Liked by the critics

Rating: 9/10 (8 January 2019)

I understand why a lot of people had problems with this film, and why, for the most part, the critics did not. Personally, I loved it. As a film student, I'm used to putting my 'critic-head' on, but I get that 'The Lobster's bizarreness and unfamiliarity might make some viewers lose interest. I won't lie, its quite a rough watch.
One thing I do wish to comment on is the ending, so if you haven't seen this film yet, stop reading now. So at the end, we are left with a blind Rachel Weisz sitting alone in a cafe, and a short-sighted Colin Farrell with a knife to his face in the next room, ready to blind himself (we assume this is the plan he describes to Weisz in their secret code). The screen cuts to black and we are given the cliffhanger to end all cliffhangers. Farrell himself said there were three possible outcomes:
1. David blinds himself and the two live on as a couple.
2. David runs away, leaving a handicapped Rachel Weisz abandoned.
3. David pretends he has blinded himself for the rest of the couple's lives, but in reality, keeps his sight.
When watching, I originally assumed he would pick the last option, and we would see him saunter back to his seat, maybe knocking over a glass on the way to make it seem more believable. But as soon as the screen went black, I changed my mind. My instant thought was that the jarring cut was representative of the moment David stabbed himself in the eye, and the film ends here as there is nothing left to see. Whatever the ending is supposed to be, I liked it.
Although we know that this is where it ends, earlier in the film, I assumed there would be a different ending. When he uses code to tell Weisz his plan, I assumed he was planning to return to the hotel to transform into a guide dog for her. This is for a few reasons. Firstly, the leader of the single people told her to find herself a guide dog. Also, David's brother was a dog, showing the people are possibly still self-aware after turning into animals. At the start of the film, the hotel manager (Olivia Colman) praises David's choice of a lobster because most people think of 'dog' which is apparently a bad choice?? This is the main reason why I thought he would transform, as it would suggest he had overcome the selfishness of this new regime, and made a decision purely based on love. His actual decision (to blind himself) was only made to fit into the idea that you must have something in common with your partner (short-sightedness, nose bleeds etc.), giving the film a very disturbing and unsettling ending to force you into contemplating modern relationship expectations.
These are just some thoughts I had while watching. Let me know what you think. :)