Unconventional love stories are always welcome in our life view and they don’t come much more out there than Yargos Lanthimos’ The Lobster, which goes some way to dissect and deconstruct conventions associated with relationships and society’s view of them. Hollywood love has had a big impact on the way we view and measure our lives, but here there’s an effort to redress the balance a little with a challenging and satirical concept that’s as funny as it is damning.
Having premiered at Cannes 2015 to critical acclaim, it went on to get a general release in the UK in October 2015, but with such a left-field approach it was never going to be a big draw at the box office. It went on to be released on DVD, Blu-Ray and digital download in February 2016, so if you missed it on the big screen it’s worth a rental in the least, but for anyone looking to peruse the finer detail of its cutting, but ultimately down-to-earth insight it could be a collection addition, especially if you’re a fan of quirky, dark humour.
On the surface of things it’s a pretty silly story, but then The Lobster is far from a surface level film, acting more as a black mirror than a clear window. Essentially, it’s set in a twisted version of society in which the virtue of partnerships is absolute to the point that if you’re not in a relationship then you have to go to a hotel where you have 45 days to find a match lest you be transmogrified into an animal of your choosing.
The latest new arrival to the hotel is David, played with excellent deadpan humour by Colin Farrell (Total Recall (2012)), who’s wife has recently left him for another man. He starts out with the best intentions of finding a partner, coerced on by poorly executed acts of propaganda played out by the hotel staff, along with unfinished stimulation courtesy of the maid service. Despite his apparent indifference to life as his animal choice, the eponymous lobster, things begin to unravel and he turns all Winston Smith and he’s forced to make a run for it to the forest where the other runaway Loners live.
Here he goes on to meet Short Sighted Woman, but with romance banned on pain of death by the Loner Leader, he finds that there are just as many societal constrictions outside as there were in the hotel. That aside, they strike up a relationship in secret, but with the nightly raiding parties from the hotel and the suspicious Loner Leader’s hard-eyed and watchful stare, their attempts to do what they want to do, albeit in a pedestrian sort of way, is always under threat.
The cast is impressive and impeccable, working well with Farrell’s character to build out the surreal reality of the situation with serious intent and a sort of desperate simplicity that results in a lot of darkly comical scenes. Rachel Weisz (The Light Between Oceans) has a winsome purity that’s pierced brilliantly by her nonchalant attitude to sexy time and Léa Seydoux’s (Spectre) hard-edged severity helps to bring out the danger element of The Lobster.
Olivia Coleman (The Night Manager) is her usual brilliant self, adding another unique performance to her growing list, and making for the perfect matronly manager of the hotel. Ashley Jenson (Arthur Christmas) is pretty witty as the try hard depressive Biscuit Woman, Ariane Labed (Assassin’s Creed) is a quiet force as The Maid, and John C. Reilly combines well with Ben Wishaw as David’s comedy duo partners in singleton crime, Lisping Man and Limping Man.
Overall, it’s an understated, dark and quirky film, but undoubtedly another relative triumph for director Yargos Lenthimos. While the pace and interest levels start to flag a little towards the end as the story becomes more pedestrian, there’s still enough to The Lobster to keep you entertained, which is backed up by the social challenge of the concept behind the film.
The Lobster DVD review: 3.8/5
