British actor Dev Patel first shot to fame playing the character Anwar in the first two seasons of British teen-drama Skins. The Academy Award-winning Slumdog Millionaire introduced him further to mainstream audiences and Patel has now emerged as a star with a lot of promise. He has mostly been featured in films with talented ensembles, but with films like Lion, and The Personal History Of David Copperfield, he has shown great potential as a lead performer.
His latest venture is the upcoming medieval fantasy The Green Knight that finds Patel playing the role of the mythical Arthurian knight, Sir Gawaine.
Chappie (2015)- 33%
South African writer-director Neil Blomkamp emerged as a breakout sci-fi filmmaker with his found-footage satire District 9. However, his subsequent films like Chappie haven't been able to follow up to Blomkamp's debut since then. Chappie is set in a dystopia in which a law-enforcing robot is captured and brainwashed by gangsters.
Patel plays a scientist called Deon Wilson who helps in overseeing the creation of such law-enforcing robots to handle the increasing crime rates in Johannesburg. As the story progresses, the scientist is captured by gangsters who instruct him to reprogram some of his creations. While the film's visuals and concept drew praise, its narrative was mostly seen as weak.
The Wedding Guest (2018)- 43%
The Wedding Guest is an action-thriller that pairs Dev Patel with Radhika Apte, one of India's leading actresses in current times. The former plays a mysterious British man called Jay who's visiting a wedding in Pakistan in which Samira (Apte) is being forcefully married into an arranged union.
Jay's mission is to transport Samira to India where her actual lover waits for her. But as violence and secrets get unleashed on the way, Samira seems to have plans of her own. The film plays around certain familiar tropes while Dev Patel gets an excuse to experiment with a darker role.
The Road Within (2014)- 45%
A remake of a German film, The Road Within is a coming-of-age drama that focuses on three teenagers who escape from a clinic, embarking on a road trip filled with new experiences and realizations. The Road Within makes for a wholesome and light watch, if not a retelling of the same slice-of-life road trip films.
Patel plays Alex, a boy with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. He shares screen space with talented young actors like Zoe Kravitz, and Robert Sheehan (of The Umbrella Academy fame).
The Man Who Knew Infinity (2015)- 63%
In The Man Who Knew Infinity, Dev Patel had the honor of playing S Ramanujan, one of the greatest mathematicians in the world whose work has mostly been underappreciated in the public eye. Ramanujan experimented with several series of numbers, solving equations that were previously considered unsolvable.
The film traces Ramanujan's journey from a poor upbringing in India to securing a seat in Cambridge. It also lays emphasis on Ramanujan's friendship with his guide and mentor G H Hardy (Jeremy Irons). It was praised for making good use of biopic conventions and accurate details around its subject matter.
The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2015)- 65%
Patel reprises his role as Sonny Kapoor for the sequel to The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. The cheerful hotel owner faces new challenges in this film, as he plans to open another branch of his hotel in the state of Rajasthan, India. Along with impressing an American company inspector (Richard Gere), he also focuses on preparing for his upcoming wedding with Sunaina (Tina Desai).
The film is no ground-breaking comedy and carries on with the themes of its predecessor. However, its charming ensemble is enough to gather the attention of viewers.
Hotel Mumbai (2018)- 76%
In 2008, a series of bomb blasts in the Taj Mahal Hotel shook Mumbai, India. The terror of that night is recreated in the action-thriller Hotel Mumbai. Patel plays a waiter called Arjun who along with several other guests and staff members, tried their best to avoid casualties as tragedy struck.
The film was seen as a well-made dramatization of the real-life terrorist attacks while being a fitting homage to unsung heroes of that night. Because of its adrenaline-fueled style and the depiction of real events, Hotel Mumbai can be triggering for a few viewers.
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011)- 79%
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel might bother some viewers for its one-dimensional perspective of India, but the comedy-drama favors heart-touching subplots that still overpower the subtle stereotypes. A young and eager Sonny Kapoor (Patel) welcomes several aged British guests to his hotel in Jaipur. The guests include an ensemble of veteran British actors like Maggie Smith, Bill Nighy, Judi Dench, and Tom Wilkinson.
Even though the film plays around several moments of light humor, it has its dramatic moments too with the characters completing their unfulfilled desire and finding a new purpose in life. Meanwhile, Kapoor is burdened with helping his single mother and gathering enough money to marry his childhood sweetheart.
Lion (2016)-84%
In Lion, Dev Patel displayed his dramatic potential to the finest, garnering a nomination at the Oscars and winning a BAFTA for Best Supporting Actor. Inspired by a real-life story, the film's first half is a gut-wrenching journey of a lost Indian boy Saroo (played to perfection by child actor Sunny Pawar) who undertakes several challenges to find the way back home to his village. Fate brings him closer to an Australian couple who adopts him.
An adult Saroo (Dev Patel) grows up to have a privileged lifestyle until childhood flashbacks start haunting him. He then decides to find his actual home and mother via Google Earth. This results in an emotional journey of sadness and hope.
Slumdog Millionaire (2008)- 91%
Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire dominated the awards season in its time and marked a stellar debut for Dev Patel. The film deals with the life of an Indian boy from Mumbai, Jamal Malik, who goes through thick and thin while growing up facing poverty, riots, and gangsters. Finally, Jamal gets a chance to contest in the Indian equivalent of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire.
He answers each question correctly as coincidentally, each question seems to tell a story linked to his coming-of-age. These backstories are touched upon with every progressive question. Apart from its concept and drama, the film also drew praise for AR Rahman's rousing score and the original song Jai Ho.
The Personal History Of David Copperfield (2019)- 92%
This British comedy-drama offers a closer perspective to the life of David Copperfield, the protagonist of the eponymous novel by Charles Dickens. Patel plays the titular character with his usual charm and feel-good nature. Like most of his filmography, he is supported yet again with an acclaimed ensemble comprising of Tilda Swinton, Peter Capaldi, Hugh Laurie, and Ben Whishaw.
The film was praised in particular for Patel's act and its balancing of heavy drama and light-hearted spin on Dickens' classic story.