Wow!

I just watched this movie without knowing what it was about at all and I absolutely loved it. The filmmaker did a very good job showing both sides of the story and getting intimate interviews and front row access to almost every event(very cool when we see all the media cameras held back but the audience, us, is waved right in). By the time the movie got to the infamous world record marathon I was outraged and convinced that the boy was being exploited and Das was a ruthless shady son of a bitch, that was pretty much what hooked me and got me emotionally invested in the film.
But the plot only thickens from there and the mystery about everyone's intentions started making me realize that this isn't Hollywood and not everything has a clear black/white, right/wrong outcome. Don't get me wrong, what happened at the marathon was hella abusive and their denial of a legit medical issue was stupefying. From there on the film spins into a frenzy of intrigue. I also don't know jack about India(was that even India? Excuse my ignorance on the matter) and throughout I started understanding a little bit more about them. Like the terrible problem they have with the slums and more specifically childhood poverty and how disturbingly prominent it is.
One last interesting tidbit is how by the end I kind of understood why so many of the kid's supporters(damn, I forgot his name already)seemed so eager to defend him and Das even through obviously poor decisions in child rearing. I don't mean to be racist so sorry in advance if you're offended, but it seemed like the citizens needed something to be proud of in this developing country where good intentions and ideals don't always prevail solely on their own merit , "he could have brought great fame, name and money to India". So the kid was more than just some sort of guiness book marathon freak, but their contribution to the rest of the world and a great example of opportunity and success through the hardships so many have to face in that country.... Man, that last sentenced kind of bummed me out.
Sorry for the rant, but I really liked this film. I never thought I was so cheesy as to describe a movie as "nail-biting", but goddamn it I almost feel like a self destructive cannibal.