Little Boy Lost

Rating: 8/10 (14 January 2017)

(RATING: ☆☆☆☆ out of 5)
THIS FILM IS RECOMMENDED.
IN BRIEF: An uplifting and riveting story, given even more credibility due to a strong performance by Dev Petal in the central role.
GRADE: B
SYNOPSIS: An adopted child searches for his biological mother.
JIM'S REVIEW: Garth Davis makes an impressive directorial debut in Lion, the true story of a little boy lost. Through a series of unfortunate incidents, five year-old Saroo (Sunny Pawar, giving a lovely performance) is forced to use his wiles and survival instincts as he is abandoned in the street jungle known as Calcutta, India. He perseveres and grows up to become the child of loving adoptive parents in Australia, all the while yearning to find his way home and the family he left behind.
The story elicits an empathetic reaction from any moviegoer and Mr. Davis mostly resists the melodramatic hyperbola and concentrates on the more personal view of a man trying to come to terms with his past. The director tends to overuse cross-cuts of the past and present images to advance the narrative, but emotionally, it's always embraces his audience as we journey along with this child's plight.
The screenplay by Luke Davies is based on Saroo's own autobiography, A Long Way Home, and seems to stick to the facts rather well, although some of the minor supporting characters are in need of more depth. Except for Dev Patel as the older Saroo and Nicole Kidman as his adoptive mother, who are both superb, others play a more peripheral role. Especially underdeveloped is Saroo's relationship with (Roma Downey). Also, some of the build-up of Saroo's traumatic upbringing seems spotty, as if some scenes were missing or excised during the filmmaking which could have explained more clearly his sudden behavioral changes and mood swings.
Yet the underlying story is still quite powerful and moving. Lion is a well made and thoroughly engrossing film that has enough impact to satisfy the most jaded of viewers.