Movie Review: The Lobster
Having not seen Greek writer/director Yorgos Lanthimos’ critically lauded 2009 film Dogtooth, I legitimately had no expectations going into his latest film. Upon leaving the theater I was glad I knew nothing, because it only enhanced the strange and hypnotic, fever-dream-like viewing experience that was The Lobster.
The film is set not so far in the future, where everyone without a partner is forced to move into a hotel and find a suitable mate in a relatively short period of time. Should they fail, they are turned into an animal of their choosing. We follow David (Colin Farrell), who is forced to check in after his wife leaves him. First the hotel manager (Olivia Coleman) allows David to choose his animal, the lobster, in case he fails to find a partner. In the hotel he meets a man with a list (John C. Reilly), a heartless woman (Angeliki Papoulia), a woman who frequently gets nosebleeds (Jessica Barden), and the other residents. Soon David learns that hotel residents also must go out into the woods and literally hunt for other people, called loners, who have refused to find mates. One of these loners is a near-sighted woman (Rachel Weisz), who immediately catches David’s eye. The two begin a forbidden love affair that they must keep secret. There is, of course, even more to the story than that, but to reveal even a little bit more would be a disservice to those who’ve yet to see the film.
The Lobster is chock full of “god, I wish I would have thought of that” moments, as well as brilliant technical decisions, such as one of the more memorable non-Wes-Anderson slow motion shots in recent memory. It also has an ensemble cast that seems to completely understand the story Lanthimos is telling, which is (as anyone who has seen the movie will know) surely no easy task. The film also foregoes an original score, in favor of a soundtrack made up of almost grating classical music that pairs quite nicely with the events taking place on the screen. It isn’t music you’ll be humming along to on your drive home from the theater, but it is music you’ll return to the film for.
Narratively, the film works on many levels. It is a black comedy about the absurdity of societal expectations and dating norms. It is a beautiful romantic tale of two people of seemingly warring parties who come together and fall in love. It is a lofty and strangely honest look at humanity at its most primal. Regardless of how one chooses to read The Lobster, it is sure to be a memorable experience, even for those who may find it pretentious or too weird for its own good (the sole criticisms I’ve heard of the film).
The Lobster is like a dream you’re jealous of yourself for having. It is like a living, breathing Salvador Dali painting that, despite being so bizarre, also manages to be a genuinely beautiful love story. It is rare that a story so original is this perfectly realized, but with an outstanding cast and Lanthimos’ gift for story-telling The Lobster manages to do just that.
Rocco Tenaglia
