It wasn’t long ago that Australia’s 60 Minutes introduced us to Saroo; a lost Indian boy who found himself adopted by Sue and John Brierley from Tasmania, and as an adult, used trusty Google maps to find his birth home and family. It was Australia’s favourite heart-warming story in 2013, and was on the lips of every Australian come Monday morning. Now, it’s been put up on the big screen and it’s a Hollywood success, starring the likes of one of Australia’s best exports, Nicole Kidman, and the world’s favourite Indian star from England, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel’s, Dev Petal. It has even managed a few Oscar nominations and that’s a lot to say for a little ol’ Aussie film. There is a feeling of extreme pride when a movie based on a story from our great big island make its way to Hollywood. It’s like Dundee all over again. Sort of, kind of.

The film opens with a bird’s eye view of green, dry and water scenery. It’s an important element as so much of the Indian and Tasmanian land, both dry and wet, needed to highlight the theme of environment. Saroo (Sunny Pawar) travels through almost every condition known to man, so this subject had to be strong and profound.

It’s clear from the get-go that the story will start from the very beginning. It’s a chronological look at the boy’s travels, together with his brother Guddu, working and stealing for food and money, and then getting lost. However, it takes a while before we reach adult Saroo (Dev Petal) and his life in Tasmania, and eventually his eagerness in the search of where he came from. But that is not taking away from how heartbreaking it was to witness this little boy lose his brother, jump on the wrong train and head the opposite way from anything he may find familiar. Pawar is incredible at this role. The kid, on his own gets 5 out of 5.

Lion is very slow, with snail-pace narrative progression. I appreciate the creator’s drilling-in of the desperation and horrors this child went through to survive and find his way back home, but it took such a great deal of time to reach the story we truly longed for, and that’s how adult Saroo finally found home.

Throwbacks instead of a big chunk of just the past, is a better technique that should have been used here. I like the idea of a character remembering and the scene taking us back to that memory. This method is used solely from when Saroo chats about his past with university mates, the one’s that tell him about Google maps, up until he is reunited with home. It’s hard to not shake off the feeling that it would have been a very different film had it started from the end and worked its way back. I believe that would have made this a much more affective and stronger film in regards to technique.

Even though we know how this ends, we want urgently for our main character to find his home, mum and brother. When the search is on, we do find ourselves with Saroo the whole way. The story is ultimately about a grown man searching for his family and birth home. The search itself is much more interesting, following by how little Saroo got to Tasmania in the first place.

Sue’s (Nicole Kidman) and girlfriend Lucy’s (Rooney Mara) desperation to understand him and what he is going through isn’t played out as much as it should have. It’s all a little underplayed and underwhelming, especially from the mother’s perspective. We understand that Saroo wanted to shelter Sue from knowing he was searching for his home, so that she didn’t feel as though she wasn’t good enough. The idea was there, but very little focus was given to her. I wish I knew more about her feeling of neglect as her son remained isolated and quiet. It’s obvious that these underdeveloped characters were only included to add a little more depth into the person Saroo was. It was a missing element.

The final scene of Saroo walking through his village and potentially finding his mother and his old home is emotionally charged. It’s the big impact we longed for in this film; a tearjerker indeed. You’re with him the entire way and are as eager as Petal plays it out. As he walks through the field of trees and then through small alley ways, with him we wonder, will she be there? What if she’s not there?

A surprising realisation about his name and how important it actually is to the film is a wonderful welcoming fact, right at the conclusion of the film. One to find out when watched instead of being spoiled. It will, with the film itself, melt your heart. Also, I thoroughly enjoyed Sia’s suitable track Never Give Up for this film. It’s inspirational.

Overall, Lion is graciously charming, and a welcome delight. Despite a slow start, it sure gets a smile on the face at the end and that’s good enough. But, I question whether it was worth making a movie out of this story. A documentary would have sufficed. There is already a book about it. Regardless, I am glad it exists. Stories like this don’t come very often, whether in movie form or a 60 Minute special.

Lion is an Australian treasure and a pleasant bit of work, and it hurts a little that I cannot give it more than 3 out of 5.