As someone who indulges in the nerdy pastime, my ears perk up when I hear about movies that revolve around quizzing. Such movies are few and far in between and the subject being such a niche, it is not surprising that the movies that get made are made by exemplary auteurs and writers who are through in their research.

Slumdog Millionaire seems to be one such movie. It tells us the story of Jamal, an 18 year-old half illiterate orphan from the slums of Mumbai who is a participant on India’s version of “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?”. One question away from winning the ultimate prize, a staggering 20 million rupees, the show breaks for the night and 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 slums of Mumbai, of vicious encounters with local gangs, and of the girl he loved and lost. Each chapter of his story reveals the key to his answer to one of the game show’s questions. But we wonder what this young man with no apparent desire for riches really doing on the game show? Will this question be answered when Jamal returns to answer the final question for the ultimate prize?

Based on the career diplomat Vikas Swarup’s debut novel, Q&A, Slumdog Millionaire is directed by acclaimed director Danny Boyle (TRAINSPOTTING, SHALLOW GRAVE, MILLIONS, 28 DAYS LATER, SUNSHINE) and Loveleen Tandan and won the 2008 Toronto Film Festival People’s Choice Award, Starring Dev Patel, Freida Pinto, Anil Kapoor, and Irrfan Khan, Slumdog Millionaire was the closing night film at the 52nd annual London Film Festival and will have a special screening at the AFI Los Angeles International Film Festival.

And ever since it was first shown in public as a last minute entry at the Telluride Film festival, it has been garnering rave reviews. Last week, Entertainment Weekly picked SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE as a possible Oscar nominee for both the Best Picture and Best Director categories. A.R.Rahman’s background score is also garnering rave reviews and is being touted as a possible Oscar nominee.

The movie that Richard Corliss calls “a buoyant hymn to life, and a movie to celebrate”, opens on Wednesday, November 12, in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Washington D.C., and Toronto. It will then be released in additional cities across the country on November 21 and throughout December.

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