Lion (B+ or 3.5/4 stars)
Looking for a film to cry during on this Christmas day? I offer up 'Lion' (a biographical drama directed by Garth Davis). 'Lion' is an incredible true story based on Saroo Brierley's memoir' A Long Way Home'. Born in rural northern India in 1986 to a poor but loving family, Saroo was lost to them at age 5 when he separated from his beloved older brother Guddu (Abhishek Bharate) and fell asleep on an empty train that took him over 1,600 kilometers away from his tiny village to the bustling streets of Kolkata (Calcutta). Little Saroo (Sunny Pawar) has no idea how to return to his adoring mom (an exceptional Priyanka Bose) & 3 siblings, so he wanders around homeless, not knowing his surname, & avoiding one tragic close-call after another {prostitution, much?} til he's placed in an orphanage & adopted by a loving Australian couple: Sue & John Brierley (the wonderful Nicole Kidman, David Wenham).
Some 20 yrs. later, Saroo (now played by Dev Patel of Slumdog Millionaire, Best Exotic Marigold Hotel), now living in Tasmania with his wonderful adoptive family & studying hotel management, shares his improbable story with friends who encourage him to use this newfangled technology - 'Google Earth' - to track down all the potential towns that he might have come from. From that point on, Saroo completely isolates himself from his bereft mother, concerned father & loyal girlfriend, Lucy (Rooney Mara), to focus solely on the slim possibility of finding his biological family back in India; through painstaking efforts in searching satellite images of small villages along India's train lines. Drama (and tears) ensue as Saroo dreams of finding his family alive & if they remember him -- grab your Kleenex, people.
'Lion' is just a wonderfully cast tearjerker about one man who searched for his birth family with only 20 yr. old memories to guide him. Director Garth Davis' adaptation of Brierley's memoir starts strong, with the adorable, big-eyed Sunny Pawar playing young Saroo. The dangers he faces once he gets to Calcutta are eye-popping; narrowly escaping the grips of lowly people who would inflict physical & emotional harm unto him. And the 2nd half of the film, dominated by Dev Patel is just as absorbing, if not as edge-of-your-seat nerve wracking as the 1st half with Pawar & co. Although the beginning & the end of 'Lion' are highly emotional & fairly engrossing, there's a fine-but-not-as-compelling section in the middle where we see Saroo mostly hanging out in front of his computer, searching countless train stations along the Calcutta line. Older Saroo also pushes away the people who love him -- most frustratingly, his loving mom & devoted girlfriend. But as was true in life, Saroo picks himself up, dusts himself off, cuts his shaggy mane, shaves, reconnects with his mother/girlfriend, & crosses continents to achieve his goal.
Dev Patel is excellent as the weary, soulful Saroo; a young man with so many conflicting feelings inside. Expect tears to well-up in you eyes while witnessing Saroo's complicated emotions of hope, despair, joy, relief, & sadness along his figurative & literal journey. David Wenham is solid, but has little to do as Saroo's adoptive father. Ditto Rooney Mara, who gives a beautifully naturalistic performance as the girlfriend. And Nicole Kidman gives a heartfelt, lovingly wrought, lived-in supporting performance as Saroo's adoptive mom. She delivers a potent monologue near the end that tugs the heartstrings. I also must commend Greg Fraiser's evocative cinematography, some smooth editing, & a sweeping musical score to aid the emotions of the story. 'Lion' is a sincere celebration of the human spirit, of perseverance, of family bonds, & how technology can 'possibly' make your dreams come true.
Some 20 yrs. later, Saroo (now played by Dev Patel of Slumdog Millionaire, Best Exotic Marigold Hotel), now living in Tasmania with his wonderful adoptive family & studying hotel management, shares his improbable story with friends who encourage him to use this newfangled technology - 'Google Earth' - to track down all the potential towns that he might have come from. From that point on, Saroo completely isolates himself from his bereft mother, concerned father & loyal girlfriend, Lucy (Rooney Mara), to focus solely on the slim possibility of finding his biological family back in India; through painstaking efforts in searching satellite images of small villages along India's train lines. Drama (and tears) ensue as Saroo dreams of finding his family alive & if they remember him -- grab your Kleenex, people.
'Lion' is just a wonderfully cast tearjerker about one man who searched for his birth family with only 20 yr. old memories to guide him. Director Garth Davis' adaptation of Brierley's memoir starts strong, with the adorable, big-eyed Sunny Pawar playing young Saroo. The dangers he faces once he gets to Calcutta are eye-popping; narrowly escaping the grips of lowly people who would inflict physical & emotional harm unto him. And the 2nd half of the film, dominated by Dev Patel is just as absorbing, if not as edge-of-your-seat nerve wracking as the 1st half with Pawar & co. Although the beginning & the end of 'Lion' are highly emotional & fairly engrossing, there's a fine-but-not-as-compelling section in the middle where we see Saroo mostly hanging out in front of his computer, searching countless train stations along the Calcutta line. Older Saroo also pushes away the people who love him -- most frustratingly, his loving mom & devoted girlfriend. But as was true in life, Saroo picks himself up, dusts himself off, cuts his shaggy mane, shaves, reconnects with his mother/girlfriend, & crosses continents to achieve his goal.
Dev Patel is excellent as the weary, soulful Saroo; a young man with so many conflicting feelings inside. Expect tears to well-up in you eyes while witnessing Saroo's complicated emotions of hope, despair, joy, relief, & sadness along his figurative & literal journey. David Wenham is solid, but has little to do as Saroo's adoptive father. Ditto Rooney Mara, who gives a beautifully naturalistic performance as the girlfriend. And Nicole Kidman gives a heartfelt, lovingly wrought, lived-in supporting performance as Saroo's adoptive mom. She delivers a potent monologue near the end that tugs the heartstrings. I also must commend Greg Fraiser's evocative cinematography, some smooth editing, & a sweeping musical score to aid the emotions of the story. 'Lion' is a sincere celebration of the human spirit, of perseverance, of family bonds, & how technology can 'possibly' make your dreams come true.