The appeals of any film will vary however there are different ways of categorising and analysing those appeals.
Look through the presentation below to see how we can isolate those appeals...
Two tasks before you complete a sample answer...
- Write a short paragraph outlining what you feel is the biggest appeal of the movie and use evidence to say why. Leave this as a comment at the bottom of this page.
- Find a positive review of the film, take a quotation from this review and leave it - with the reviewers name and publication/website as a comment below.
"It's a story with a simple and schematic structure, yet as the film progresses and the stakes get higher it cleverly works the built-in tension of the TV show into the drama of the unfolding narrative."
ReplyDelete'A compelling piece of entertainment that poses bigger questions than it answers'
ReplyDeleteThe main appeal of Slumdog Millionaire is the genre. I would say this because the film comes across as a romantic genre due to the plot being based around the journey of a young boy finding his lost love, and being faced with various obstacles therefore conforming to this genre and fulfilling the audiences expectations. However, even though the film has many conventions of a romantic drama it also includes themes of crime and poverty such as Salim shooting Maman and the children being exploited in order to get money. This will challenge the audiences expectations of the genre.
ReplyDeleteThe main appeal of this film I think is narrative. The film has a very unusual, chaotic narrative because of its strutcure. For example, it has 3 different storylines for 3 different timelines, this keeps the audience intrigued and creates enigma codes such has what will happen next in each story. The narrative creates tension because of the dramatic flashbacks such as Salim shooting Maman; this keeps the audience on the edge of their seats as they do not know what to expect. However the narrative ending is considered as conventional as we expect Jamal and Latika to end up together which meets our thoughts.
ReplyDeleteA persuasive appeal of Slumdog Millionaire is the issues and ideologies. The use of setting on location helps an audience to understand more on issues such as poverty, crimes such as the attack on the slums, slum life and survival such as when Jamal and Salims mum dies and they need to fend for theirselves. this is all helped through the camera movements such as how the camera moves vastly through the slums and he mood or tone through the use of gritty colours juxtaposed to bright colours depending on what theme the film is tackling, the bright colours are more than likely present when Latika is. Ideologies are coherent throughout the film, as an audience we will pick up dominant ideologies such as the ones on love and the fight to get it.
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ReplyDeleteThe most persuasive appeal of the film Slumdog Millionaire in my opinion is the uses and gratifications model. Personal identification- people may identify with the character Jamal, who wants to win his loves heart or they may relate to the character Salim who although has made mistakes, tries to fix them. People get information from this film as it shows what a third world country is really like. Due to the films popularity it got people talking, this is social interaction. Although most of the film is rather dull and bleak there is a happy ending and that brings the entertainment factor to the audience.
ReplyDelete'Boyle takes his wildly high-energy visual aesthetic and applies it to a story that, at its core, is rather sweet and traditionally crowdpleasing.'
ReplyDeleteChristy Lemire, 20-02-2013
ReplyDelete"Boyle takes his wildly high-energy visual aesthetic and applies it to a story that, at its core, is rather sweet and traditionally crowdpleasing."
'Breathlessly paced and with bright colors amid an impoverished setting, Slumdog Millionaire is that remarkable little film find we've been waiting for all year.'
ReplyDeleteMel Vincent - The virginian -Pilot
Deletedirectors are the most persuasive element for attracting an audience to a film because they bring their own distinct style that affects the film. One example of this in Slumdog Millionaire is Boyle's preference for dark humour, as seen when Jamal visualises pushing Salim from the building after meeting him again in adulthood.
ReplyDelete"Breathlessly paced with bright colours amid and impoverished setting"
ReplyDeleteMal Vincent- The Virginian- Pilot
DeleteI believe that the most important audience appeal is the use of issues and ideologies. This is shown through the use of themes in the movie. For example, the theme of money is represented as the root of all evil. Although, the whole narrative is based around it, it has no significance in the setting; the focus is on love, not money. This would create intrigue for a western, capitalist audience who base their lives around money.
ReplyDeleteOne of the more in depth appeals includes the uses and gratifications model and the factor of information. As well as the impressive structure and heart felt story of lost and found love, Slumdog Millionare really embraces the culture of india, as well as the representation of Mumbai's underworld and the life that Salim chooses to lead. They do this by filming on location in the real life slums of Mumbai, by including establishing shots of things such as the Taj Mihal and the huge washing bay displaying the colourful and vibrant views as well as the dark and gritty side of India.
ReplyDelete'a feel-good yarn about a Mumbai street kid directed by Danny Boyle with a wild energy that makes even Trainspotting (Boyle's calling card) look leaden-footed.' -Geoffrey Macnab, Independent (UK)
ReplyDelete"A compelling piece of entertainment that poses bigger questions than it answers, Slumdog Millionaire is a modern version of the Cinderella story with some spicy food for thought, and an undeniably sweet core." Katherine Monk February 22, 2015
ReplyDeleteAs cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle's camera zips and darts through slum alleyways and soars to the heights of Mumbai's thrusting new skyscrapers, the vitality of modern India bursts from the screen.
ReplyDeleteThe main appeal of the film in my opinion is the Marketing and Promotion.
ReplyDeleteIn the US, it was represented as this intense romantic drama but showed security in the form of iconography created by WWTBAM. The advertising created a lot of questions in which if the audience wanted the answer, they are required to go to the cinema or wait for its compact disc release.
The UK promotional material on the other hand, promoted the film as a bright, slice of life film which showed love and happiness. This created the idea that it was just a generic romantic film but featured aspects of Bollywood possibly hinting at a musical like setting.
'It's an underdog crowd-pleaser, a radiant love story and a taste of Bollywood splendor'- Joe Williams, St. Louis Post Dispatch, 30th August 2008.
ReplyDeleteStars and Director - The stars for the show weren't huge Hollywood actors, but this wasn't a bad thing. In fact, the lack of huge stars, bar Anil Kapoor, played a significant role in how Boyle appealed to the audience. Jamal, played by Dev Patel, starred in UK based show "Skins", but he wasn't an actor who attracted a lot of people to the cinema. The audience could personally identify themselves to Jamal, as he just looked like a plain ordinary boy. It also acted possibly as Reward and Punishment, rewarding those who were devoted fans of Skins, and who were able to recognise him.
ReplyDeleteLatika, played by Freida Pinto, wasn't an actress, she was a model, and this was important too. The actress who played Latika needed to be attractive and pretty, in order to add to a realistic factor. She needed to be so pretty that the audience knew that she was a girl who you would literally risk your life to find.
Kapoor - A huge actor in the indian film market, and still currently has 1.7m followers on Twitter. He would have appealed to the audience in India, meaning that Boyle could appeal to a Western and Indian fanbase.
Boyle - A director described by Christy Lemire of the Press Association to have "wildly high-energy visual aesthetic and applies it to a story that, at its core, is rather sweet and traditionally crowd pleasing." Boyle directed many films such as "Trainspotting", 127 Hours" and "The Beach". All three films were huge and attracted over £100 million at the box office He would have appealed to film fanatics, because Boyle's films tend to be successful.
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ReplyDeleteSlumdog Millionaire offers up a challenge to audiences when describing genre as it possibly blur's a line. The film is marketed separately from east to west which leaves questions on its actual genre. The film features many set pieces that are action orientated that lead to a possible action conclusion. The use of comedic effect throughout also allows audiences to ask a question. However linking to narrative the movie makes it clear from early on that the only reason Jamal is on the show is to get Latika to notice him. The journey style element of Jamal and Latika's life ,makes it clear that they will eventually come back together. this supports the Romantic Drama elements.
ReplyDeleteWith an excellent blend of humour, romance and suspense, "Slumdog Millionaire" is a very powerful and intriguing film from start to finish - Big up 'Official C'
"Boyle takes his wildly high-energy visual aesthetic and applies it to a story that, at its core, is rather sweet and traditionally crowdpleasing."
ReplyDeleteThe main appeal of Slumdog millionaire for me is the uses and gratification model as i believe it covers all the elements of the model and the light hearted nature of the film would appeal to an audience. For example in the early stages of the film we see the early established bond between Jamal, Latika and Salim being young children having fun and in general living up to the stereotype of a child. this is a big selling point for personal identity as the nostalgic memory of growing p and having fun will be a prominent happy point within an audiences memory providing them with a personal connection the film thus making it appealing.
ReplyDeleteThe structure of this film makes you think and makes you feel involved in some cases as it gives you many things to figure out for your self along the way, this is evident at the start of the film as 10 - 20 minuets in we dont get the full story of whats going on and how Jamel (the main protagonist) got on to the show and why he is on the show to begin with. A good example of this is when the film first starts and we see jamel on what we beleve is a game show but as we see this it cuts to jamel being interagated/ tortured by some unknown people and this is when we the audience start to think of what could be happening.
ReplyDeleteThe narrative of Slumdog Millionaire appeals to the audience, because of it's unusual nature. This can be seen throughout the film, in regards to it's non-linear structure, as well as the combination of the familiar and unfamiliar. Who Wants to be a Millionaire is a familiar TV-gameshow to a Westernised audience and therefore using this in combination with the unfamiliar setting of the slums is interesting, as it is not something that the audience is familiar with and can then challenge their expectations. This juxtaposition of the familiar and unfamiliar is not commonly used in films and could consequently appeal to an audience, as it is unexpected. The intertextuality of the gameshow, allows the audience to feel involved, as they can recognise and understand how the game works, so then by using Mumbai and the slums the audience doesn't feel too distant from the characters.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, the most appealing part of this film is the narrative. The structure of the film is unusual and allows juxtapositions between the three timelines to be made. In turn, this creates enigma codes, drama and tension which will keep the audience interested in the end of the story - even though there is a very conventional ending to the story which meets audiences expectations. The structure is also appealing to the audience as they feel involved in decoding it.
ReplyDeletethe director can be seen as an appeal to an audience. As he or she could be well known or respected in the film industry. And known for making certain styles of films. In this case Danny Boyle is a well known director which would make is name recognisable to audinaces.
ReplyDelete'There's certainly some very good direction, editing and acting - especially by the kids. But the adult actors just didn't seem to carry the weight of the harrowing back story' - Ross Anthony, Hollywood Report Card
ReplyDeleteChristy Lemire Associated Press
ReplyDelete"Boyle takes his wildly high-energy visual aesthetic and applies it to a story that, at its core, is rather sweet and traditionally crowdpleasing."
'It's an underdog crowd-pleaser, a radiant love story and a taste of Bollywood splendor.' - Joe Williams from St. Louis Dispatch
ReplyDelete