a trip to one's past

Rating: 10/10 (17 May 2017)

I had never heard of Saroo Brierley before Garth Davis's "Lion" got released, and that made it all the more harrowing. You've probably learned that it's about a boy in India who accidentally got separated from his family and eventually got adopted by an Australian couple, but later decided to try and find his original home. The most intense scenes are in Calcutta, where the young Saroo is forced to wonder the streets and fend for himself, all the while avoiding kidnappers. Knowing that this is a true story adds to the intensity. I can't imagine how terrible it would be to get completely cut off from one's family.
Dev Patel brings strength to the role of the adult Saroo, newly interested in finding out where he came from. I also liked Rooney Mara's performance as his college acquaintance, but I thought that the adoptive parents (Nicole Kidman and David Wenham) weren't as important to the story once he set out in search of his birth mother. Nevertheless, it's a movie that everyone should see. Outstanding one.