Lion - Movie Review

Lion is a very interesting film. From the outside, it didn't seem at all like a story that I would be interested in. For one, it's pretty clear how the story is going to play out - especially how it's going to end - and it's portraying a story that I would in no way be able to relate to. I guess this film is, above all, a solid example of the old "it's about the journey, not the destination" saying. The journey that the film and the protagonist undergo is a very simple one, but more engaging than I expected. At the same time, the film feels like it was always falling just short of greatness. All of the elements for a great story are certainly present, and it's all presented in a competent way, it only really shines in some scenes, while the sum of all parts is a bit lacklustre.

This film has a very interesting story to tell. We follow Saroo (Sunny Pawar), a young Indian boy who gets separated from his family after falling asleep on a train and ending up in Calcutta. After he's adopted by an Australian couple and raised away from his home, he finds himself devoted to finding a way back to find his family. Lion's exploration of ideas like isolation, discovery, and belonging are all delivered very strongly, and a lot of it is portrayed visually rather than through words. The film doesn't have a "message", per se, but what it's trying to say is very clear. Clarity is an often underappreciated element of a film, and given that Lion's story follows such a specific set of circumstances, it's all shown in a way that was very easy to understand and become emotionally invested in. Lion certainly has a very emotional story, even if I didn't connect with it as much as I wanted to.

The strongest element of the film is by far the cinematography. The film takes full advantage of sweeping landscapes, but also gives some incredible and unique perspectives on some specific religious and cultural touchstones that I've never seen before. While the film does show a lot of beauty, it doesn't ignore the darker aspects of life in these parts of the world, especially in regards to how children live on the street. But a big problem with that portrayal, and with the film in general, is that the more interesting aspects of Saroo's story are glossed over. Given that this film is partnered with organizations that are working to help homeless children in poor areas of the world, I would think that they would focus on that aspect of the story a bit more, or go a bit further with it. At the same time, it approaches this unsettling subject matter with subtlety, and the clarity of the story remains consistent.

The cast is also fantastic, with Dev Patel delivering a powerful and compelling lead performance as the adult Saroo. He portrays the feelings of longing and obsession perfectly, and even though he could even give a good performance in The Last Airbender (where quality goes to die), this stands out as a great performance from him. No other actors really stand out, with people like Nicole Kidman doing a fine job but nothing remarkable. The most impressive performance by far is Sunny Pawar as young Saroo, especially considering that this is his first film. For such a young actor, he's able to say a lot with only a look, and was the perfect emotional voice for the beginning of the film. If the entire story had followed this actor, I would have been just fine with it. Ironically, the most impactful moments of the film don't come until the very end, when there were no actors involved, and it was footage of the real people. That was when the film felt legitimately heartwarming and uplifting, and I got a sense of catharsis from the film's journey.

An enormous weakness of the film unfortunately lies in the way that it's actually put together: the editing. Something that really gets lost as the story goes on is the passage of time; unless some text appears to tell you how much time has passed since the last scene, you'll likely be lost for a bit. Except for the big leap ahead, when Saroo becomes an adult, I was having some trouble keeping up with the pace of the story.  The themes that the film tackles were interesting enough on a scene-to-scene basis that I could view the film as a series of very enjoyable vignettes, but the experience as a whole wasn't anything special. Tonally, the film jumps around a bit, and never seems quite set on how it wants the audience to feel. It certainly jumps from one emotion to another very quickly at times, and I walked away from Lion feeling a few different emotions, but nothing too strongly.

Sometimes it feels like there's too much story going on. This film is based on true events, and I'm sure that the filmmakers wanted to represent Saroo's story as accurately as possible, but quite a bit of what happens outside of his search feels unnecessary. Because of that, the film feels rushed and slow at the same time; there are a lot of sub-plots, but it feels like there's not enough time for all of them. Then again, without those sub-plots, there wouldn't be a whole lot going on. The most unnecessary plot is Saroo's love story with Lucy (Rooney Mara). Because of the sub-par editing, the development of their relationship was lost on me, and even the state of it was unclear for the majority of the film. Since there isn't a strong, solid resolution to it - and the two actors don't have that much chemistry in the first place - I don't know why it was included. Probably to pad out the run time, which this film really didn't need.

Have you ever felt like there's a film that you think you should love, but you just can't bring yourself to? You enjoyed the experience overall, and some elements of it were certainly impressive, but it just didn't really get you? If you have, you understand where I stand on Lion. It's similar to how I feel about Moonlight, where I can appreciate the way that the film is made and enjoy the story being told, but I feel bad for not connecting with the film as much as others have been able to. I guess it's just a matter of personal preference, because I've certainly been entranced by films over the past year, but many films that people have touted as among the best of the year haven't matched my expectations. I wish that I loved Lion, because I could feel myself being slowly pulled into the story at certain points, but it just never fully clicked.

There's really just not a lot to say about Lion. It's a solid movie overall, and there's certainly nothing that makes it bad, but it just didn't hit the heights that I wanted it to. I wanted to get fully on-board with Saroo's journey, and feel his emotional heights and depths as he searches for his home. But while the story is surrounded by beautiful imagery, the story itself doesn't pack much of an emotional punch, even though it had all the ingredients to do so. It's a bit overblown, although never to the point that it felt overcrowded. A lot of things happen that don't really need to happen, but without them, the film might not have even reached feature length. Maybe I feel this way because the most compelling parts of the story are given in short bursts, and I just wanted to see more of them. Lion shows a lot of promise and has a lot to say, but it simply could have said some things better.