Lion

CHASE ***
After getting a lot of nods from the Academy Awards, we had to check out this story of a young Indian boy who loses his family and gets adopted by other people.  This is a really interesting story that has a lot going for it.  The first third of the movie is absolutely brilliant.  It's super engaging.  The filmmakers tell a lot of the story without a whole lot of dialogue, which is something I commend them for.  However, as soon as we get to the second act, the momentum of the movie seems to take a dip, and while there are elements that are a moderately interesting, it's not able to match the quality of the first act until it reaches the climax of the movie.  It has really good performances and the story is pretty interesting for the most part.  Overall, "Lion" is a really good film that needs to be seen.

BRYCE ***1/2
Well, I liked it a little more than Chase did.  I thought there was only one element in the second act that made the story drag and it was the relationship between Saroo (Dev Patel) and his girlfriend (Rooney Mara).  I felt the film would've been much stronger if that element was eliminated or minimized.  It distracted from the real heart of the film which was Saroo's relationship with his adopted family and his longing to find his biological family.  There are terrific performances throughout the film (especially from Patel and Nicole Kidman, who plays his adopted mom) which culminates in one of the most powerful finales I've seen in a long time.  "Lion" deserves the recognition it's receiving.  It's one of the very best films of the year.

LANDON ***
LOGAN ***

BANGERANG SCORE: ***