March Movie : Lion

Every third Thursday of the month members of Seaholme Probus Club and Altona and Altona North Clubs gather at the Sun Theatre Yarraville to watch a movie.

The film chosen for February, 2016 was Lion.

It is the story of five-year-old Saroo who gets lost on a train which takes him thousands of Kilometers across India, away from home and family. Saroo must learn to survive alone in Kolkata, formally Calcutta, before ultimately being adopted by an Australian couple. Twenty-five years later, armed with only a handful of memories, his unwavering determination, and a revolutionary technology known as Google Earth, he sets out to find his lost family and finally return to his first home.

The film is based on the memoir A Long Way Home by Saroo Brierley. An interview with Brierley can be found at this link. Unfortunately the film did not win an academy award. 


The film was generally well received by reviewers and critics including the following comments:


"... a sober and yet profoundly stirring contemplation of family, roots, identity and home, which engrosses throughout the course of its two-hour running time."

"The film’s finale might feel a tad familiar, but Lion is ultimately an excellent example of its type—a resonant true story told, not with manipulative cliches, but with refreshing confidence."

Although the film boasts some big names in the entertainment industry, Dev Patel, Nicole Kidman and David Wenhan, for many the stand out actor was Sunny Pawar who played the young Saroo.

Here is the trailer for the movie:



After the film we adjourned to the Sun's luncheon room for a light lunch and a trivia competition.