LION

LION:  When a five year old Indian boy named Saroo is lost on a train and ends up miles from home and family, he must learn to survive.  And that is the plot of this tear-inducing film about his journey and ultimate adoption by an Australian couple (Nichol Kidman and David Wenham).  As the years pass, the adult Saroo (Dev Patel) falls in love (Rooney Mara) but begins to long to find out about his past and his real mother.  This film based on a true story grips you from the very beginning. The young Saroo (non-English speaking actor) Sunny Pawar will melt your heart.  And Dev Patel ("Slumdog Millionaire" and the "Exotic Marigold Hotel" franchise) gives his best performance to date.  Ms. Kidman in a lesser role shines, as usual, with great understanding of her character.  But this film belongs to the author (the real Saroo) who has brought life to a world most of us have never seen that is both sad and mesmerizing.  And there is a wonderful coda, seeing the real people that the film is based upon and learning the reason is it called "Lion"  It's on my ten-best list.est list.