The Lobster
(2015)Colin Farrell and Rachel Weisz star in this dystopian romantic comedy from director Yorgos Lanthimos (Dogtooth). Set in a near future with strict rules about finding a partner, single people are taken to The Hotel, where they have 45 days to find a partner - otherwise they are transformed into an animal and sent into the woods. Winner of the Jury Prize, Queer Palm and Palm Dog at Cannes Film Festival 2015. John C. Reilly, Léa Seydoux, Ben Whishaw and Olivia Colman co-star.
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Jury Prize, Queer Palm and Palm Dog at Cannes Film Festival 2015
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Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos
Starring Colin Farrell, Rachel Weisz, Léa Seydoux, Ben Whishaw, John C. Reilly, Olivia Colman, Roger Ashton-Griffiths, Ashley Jensen, Jessica Barden, Michael Smiley
Written by Yorgos Lanthimos, Efthymis Filippou
On Demand, DVD & Blu-Ray
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Flicks Review
BY Steve Newall Flicks Writer
Star-driven satire on coupledom de-glamorises its leads, who operate at a remove from each other and the audience while accepted conventions of romance are disturbed in true dystopian fashion. Colin Farrell, Rachel Weisz et al remain detached from the inherent absurdity in The Lobster as they navigate its world of dog-matically enforced co-dependence (and elsewhere, independence). For the most part eliciting chuckles, with the odd belly laugh thrown in, this offers an ever-watchable examination of social mores that strangely leaves one’s heart untouched, even as it sweeps a broom through modern relationships.
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The Lobster
BY cinemusefilm superstar
If you are still reading this, you will recognise The Lobster as an absurdist dystopian essay. It is a story set in a place referred to as The City where coupledom is compulsory and being single is illegal. If anyone becomes un-coupled they are immediately incarcerated in The Hotel where they have 45 days to re-couple or they will be transformed into an animal of their choice. Most of the unnamed people we meet are referred to by a defining characteristic, except for our protagonist, recently widowed architect David (Colin Farrell). The inmates must participate in dancing to bland music and attend lectures about the evils of being single. They are only allowed to leave the hotel to join hunts in the forest. If they shoot escaped loners they earn extra time before being turned into an animal.
In this rule-bound parallel universe everyone wears the same clothes and everything is hyper-regulated. When rules are broken punishment is severe: one victim has his fingers jammed into a burning toaster at breakfast for everyone to see. The forest world is the opposite to the The City. Escaped loners enjoy cool music and dance, but must stay single and any physical contact is forbidden. As his time runs out in The Hotel, David fears that he will fail to couple and flees to join the loners. As fate would have it, he meets his love amongst them and must sneak back into city life.
What to make of this strange tale? Despite its all-star cast, conventional acting criteria seem irrelevant as performances are understated and almost expressionless. The filming palette in The Hotel is blandly desaturated while that for the forest is richly foreboding, making both feel unwelcome. There are no flashbacks or other cinematic devices that offer insight into why things are the way we see them. We are left then with the classic absurdist challenge: to find meaning in this film you must turn logic on its head.
If you reflect on how much of our lives are focused on preparation for love and marriage, and how much real-world capitalist consumption is obsessed with beauty, sex appeal, and appearances, the absurd inverted metaphors of The Lobster begin to make sense. The City is not that different to romance TV reality shows where contestants hunt for mates based on defining characteristics. The real question is why are loners ostracised and why is there such pressure on finding partners? In the real world, I mean.Hide
BY Red superstar
The joke is stretched probably too far in The Lobster, could've been shorter. But nonetheless a funny and wry comedy, with a great ending.
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The Press Reviews
91%
of critics recommend.
Rotten Tomatoes Score. More reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Like nothing you've seen before. Full Review
Wickedly funny, unexpectedly moving satire of couple-fixated society. Full Review
Enjoyably strange but fails to follow through on its premise. Full Review
A richly rewarding but often very disturbing, even harrowing work. Full Review
This is cinema in quotemarks, tongue-in-cheek storytelling that uses absurdity to hold a mirror to how we live and love. Full Review
Inordinately strange and tiresomely glum, but in spots hideously funny. Full Review
Appreciation for the sheer conceptual confidence of the film gathers momentum once you think back over it. Full Review
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