Lamb

Director Valdimar Jóhannsson and star Noomi Rapace at the West Coast Premiere of Lamb at the Mubi Theatre at the Aero by Jacob Alvarez

It’s Better To Given In. Don’t Fight It.

Walking into this movie, I really didn’t know what to expect. Having watched one trailer and not reading up on anything, all I was hearing were the words “dark” and “disturbing.” I was just happy to be back in a small theatre for Beyond Fest! To feel the enthusiasm of the audience is all I want in my theatre experience, and this movie very much did the trick.

With a short intro by the fine people behind Beyond Fest (dressed in lamb costumes) and a quick hello from director Valdimar Jóhannsson and star Noomi Rapace, the room went dark and film began. SPOILERS. The film showcased a lot of beautiful scenery such as vast farmland with a modest home centered in it along an Icelandic mountain range. It does a great job of isolating the viewer along with the characters, being a couple who are sheep farmers. Over the course of a few days, a couple of their sheep give birth with one in particular giving birth to a sheep/human hybrid. Jóhannsson builds this up by offering shots of just the lamb head and it isn’t until mid-film that we get a full frame of the lamb face being held up by a baby body. She is called Ada and as the film progresses, we learn that this couple takes her in and cares for her rather than feeling strange about the situation. When the brother of the husband comes to stay with the family, he is clearly thrown off about Ada, but the couple ensures him that she is a miracle, not an animal.

The tone is dark in nature which adds to the complexity of the family dynamic coming to terms with Ada. The beginning of the movie you are wondering how this hybrid came to be, but as you watch, you are seeing a family enjoying this newly found joy and you start to worry less about why. The final chapter is where it really takes a turn. Mother Nature is the theme throughout, and Rapace’s character chose to keep Ada and murder (not put down) the sheep that actually birthed her. This haunts Rapace to the point that Ada’s real father comes (a hybrid like her) and takes out Rapace’s husband and leaves with Ada. Rapace can do nothing but accept what has happened. She loses her husband and it is learned that they lost their own daughter, also named Ada which made this lamb feel connected to them.

Rapace shared some thoughts on her performance afterwords, stating that her character was living this facade of having her family complete, and in the end, she couldn’t have it. She was brought back to reality with the loss of her husband and the ending shot demonstrates how she is just powerless in this way and must just accept her fate. She said she was trying to defy Mother Nature, but in the end, Mother Nature always wins. It’s better to give in. Don’t fight it.

Being inspired by Icelandic folklore but having a creature concept not seen in that culture, this film is definitely unsettling in the way that it blends human drama with an element that’s not really supernatural but brings a similar vibe. It’s a psychological ordeal but you care a lot more about the human characters and their issues such as loss, farm-life, and family dynamics. it was great and I wouldn’t mind seeing it again, however, this is not for everyone and I am sure this is a one time view for many who attended.