Slumdog Millionaire.

City of God remains at the top for me, but Slumdog Millionaire is a very close second. I like films that are made with such attention to detail. It's nice when, for a change, a movie pushes you to feel emotions that are a level or degree more intense than normal, be it anger, desperation, frustration, misery, happiness, relief, or hope. Hope has different meanings to different people, and the thing about hope is that, once you latch on to it, it might really be all you need to get to the next round.

The whole time I watched it, I thought of Manila and how similar it is. No, even the children, they look like the Manilenyo kids running around the streets, begging. Everything was Manila. No, not the swanky Metro Manila, the real one.

I feel so condescending, saying that the storytelling and the scenes, especially with the poverty-stricken children, broke my heart. Movies like this make me want to do more for other people, instead of the very common reaction of "there's so much I should be thankful for, I am so much more fortunate than others". And for one whimsical moment, during the movie, I was so devastated by this one scene that I seriously contemplated giving up my possessions and dedicating my life instead to the people I can help. Laughable, I know, considering my rep, my desire for all things shiny. But if a movie could do that to someone like me, even for 5 seconds, then it would've done its part.

I once again embarrass myself.