If you have been following my blog posts so far on the films i’ve been focusing on and reviewing, you’d notice a trend of just films that are due out in theatres or are out right now in theatres. I like to focus on those because then people who are interested in them can go see out and see them. But last night, I watched a film that I felt like I needed to talk about. It needed to be discussed based on the weirdness, the strangeness, the story, the acting, the cinematography…it just needed to be discussed alright? and that movie would be the indie flick called The Lobster.
The Lobster is directed and written by Yorgos Lanthimos. Lanthimos is a director I am not familiar with at all, I’ve never heard of him until I checked out this movie online. It was a blind-buy based on really the plot of the film which I’ll get into in a second. Yorgos Lanthimos also directed Dogtooth (2009), Alps (2011) and Kinetta (2005). He has two more films that I hope continue the weirdness, one is called The Favourite (2018) and the other is called The Killing of a Scared Dear (unknown). But I thought he did a fantastic job at directing this movie, the way it was shot was interesting, he has a very unique way of filmmaking. His writing is where I think he really shines however, this film was extremely original, and frankly, I really haven’t seen anything like it, even just in the plot, if you’re like me and read the plot, you’ll be extremely intrigued just based on that.
The Lobster is set in a dystopian future, where single people, according to the laws of The City, are taken to The Hotel, where they are obliged to find a romantic partner in 45 days or are transformed into beasts and sent off into the The Woods. After I read the plot online, I knew I had to watch this. I was super interested in how this film would play out, how the story would be formed around this weird instance of being changed into an animal if you haven’t found a companion. It was just fascinating to me. On top of all that, you would think that people could fake a relationship and then be saved from the transformation, but Lanthimos thought of that, and he issued a set of rules that are involved throughout the movie. One of those rules is that the couple would be monitored for happiness or any problems. It was just a super original idea, really well done, I haven’t seen anything quite like it so far, like Swiss Army Man I saw earlier this year and loved.
Colin Farrell plays David, the main character who ends up at The Hotel. His only companion is his brother, who was turned into a dog because he couldn’t find a companion after the time limit. You’re also able to increase your 45 day time limit, if you join a part of a “hunt” and tranquilize other “loners,” every time you tranquilize someone you add more time. I thought this was a very different role for Colin Farrell, who really chooses really different roles, I think he has broken type casting early and really can do anything he wants, and succeeds very well. The other brilliant actor in The Lobster was Rachel Weisz, whose character is known as simply the Short-Sighted Woman. I thought she did a great job in this movie. She’s also had a track record of making really different films, she’s done many different films of many different genres but still was successful. I didn’t actually notice until I looked at the character names on IMDb while writing this review, that Colin Farrell’s character of David is actually the only character in the film that has a name. Everyone else’s “name” is just simply their characteristic such as “Near Sighted Woman,” “Nosebleed Woman,” “Biscuit Woman.” Its just interesting, and it would be really interesting to watch again, now that I know what the story is exactly about, to look for simple clues with the characters or even the animals that are present in different scenes in the movie.
I thought the cinematography in this film was really breath taking, the outdoor shots especially. The views were breathtaking, even through just seeing it on film. I can only imagine what it would look like in real life.
Of course, theres a couple negatives to the film. Its a little slow in places, the 2 hour length kinda felt a little longer as some scenes dragged on a bit. It isn’t a huge negative, it doesn’t turn me off the film at all, but its definitely a film that you have to be in the mood for. I also found some scenes were still extremely weird, but still always compelling. Lastly, the films plot was a little convoluted, there were a few scenes that I actually said out loud when I watched it with my parents, “Why is this here? will this further the plot any?” and usually it didn’t, but I think it was on purpose to be a more unconventional style of filmmaking.
I definitely do recommend this movie if you’re in the mood for something completely different, completely original and completely new. I promise you that you haven’t seen anything quite like it and it is a film whose plot begs to be experienced.
Overall I give The Lobster a 4/5.
-Andrew
**I think once a week, I’m going to start reviewing one or two films I pick up on blu ray, I pick up at least 1 or 2 a week, so I may start doing some newer releases, but only the films I would recommend for sure.**