8 Slumdog Oscars paves the way for next BRIC success
;)
;)
Where will the next BRIC revelation come from in the movie industry?
The huge success of Slumdog Millionaire at the Oscars this weekend is the latest in a growing number of movies which were either filmed in or revolve around the BRIC countries.
In business, it’s difficult to escape the influence of the four huge countries that make up BRIC.
Brazil, Russia, India and China are the world’s four fastest growing developing economies and represent the next super powers of world dominance.
Every single global commodity is affected by BRIC either because of the abundant resources available or because of the potential market to sell to the BRIC countries. BRIC encompasses approximately 40 per cent of the world population, and 25 per cent of the world land mass.
In a question of whether life imitates art, or art imitates life, it’s interesting to follow the Hollywood trend of foreign films surrounding these countries.
Slumdog Millionaire, set in the streets of India’s Mumbai, is either a reflection of the increased popularity of India or the beginning of a revolution that will begin a stream of interest in the country.
On Sunday, Slumdog Millionaire became the fifteenth movie in 81 years of Academy Awards to win eight or more Oscars. The movie joins the elite ranks of the likes of Lord of the Rings, Titanic, The English Patient, Ben Hur and Gone with the Wind as some of the most critically acclaimed films ever made.
Seven years ago, the focus was set on two other BRIC countries, Brazil and China. Whilst the Brazilian film industry has yet to make the impact in Western cinema that China has, one film in 2002 stood out as truly exceptional.
Set in the slum western quarter of Rio de Janeiro, City of God depicts the harsh gang life on the streets of one of the world’s roughest cities. Drug abuse, violence, rape and murder are all part and parcel of the gritty reality depicted in the film.
City of God was nominated for four Oscars in 2004 after its US release and won 9 awards at various movie ceremonies including the Toronto International Film Festival, New York Film Critics Circle Awards and the BAFTAs.
Also in 2002, the world was treated to the raw stunning beauty captured in the cinematography of Hero. The Chinese film directed by Zhang Yimou was so much more than simply a martial arts film, and followed in the footsteps of the revered Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
Although Hero narrowly lost out to the German film Nowhere in Africa at the 2003 Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language film, it was at the time the highest-grossing movie in Chinese film history and one of the most successful Chinese films to reach the Western audience.
With the way well and truly paved by the other BRIC countries, the focus surely will soon fall to Russia to provide a critically acclaimed movie.
The 2007 inspired portrayal of the Russian mafia in London by Viggo Mortensen in Eastern Promises was a solid start, but the stage has been set for something much bigger.
The days of the Russian stereotyped villain of the 70s and 80s have long gone. Expect to see an increase in interest in Russian cinema, looking for a true insight into life in Russia. Dr Zhivago was a long time ago, 54 years later; it’s time for a Russian resurgence.
