“From the moment you came into our lives,” says Sue Brierley (Nicole Kidman) to her son Saroo (Dev Patel) before he leaves his Tasmanian home to study Hotel Management in Melbourne, “you were all that we could have hoped for.” Warm words of love and affection which have rolled off the tongue of many a tearful parent to a blushing child who is about to leave home for the first time. But Sue is no ordinary parent and Saroo is no ordinary son. Together they have lived extraordinary lives.

Born and raised in poverty in a small village in southwest India, life for Saroo was a far cry from Bic Macs and Sonic The Hedgehog. His biological mother Kamla (Priyanka Bose) worked as a labourer in a quarry gathering stones and boulders, his big brother Guddu (Abhishek Bharate) disappeared into the night for a week at a time to haul heavy bales of hay, and Saroo – small in stature but big of heart – risked life and limb to steal coal from passing freight trains which he exchanged for the princely sum of two packets of milk.

Unlike most of their western counterparts who were financially comfortable but increasingly uncomfortable in their own skins, Saroo and his family, which included his young sister Shekila, were poor but happy. And the close bond between Saroo and his brother Guddu lies at the heart of the opening half hour of this beautiful and moving film by director Garth Davis and writer Luke Davies, which is based on the real-life Saroo’s memoir A Long Way Home. Ironically, it was the closeness of their bond which prised them apart.

As Guddu sets off for work in the dark of night, his adoring brother wants to tag along for the ride. “You’re too little”, “It’s very hard work”, Saroo is told. To which he counters by lifting a rusty old bicycle twice his size above his head and declaring defiantly: “I can lift anything!” To use Trump-speak: an alternative fact. But with his big brown eyes and winning smile, what he can lift is people’s spirits, particularly Guddu’s, who allows him to accompany him as far as the train station.

When Saroo awakes, Guddu is nowhere to be seen. And worse: he is on a decommissioned train bound for Calcutta 1600 kilometres away. Unable to speak Bengali, he his swallowed up by the crowd and seeks refuge, firstly, with a group of street children who scatter like pigeons when a pair of ungentlemanly gentlemen try to abduct them; secondly, with a woman who introduces him to a “kind” man who “helps people” who turns out to be and do the polar opposite (“He’s exactly what we’re looking for” sending Saroo’s mind and feet racing); and, finally, with the owners of a far from secure unit for homeless children, which permits nocturnal visits from men who are told to “Bring him back in the morning”.

Given that over 80,000 children go missing in India each year, it is a wonder that Saroo survived to tell his tale. But his survival is only half the tale of this fine film, which has been nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor and Actress for Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman; the other half focusing on Saroo’s relationship with his adoptive family and girlfriend Lucy (Rooney Mara) and his attempt to track down his biological family 25 years after he was posted missing presumed dead.

In addition to the extraordinary real-life story, which grips the imagination and stirs the heart, two elements combine to elevate Lion from a purr of delight to a roar of approval. The performances, particularly from Dev Patel and Sunny Pawar, which are beautifully understated and as sweet as Young Saroo’s much-desired jalebis (you cannot help but root for Dev and fall in love with Sunny). And the writing, or rather lack thereof because for most of the film the dialogue is pared back to the bare bones or absent altogether, allowing the wonderful cinematography by Greig Fraser (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) to show the unforgiving world as seen through Young Saroo’s unblinking eyes.

As the adult Saroo’s secret wish to find his biological family grows, he reluctantly drops his guard and tells Lucy and about the sadness and confusion he feels about leading a double life. On the outside, he is a successful hotel manager living the life of Riley with a loving family and a steady girlfriend; but on the inside, he is a street child thousands of miles from home surrounded by strangers speaking in a foreign tongue. “We swan about in our privileged lives,” he tells her. “It makes me sick.” The catalyst for his Google Earth-inspired quest to retrace his steps. A reminder to all of us that our First World Problems are nothing in comparison to those experienced by the 80,000 children who go missing in India each year.

Video courtesy of: The Weinstein Company

[imdb id=tt3741834]

Peter Callaghan
Latest posts by Peter Callaghan (see all)