The Lobster // Film Review

The Lobster is a absurdist dystopian black comedy directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, starring Colin Farrell as David. Let me just say this now, this film is depressing, confusing but sometimes funny. If you find joy in making others feel uncomfortable then you will enjoy the humor.

It’s very difficult to become immersed in this universe because of how bizarre it is, for this reason, it is hard to judge the acting based on realism. The actors were often robotic on purpose to show this mechanical world they now live in.

Basic Plot

The Lobster is very confusing so forgive me if the details are slightly wrong, on top of this, I don’t think there is any right way of viewing the film. It could be viewed as one giant metaphor or taken very literally as the creative piece of art it is.

It seems that if people are single for long enough then they are sent to a hotel where they have 45 days to find a partner. However, in this world a partner cannot be anyone, you must share a fairly specific common feature with them (Hair color would not count but limp would). Every day, a hunt goes down in the woodland nearby with tranquilizer rifles, if you hit someone then you gain 1 day to find a partner. The rules in this hotel are very strict and the manager does not hesitate to punish those that do not follow them. If a person runs out of time, then they are turned into the creature of their choosing.

At its heart, The Lobster shows the lengths people go to for what they believe is love, but is really just an emotionless partner. It also shows the pressures that are put on people to find someone, and how they are told they are a worse person if they are on their own.

Directors Decisions

The music used was horrible, it was the same loud, irritating noise used to “emphasize” distressing moments. This worked the first time but got old very quickly. There are a few graphic scenes that could have easily had a different camera angle to not be graphic but the decision to keep them in from Yorgos is admirable. It is the one thing that makes this whole universe seem real, the fact that you actually see the pain that they see.

Final Thoughts

This Lobster was depressing and didn’t really have any end moral of the story, it just exists. For that reason, I can only give it a 5/10. In my opinion, the film gradually got worse as it went along.