THE LOBSTER (2015)

Summary:

In a dystopian near-future, single people are taken to a luxurious hotel where they are given 45 days to find a romantic partner. Failure to do so results in them being transformed into an animal of their choosing and released into the wilderness. David, recently divorced, arrives at the hotel and opts to become a lobster if he cannot find a suitable mate, beginning a desperate and often absurd quest for companionship under immense societal pressure.

The film satirizes contemporary societal norms surrounding relationships, exploring the arbitrary and often cruel expectations placed upon individuals to couple up. It starkly contrasts the forced conformity of the hotel with the equally rigid, anti-romantic rules of a rebel group known as the Loners, ultimately questioning the very nature of love, connection, and individual freedom in a world obsessed with categorization.

Keywords: The Lobster, 2015, Colin Farrell, Rachel Weisz, Yorgos Lanthimos, Absurdist, Black Comedy, Dystopian Romance, Drama.

Plot:

The film opens with a woman shooting a donkey, setting an immediate tone of unsettling absurdity. We are then introduced to David, a recently divorced man, as he is brought to a luxurious, yet sterile, hotel. The Hotel Manager explains the rules: single individuals have 45 days to find a compatible partner. If they fail, they will be transformed into an animal of their choosing. David, whose wife left him for another man, chooses to become a lobster, citing their long lifespan, aristocratic blue blood, and continued fertility throughout life. His brother, who previously failed to find a partner, was turned into a dog and now lives with David at the hotel.

Life at the hotel is meticulously structured around the pursuit of a partner. Guests attend lectures highlighting the benefits of being in a couple and the myriad dangers and inconveniences of being single. They are subjected to bizarre theatrical demonstrations, such as a single woman choking to death with no one to perform the Heimlich maneuver, or a couple easily assisting each other. Guests are encouraged to find a partner based on a shared defining characteristic, no matter how superficial. For instance, David observes a "Limping Man" who tries to connect with a "Nosebleed Woman" and a "Lisping Man" who attempts to court a woman with a similar speech impediment. Daily activities include hunting "Loners" – single individuals who have escaped the hotel and live in the surrounding woods – with tranquilizer guns. Each captured Loner grants the hunter an extra day at the hotel to find a partner.

David makes several attempts to find a partner. He initially tries to feign a lisp to connect with the Lisping Man's chosen partner, but this attempt is quickly exposed by the Hotel Manager, who punishes him by having his hand toasted in a toaster. Later, he attempts to court a "Biscuit Woman" who constantly eats biscuits, but he finds their interactions dull and unfulfilling. His desperation grows as his deadline approaches. He observes the Lisping Man successfully find a partner by feigning a constant nosebleed, mimicking his chosen partner's defining characteristic. This inspires David to adopt a more extreme strategy.

He decides to feign a lack of emotion and empathy to attract the "Heartless Woman," a cold and cruel individual who openly states she doesn't care about others. To prove his supposed heartlessness, David is compelled to perform increasingly callous acts. He lies to the Hotel Manager about the Lisping Man's feigned nosebleeds, causing the Lisping Man to be transformed into an animal. In a particularly disturbing act, he pretends to kill his own brother (the dog) by kicking him off a cliff, though he secretly tranquilizes him beforehand. The Heartless Woman is impressed by his apparent cruelty, and they begin a relationship based on this shared "characteristic." However, David's deception is exposed when the Heartless Woman discovers his brother, the dog, alive and well. Enraged, she drags David to the Hotel Manager, intending for him to be transformed. David, anticipating this, tranquilizes the Hotel Manager and escapes, but not before helping the Maid and the Limping Man, who were having a secret affair, escape as well.

David joins the Loners in the woods, a militant group led by the formidable and equally rigid "Loner Leader." The Loners live by a strict code of absolute solitude and anti-romanticism. Any form of flirting, romantic interaction, or even dancing with a partner is severely punished. The Loners engage in various solitary activities, including listening to electronic music on headphones and attending silent discos. They raid the hotel for supplies and also hunt hotel guests who venture into the woods. David quickly adapts to their rules, though he finds their extreme anti-coupling stance just as oppressive as the hotel's forced coupling.

To his surprise, David discovers the "Short Sighted Woman" among the Loners. He had met her briefly at the hotel, where she had feigned short-sightedness to avoid being paired with someone based on an arbitrary characteristic. They begin a secret, clandestine romance, communicating through a complex system of hand signals and hidden messages. Their shared short-sightedness becomes a genuine bond, a natural connection rather than a manufactured one. They risk severe punishment for their forbidden love, stealing away for moments of physical intimacy and emotional connection. The Loner Leader, ever vigilant, suspects romantic activity among her followers and employs various methods to uncover it, including placing a disguised parent among them to spy on their interactions. She also forces Loners to dig their own graves as a reminder of their mortality and the seriousness of their rules.

As their love deepens, David and the Short Sighted Woman plan to escape the Loners and flee to the city, where they hope to live together as a couple. They devise a plan to sedate the Loner Leader and steal her boat. However, their plan is thwarted. The Loner Leader, having grown suspicious, takes the Short Sighted Woman to a city clinic, ostensibly for an eye examination to improve her sight. It is a trap. Instead of receiving corrective surgery, the Short Sighted Woman is deliberately and permanently blinded by the Loner Leader, a cruel punishment for her forbidden romance and an act designed to make her "compatible" with David's perceived short-sightedness in the Loner Leader's twisted logic.

Devastated and enraged, David returns to the clinic, overpowers the Loner Leader, and leaves her tied up. He then returns to the Short Sighted Woman, who is now completely blind. The final scene finds David and the Short Sighted Woman in a diner in the city. David, realizing their shared characteristic of short-sightedness has been destroyed by her forced blindness, feels immense pressure to establish a new, shared characteristic. He goes to the bathroom, taking a steak knife, intending to blind himself to match her condition. The Short Sighted Woman sits alone at their table, waiting for him, her face impassive. The film ends ambiguously, leaving the audience to ponder whether David went through with the self-mutilation, whether their love could survive such an act, or if he chose a different path, highlighting the film's central theme of the absurd lengths people go to for connection and conformity.

Cast (Lead Roles):

• Colin Farrell as David
• Rachel Weisz as Short Sighted Woman
• Léa Seydoux as Loner Leader
• Ben Whishaw as Lisping Man
• John C. Reilly as Limping Man
• Ariane Labed as The Maid
• Angeliki Papoulia as Heartless Woman
• Olivia Colman as Hotel Manager

Crew:

• Director: Yorgos Lanthimos
• Writers: Yorgos Lanthimos, Efthimis Filippou
• Producers: Ed Guiney, Lee Magiday, Ceci Dempsey, Yorgos Lanthimos
• Cinematography: Thimios Bakatakis
• Editor: Yorgos Mavropsaridis
• Music Selection: Various Classical Composers

Release Info:

• Original Release Date: May 15, 2015 (Cannes Film Festival)
• Language: English
• Genre: Absurdist, Black Comedy, Dystopian Romance, Drama
• Running Time: 119 minutes
• Accolades: Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay; Cannes Film Festival Jury Prize