Lamb movie review: A slight disappointment despite some strong moments

Lamb, directed by Valdimar Jóhannsson, was pegged to be the new “weird horror” from A24. In theaters now, this film is starring Naomi Repace, Hilmir Snær Guðnason, and Björn Hlynur Haraldsson, Lamb tells the story of a couple who find a strange newborn on their farm in the mountains of Iceland.

As you might recognize from the title, or from any of the trailers, the newborn is a half lamb/half human hybrid. Maria (Repace) and Ingvar (Guðnason) decide to take this newborn into their home and raise it as their own. Repace really carries a lot of this film giving a strong and willed performance as the adoptive mother of this child.

Lamb story: How is this story told?

Broken up into 3 chapters, I believe each chapter tells its story in a different tone. Chapter 1 is about birth, and the birth of this creature; who would later be named Ada. The tones of Chapter 1 are more of a family drama.

This couple, who doesn’t have a child of their own, has a chance to raise a child and will love it unconditionally no matter what. Ada’s real mother remains looming around, but her adoptive parents are protective and will not let anything hurt her. This chapter ends on a note of horror that I think could have been expanded on, but then we move to Chapter 2.

Chapter 2 is the most lighthearted of all three chapters. Chapter 2 introduces us to Pétur (Haraldsson), the brother of Ingvar, who seemingly has a romantic history with Maria. This chapter is about life. Pétur recognizes that what they are raising is an animal, and not a human, but that doesn’t phase Maria or Ingvar. Pétur learns to love Ada just as Maria and Ingvar have, and throughout this chapter we get a fun, and at times comedic, look at this family dynamic between the four.

Chapter 3 is when we dive into death. This chapter, finally, gets to be a little more sinister and the horror elements really start to pile on. After so much stagnation, the horrific side of this story has its time to shine.

The atmosphere begins to become more cloudy, and the looming figure over the film. In the first two chapters, you could see a sinister presence within the film. It isn’t until the third chapter that we actually are able to figure out this presence.

When the ending is finally upon us, and we finally see the being that has been such a presence over the film, I couldn’t help but feel disappointed. Not because the ending didn’t work, but because it did work, and it worked really well, and it really showed the promise this film had.

There was a good, potentially great, movie here, there were a couple potentially great movies, but instead of just deciding on one of them, Lamb attempts to put every thought and idea into one singular film.

What works in Lamb?

That being said, there is something still so creative in this story. If you watch it for anything, you can watch it for being something that so few movies are nowadays – original. The meanings have been done for ages, but the ways of going about them are new and exciting.

The film is also gorgeous. Shot entirely in the mountains of Iceland, the scenery of this film and the atmosphere surrounding attempts to create a truly horrifying landscape. The cinematography and the score of this film blend together to make something truly haunting, but the film didn’t have enough pure moments of horror aside from some shocking moments.

The CGI and effects that brought Ada to life were also incredibly strong. Some moments it looked a little animated, but in other moments I was in awe at how they brought this hybrid child to life.

Final thoughts about Lamb

Lamb is truly just a mixed bag. The atmosphere is there, the idea is original, but the film just doesn’t expand on any one thing. It’s not bad, and truly has some good moments, but the inability to expand on those is what cause the film to be a slight disappointment from how great it really could be.

Grade: C+