Those familiar with the work of Danny Boyle, director of "Trainspotting," "The Beach" and "28 Days Later" will be surprised by his newest work, "Millions."
The three previous films were designed to scare or shock the viewer. "Millions" is much more light-hearted. It's fashioned mostly for children, but also accessible to older audiences.
It is the story of two young brothers who have recently moved to a new neighborhood, following their mother's death. The younger brother, Damian, played adorably well by Alex Etel, is in love with the idea of sainthood and charity. His older brother Anthony (Lewis Owen McGibbon), is more interested in money and possessions.
After a gigantic sack of money falls from the sky one day, the two boys each set out to dispose of the money in a manner that fits their personality. Anthony looks into different financial investments, while Damian, who perpetually envisions dead saints, attempts to do good deeds with his share. Meanwhile the boys' father (James Nesbitt) has no knowledge of these goings-on, and puts forth his best effort to alleviate the pain caused by the absence of the boys' mother.
It may be a pretty hackneyed message of how money corrupts those who have it, but Boyle makes it slightly more interesting by adding the humor in the imaginary saints that follow Damian around.
Boyle is coming off of a brief stint in making horror films to make what is decidedly opposite of a horror film. And he has titled his vision of a modern-day Jesus Christ, Damian -- the same name of the notorious anti-christ in the horror film "The Omen."
That might just be a coincidence.
Even so, there's much more beneath the surface here than the average PG-rated Disney film. There's obviously a deeper message here, the only problem is that it may have been lost in the subtlety.
It's apparent that the film is attempting to portray money as evil, but at the same time it very adamantly begs the viewer to empty his wallet. In the end it is not quite clear if you've been watching a very clever satire or what amounts to a 90-minute commercial for Catholic Charities.
The ending added to that confusion by making absolutely no sense at all. This review won't attempt to give away the ending but suffice it to say, it was a little ridiculous, even for a children's movie.
None of that matters, though, to the target demographic of "Millions." To the youngster, this is a visually moving film of whimsy and fun that ranks up there with the likes of "Babe" and "Toy Story" for sheer enjoyment. As in "Babe," there are a few dark and scary moments whose only purpose is to make the warmth and joy more radiant in the following scenes.
One scene really demonstrates Danny Boyle's flare for describing usually terrifying events. The viewer is shown a flashback of a train robbery in England. Some heavy music from the British rock band Muse accompanies the scene and the camera tricks used are quite similar to those in the movie "Trainspotting." In fact, this entire scene could have taken place in that film.
Fascinating for children, and at least amusing for the adults that accompany them, "Millions" mixes childish farce and mature themes in a way that usually only occurs in anime films such as "Spirited Away" or "Princess Mononoke." The unfortunate part is that it is likely to be exposed, at most, only as much as those two anime films were in the U.S.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
