important, informing and relevant

Rating: 8/10 (9 March 2017)

Lion stars Dev Patel and Sunny Pawar and tells the emotional and miraculous true story of 'Saroo' an Indian child who finds his way back home after 25 years of being separated from his family and adopted by an Australian family. The performance from the child actor Sunny Pawar was really great, his emotions and deliveries were all on point, His performance was heartfelt and heartbreaking, his fear and sense of isolation were done very well in the scenes where he first separates from his family, how he was depicted walking through the crowds, the sheer size comparison alone pacts such a strong effect.
I really liked this movie because of how it was able to deliver an emotional and powerful story, the emotions from the child's point of view and also in the later act with Dev Patel depicting a victim of trauma and the feeling of lost and the idea of searching for self purpose and his own roots were great. The excruciating process of trying to grasp that thread of memory digging through a dark pool of nothingness. Also the guilt that he feels for not having contacted his family all well explored and acted out.
The film also does a great job exploring India's poverty, the scene depicting a child snatching group was not only informing but relevant and impactful. Delivering an overall message of the amount of children that are lost in India each year at the end of the film, presumably falling into the hands of such criminal groups. This isn't necessarily a very commercially viable movie, but it is as mentioned very important and explores the darker corners of the world and human nature.