Slumdog Millionaire

The world's been smitten by it, and soon enough fashion will follow suit. Oscar best picture winner Slumdog Millionaire showed the many tumultuous lives that exist in the slums of India. But ultimately, hope reigned. Like the visually arresting film, Indian-inspired clothes are vivid, exotic, provocative. When I think of India I think of saris, coin jewelry, tunics, and otherworldly beauties like Freida Pinto. Channel your inner slumdog fashion heiress with, at the very least, a dancing yellow scarf.

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Zack Snyder's long-awaited screen adaptation of Watchmen finally hit theaters over the weekend and scored the best opening of the year with an estimated $55.7 million. Apparently that's actually a bit of a disappointment to the studio which, according to Variety, "had hoped Watchmen would match, or even best, the $70.9 million domestic opening of Zack Snyder's previous film, 300, which bowed on the same weekend in 2007."

The rest of the top five at the box office was all mixed up with Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail coming in second place, followed by Taken in third, Slumdog Millionaire in fourth, and Paul Blart: Mall Cop in the fifth spot. Oh, Paul Blart. America just can't seem to quit you.

So what did you see over the weekend? Did you venture out into the world of Watchmen?

Photos courtesy of Warner Bros.

Hi, Buzz Book Club readers! I loved the film Slumdog Millionaire, and over the past few months, it's been a delight to watch this Danny Boyle movie work its way into the hearts of many — including, of course, the Academy Awards voters, who named the film this year's Best Picture.

The film also won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, and in doing some research into the film, I learned that the book it draws from is pretty different from the big-screen version — which, of course, made me want to read it. That is why I've made my March selection Slumdog Millionaire (originally published as Q & A) by Vikas Swarup.

For those of you new to my book club format, here's how it works: I announce a new book each month. Every week I suggest chapters to complete by the next post (which, in this case, will go up every Friday in March). In these weekly Book Club posts, I'll posit a few discussion-provoking questions for you to respond to in the comments section.

To read the description of the book and to get the first assignment, read more

• When Wired asked its readers who uses the Mac Mini and why, they were flooded with positive comments. See what they were. — Wired
• BlackBerry's App store website — called BlackBerry App World — has just been updated, and RIM has set the minimum price for pad apps at $2.99. — CrackBerry
• Amazon has just launched a new video game trade-in section to its website where you can select the games you want to return (at least $10 worth) and it'll send you a gift card in return! — Joystiq
• The winner of a eight Academy Awards including best picture, Slumdog Millionaire will be making its way to homes on DVD/Blu-ray on March 31. — Switched
• Check out some sweet deals of the day including a $15 Samsung Bluetooth Headset. — Boing Boing

Even when competing with a Jonas Brothers 3-D extravaganza thingy, Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail did not falter during its second weekend in theaters and scored the top spot at the box office again.

Disney's Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience was expected to win the weekend partly because of the extraordinary success of last year's Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour. The Jonas Brothers' movie earned an estimated $12.7 million and is considered a disappointment in comparison to the estimated $29 million that Miley's movie debut earned.

Meanwhile, Variety reports that Slumdog Millionaire "enjoyed the biggest post-Oscar bounce since Titanic at the domestic box office, grossing an estimated $12.2 million as it boldly expanded to 2,943 runs in its 16th sesh."

Photo courtesy of Lionsgate

Watching the radiant Slumdog Millionaire cast at the Oscars and the clips from the lush film made me hungry for Indian culture — and Indian food. I've decided to round up an intimate group and host an informal Indian dinner. My girlfriend Emily is bringing the wonderful soundtrack from the film and I'm in charge of the menu.

With fewer people traveling due to the economy, this is a great way to experience an exotic culture in the comfort of your own kitchen. Cooking a meal is more affordable than purchasing a plane ticket, so consider brightening up a Winter's evening with this lively get-together. Jump-start the party with Padma Lakshmi's crispy turkey rolls with mint and date dipping sauce; they should be ready and waiting for guests to arrive.

Shrimp tikka with mango chutney is fragrant, flavorful, sweet, and spicy. For the main course, serve chicken with a fresh, tangy cilantro sauce, white rice, and green lentils with lemon slices and popped mustard seeds. To entice your tastebuds with these dishes, read more

It's no surprise that when Tyler Perry has a movie out, it's going to do well at the box office — but $41 million well? Dang! Madea Goes to Jail took the top spot over the weekend and is Perry's best debut to date.

Taken, Coraline, and He's Just Not That Into You continued to do good business, coming in second, third, and fourth respectively. Meanwhile, the fifth spot went to this year's "little film that could" and newly crowned Oscar-winning Best Picture. Variety reports:

Fox Searchlight reached Oscar Sunday with Slumdog Millionaire enjoying a ninth straight week in the top 10.

The weekend's other wide release debut, Fired Up, opened at No. 9.

Photo courtesy of Lionsgate