Lifting Fog

It needn’t be said that here at the Fog, we consider ourselves fairly privileged. I mean, blogs sure, but blogs with original graphics and categories? Well that’s just a horse of a different color. Today I write to reflect on an article that I first peeped in the hard copy version of this week’s Entertainment Weekly. Can you believe things are still printed on paper these days? Save the planet, start a blog, brah. EW has one foot ahead and behind the curve though, as the article is also here in digital form. While it doesn’t read like a how-to article, it’s clear what EW is suggesting (I’ve always been a master of reading between the lines, you know). The easiest way to rise above the poverty line in India is by starring in an Oscar-winning film. I guess the fact that it wins an award is secondary to the more important issue of cash flow the film generates, but who says social work can’t be art as well.

Me in Toy Story, circa 1995

Lord knows I was able to breathe the fresh, clean air of life above the influence poverty line courtesy of Disney’s Toy Story, so I can really see what EW is driving at. While the lavish lifestyle the Slumdog children became accustomed to during the week they spent in LA has passed, Boyle and Co. have set up trust funds and (what I can only assume to be) private schooling for the young stars. Thank god the film was a success; otherwise the Slumdog kids would have to return to the slums AND hear about how the movie sucked from their friends. I could deal with returning to abject poverty despite spending 4 months traveling and fattening up on craft services… but to be the subject of ridicule by my friends? I’d rather have passed on the script!

Whether or not Boyle was just blowing post-Oscar win smoke up EW’s ass, only time will tell. The odds of the young actors getting on to Who Wants to Be a Millon-air? (hard” N” of course) is about as probable as… well you saw the movie, right?! Let’s hope Danny Boyle holds true to his word… otherwise the children will suffer this blog post won’t be relevant anymore.

Tags: Abject Poverty, Danny Boyle, EW, Slumdog Millionaire

This entry was posted on March 12, 2009 at 4:47 pm and is filed under "News", Absurd But True. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.