The Lobster

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What It's About:

After his wife leaves him, David enters The Hotel in order to find a new mate. It is here that he must do three things - choose an animal, choose a compatible mate, and hunt down single people to bring them to The Hotel. If within forty-five days David does not find, and fall in love with, a suitable partner, he will converted into his chosen animal and sent into the wilderness to try and find love again. As the days tick by, David must decide the lesser of the evils - becoming a lobster, or pretending to fall in love. Or is there another option?

Why You'll Love It:

• If you like quirky movies with a bleak concept and dark twists, this is right up your alley.
• A bit science fiction and a bit modern day, it feels similar to movies such as "Never Let Me Go" (Keira Knightley, Carey Mulligan) and "Her" (Joaquin Phoenix, Scarlett Johansson).
• It's very original, and the concept is unlikely one that you've encountered before. Even though the movie is at a bit of a slower pace, you never know what is going to happen next. You will be taken aback up until the credits.
• The cast is studded with great actors (Colin Farrell, Ben Whishaw, Rachel Weisz, Léa Seydoux, John C. Reilly, etc.) who do quite well with this unusual script.

Why You Might Want To Skip It:

• This movie is not the comedy that it is depicted as in some of the trailers. It is R rated for disturbing content, not language.
• This movie opens up in one of the weirdest ways possible. You might be tempted to turn it off after the first few minutes. If the beginning really bothers you, you probably won't get into the rest of the movie.
• It has an unusual concept that you just have to accept and roll with in order to get into the movie. If you don't like movies that are built around a strange premise, this likely won't appeal to you.
• There is a narrator voice that is not the main character which explains thoughts and details. It is rather expressionless and you have no idea who it is until halfway through the movie.
• Some of the content is quite disturbing and occasionally graphic. There are some sexual scenes, which are not particularly explicit, but are more uncomfortable in nature.

Final Thoughts

Personally, I found this movie to be quite misleading in the way it was depicted. I expected a quirky look at human relationships and identity, and instead found a movie that happened to be both disturbing and dull at the same time. I originally hoped that it would get better, and assumed it just had a rough start, but in the end I only finished the film simply to write this review. Scenes that would have had a strong impact on their own were made graphic in a way that felt like they were done simply for shock value rather than to enhance the storyline. The movie clocks in just shy of two hours, but it felt more like three. The idea was really interesting overall, and I think it would have made a great short story, but I feel like a film was not the right media to portray this at all.