Set in the slums of Mumbai, it follows the story of 18-year-old Jamal Malik (newcomer Dev Patel), who is sitting one question away from winning 20 million rupees in Who Wants To Be a Millionaire.

Arrested on suspicion of cheating and desperate to prove his innocence, Jamal tells the powerful and dramatic story of how his life on the streets has provided him with each of the answers, with grisly flash-backs showing his more than troubled upbringing.

Click here to view Slumdog Millionaire trailer

Some of this film does not make for easy viewing, but this is a story of love and life with a big difference.

From the opening torture scene of the film, you know that you are not in for a smooth ride, as Jamal is forced to relive some of the hardest moments of his life - revolving around his brother Salim and the love of his life Latika (Freida Pinto) - in order to protest his innocence.

The death of Jamal's mother leads to the answer of one question, an horrific encounter with an evil man using child beggars to gain money leads to the answer of another - and upliftingly, a childhood love of an Indian Bollywood star leads to another answer - and an amusing toilet-based flashback.

As Jamal grows up, his quest to save Latika from those around her continues, and again leads to answers to the Millionaire questions, as he fights forces beyond his control to get the pair reunited and away from harm.

This film is crammed with atmospheric scenes that throw you into the world of the slums, with scores of dirty children running over rubbish tips, the bright colours and sounds of Mumbai filling the screen to give you a sense of the ever-changing culture of India.

Slumdog Millionaire is a powerful film.

This is a brilliant film because it has the depth that many others lack.

Every time Jamal comes through and achieves something, he is brought back down with a bump worse than the last one.

But it is this mix between the fairy tale happiness that he longs for with Latika, and the grim reality of his life up until that 20 million rupee question that make this film stand out above the rest.

We know it must all come good in the end, but quite how he gets there, makes the film more of a journey than a simple cinema viewing.

Slumdog Millionaire has won countless awards in the last few months - and more than deserves the praise it is receiving.

Click here to view showtimes for Slumdog Millionaire at Odeon Silverlink