a movie directed by Hitler. I think when people believe a movie is overrated they actually get angry that people don't agree and start spewing that anger in the direction of who they consider to be the culprit: the movie. With Slumdog, some people have problems with movies with happy endings. I've seen posts here and other sites where people have actually said any movie with a happy ending is immediately unrealistic and therefore terrible. I even argues with someone once who insisted that any movie which fails to produce something new is automatically crap.
One of the things lost in this anonymity that is The Internet is the fact everything is subjective. The words "I think" or "I believe" have been replaced with opinions stated as if they were fact and a foregone conclusion, and it's human nature to lash out when someone argues with your "facts." Even you, Brad, have written reviews where you stated your opinions as though they were as factual as 1+1 equaling two even though what you were talking about was completely a subjective opinion on your part. Everyone does it sometimes, but unfortunately it's happening more and more and rather than enjoying the movies we love for the reasons we love them we spend far too much time trying to validate our own opinions especially about what we hate.
@Mark: I agree with what you said, as to how many people have come to despise movies with happy or hopeful endings nowadays. These people seem to believe that for a good film to be great, it MUST have a dark and downer of an ending, while an upbeat ending is seen as a "cop out"
I guess with all the somber and downbeat endings in most acclaimed films nowadays, it's what some has come to expect now. C'mon people, there's nothing wrong with films that end in the opposite end of the spectrum.
The main reason many people bash popular and acclaimed films like Slumdog Millionaire, Wall-E, TDK, Benjamin Button, and others, is simply to elevate the film that they admire more which they view is in competition with the film that's reaping all sorts of praise at the moment. I don't believe that everyone who joins in the backlash towards a popular film truly believes that the said film is "horrible," "an F," "a 1 out of 10," "Garbage," and the like. They are only doing that to elevate another film in their view, and the only way they believe they could do so is by throwing away "objectivity" and an "open mind" out of the window.
I feel Slumdog backlash completely. I was already prepared to hate it by the time I saw it just because everyone was raving excessively about it. When I actually did see it, I thought it was decent, but a far cry from truly great films of the year–Benjamin Button, most of all, but Happy-Go-Lucky, The Dark Knight, Milk, even Gran Torino. It's tremendously overrated and I'll be disappointed if the Academy just runs with the hype. Benjamin Button is incomparably better.
@Lacienica: I think what you're a victim of is less backlash as it is expectations. Hype before you see a movie is a dangerous thing. Often people tend to write checks, especially online, that no movie can cash. A good example for me is Casablanca, a movie I consider to be the most overrated movie of all-time. I'm not a fan of love stories to begin with, but at the end of Casablanca I stared at my TV watching the DVD menu for quite some time before shaking my head and turning it off. I felt the same way about it that you feel about Slumdog: decent movie, but what the hell is everyone thinking?
I'm lucky enough to live in an area which not only has an art house theater (they were showing Happy-Go-Lucky back in November, I believe) and three theaters which bring in new "art" films quite often (we've been showing Slumdog, again, since November and had Frost/Nixon, Doubt and Revolutionary Road long before they ever went wide). That allows me the chance to judge a movie on it own merits since I am notorious for seeing a movie as soon as it opens. For those not lucky enough, what piques their curiosity os often the hype. For some people, those movies can live up to that hype, and for other it cannot. I think in those case, however, the movie never had a chance going in because as we all like to forget sometimes taste in movies is subjective. There are no absolutes. Somewhere out there are people who think Citizen Kane, Gone With the Wind, Schindler's List, Greed, Lawrence of Arabia or Casablanca is overrated. As I've pointed out with the latter, you've just met someone.
i loved Titanic … i love everything james cameron has ever done. he reinvented BIG cinema. those who hate titanic cannot come up with a good enough excuse but on the contrary i do hate slumdog millionaire and have my reasons for it… its story is weak… no where do police rough up people like that not even in BIG BAD Mumbai… i ought to know i am from mumbai… besides it being a very cliched story it is a very cliched look at mumbai …. its not all slums you know… my reasons for hating the movie are not limited to it being disrespectful of my beloved city… even technically the film does nothing for me… the soundtrack is certainly not A R Rehman's best work and doesnt compare to The Dark Knight score… danny boyle's direction is like that of a manic bollywood director high on LSD its just absurd… we've seen movies like these for years in bollywood… maybe it is different for the audience in the west but you cannot be praising it to all heavens when you have such wonderful and understated movies as Milk Frost/Nixon and even TCCOBB although TCCOBB is not fincher's best work… Zodiac was much better…
i only hope SlumDog Doesnt win cause it would cause me and quite a few others to ahte it even more … and also the oscars… but knowing the oscar's craze for garnering greater viewer numbers what better way than to award a movie based on india (though not really)… i can assure you the numbers will go up three folds… its like the miss universe pagent LMAO!!!