A harrowing true tale of loss and discovery, "Lion" tells the tale of Saroo (played as a child by Sunny Pawar), a 5-year-old Indian boy who finds himself thousands of miles from home when he accidentally stows away on a train.
Lost in a heavily populated area where the locals speak a different language, Saroo is taken into custody by the state and eventually adopted to a couple in Australia (Nicole Kidman and David Wenham), who love and raise him as their own but leave him even further from his home.
Twenty-five years later, Saroo is an adult (played by Dev Patel) with a girlfriend (Rooney Mara) and a full life, but feels the hole left by a life taken from him. His memories of his childhood are fleeting; he has only flashes of his family and his hometown.
It might not be considered a spoiler how he tracks down his hometown, but it's not a detail I will divulge here; suffice it to say a little technology and a lot of trial and error are employed.
"Lion" is a tale that both breaks and warms the heart. While Saroo's adopted family loves and cares for him deeply, they are themselves flawed. Saroo's adopted brother, played by Divian Ladwa, has challenges that affect him, and marital problems also plague the family.
Likewise, Saroo's quest has implications for the adopted family as well, and emotions conflict within Saroo. What happens when he finds his home? Where does he stay? What about his life in Australia?
"Lion" is a movie that crosses the line between "cultural" and "mainstream" cinema. It has stars recognizable to American audiences but deals with subject matter just outside that to which Americans are accustomed. It's a slightly off-kilter studio film, one that employs subtitles in relatively long stretches but whose plot is universal in nature and easy to understand.
The acting is strong, anchored by Patel's quiet resolve to find his home and Kidman's steadfast, supportive adopted mother. As the younger Saroo, Pawar has expressive, soulful eyes and conveys the terror of a boy lost and traumatized by what was, essentially, an accident writ large.
It's also a powerful film, well-made and well-acted, entertaining and inspiring. It's a film many people will overlook in planning their holiday moviegoing, but are missing out in doing so. It's on the shortlist of the year's best, and is a film you should go out of your way to see.