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The Lobster
Movie

The Lobster

2015 • Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi

Woke Score
2
out of 10

Plot

A love story set in a dystopian near future where single people are arrested and transferred to a creepy hotel. There they are obliged to find a matching mate in 45 days. If they fail, they are transformed into an animal and released into the woods.

Overall Series Review

The Lobster is a surrealist dark comedy that serves as a chilling satire of social engineering and the loss of individual agency. Set in a world where being single is a crime punishable by being turned into an animal, the story follows a man trying to navigate two equally oppressive extremes: a hotel that forces people into couples and a rebel group that forbids any form of romance. The film avoids contemporary political pandering, choosing instead to focus on the absurdity of human desperation and the cruelty of forced conformity. It offers a bleak look at how both society and its counter-cultures can destroy the human spirit through rigid rules and the policing of private emotions.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics2/10

The narrative ignores modern intersectional hierarchies. Characters are defined by their personal eccentricities and physical traits, such as nosebleeds or limpness, rather than their race or skin color. There is no lecturing on privilege or systemic oppression based on immutable characteristics.

Oikophobia2/10

The film critiques totalitarianism and the bureaucratic overreach of a fictional society rather than attacking Western civilization or its history. It portrays the destruction of traditional choice as a nightmare, suggesting a value for personal liberty that aligns with classical Western thought.

Feminism2/10

Men and women are portrayed with equal flaws and vulnerabilities. There are no 'Girl Boss' tropes; female characters are often cold, manipulative, or desperate, just like their male counterparts. The film does not promote career over family, but rather mocks the idea of the state using children as tools for social stability.

LGBTQ+3/10

While the film mentions the existence of same-sex options in its dystopian world, it does so to highlight the state's obsession with categorization. It does not center queer theory or attempt to deconstruct the biological reality of the male-female pair, focusing instead on the tragedy of forced relationships.

Anti-Theism2/10

Religion is largely absent from the narrative. The 'moral' authority in the film is a secular, cold, and materialist state. The film does not vilify faith or use Christian characters as scapegoats for societal problems.