Review: You've Never Seen Anything Like 'Lamb'

Studio A24 is a master at releasng the slow burn, trippy, artsty horror film. From "Midsommar," to "Hereditary," to "It Comes at Night," they are a studio that generates movies people totally love, or can't stop scratching their heads over. Their latest offering, the Swedish horror/drama "Lamb," is no different.

Directed and co-written by Valdimar Johannsson (along with writer Sjon), "Lamb" is a modestly paced, three-character drama focusing on a young couple who own a sheep farm and discover a newborn lamb that isn't exactly what they expected.

Maria (Noomi Rapace) and Ingvar (Hilmir Snaer Guonason) are a seemingly happy couple, content to work on their sheep farm day in and day out, caring for the sheep and working in the fields gathering hay. They happily deliver newborn calves and spend the white nights cozying up in a wintry slumber.

But when they deliver a newborn calf that comes out, well, different, they take their astonishment in stride and continue on with their lives.

It's no surprise to say that what is delivered is a half sheep/half human hybrid since this is revealed in the trailers. But how or why it came to be is the mystery. When Ingvar's wayward brother Petur (Bjorn Hlynur Haradlsson) shows up and spots the couple's new domestic bliss, he isn't on board.

Until he is.

But what are his intentions? After a rough start, he finally takes to the hybrid (called Ada), but he clearly has a thing for Maria and doesn't hide this fact, always on the verge of making a move on her. It's the trio's dynamic that provides much of the tension of the film, although there is an underlying dread that fills every frame because of the opening.

Prior to the title credits, we hear a heavy-breathing, growling thing approach the farm and steal away one of the sheep. Months later, that very sheep delivers the hybrid. Who, or what, is behind this?

That seems to be the central mystery of the film, although it's never fully answered. Visually it is, but other than that we don't get much. This is a movie billed as a creepy, unsettling horror film, but at its core it's a drama about a childless couple finding happiness in the disorder of nature. There's nothing truly scary here. Everything is a curiosity, but fans of the genre will be disappointed and confused.

I spent a lot of time trying to figure out the point or theme of the film, and it's hard to say without giving away some specific key moments. I could be way off base, but it felt like a comment on how white folks adopt children from other countries and races thinking they can give them a better life, but then end up not respecting the culture or helping the people the child came from.

All three actors are excellent here, and the CGI is mostly effective. The cinematography and direction all give the film a definitive cold and sparse feel that is both beautiful and maudlin.

There's a lot to appreciate in this tale, but it gets to be a bit too esoteric for mainstream audiences and winds up a minor curiosity for those that like this sort of thing. I was into it for most of the running time; I just felt like I wasn't sure what the message of the film was when it abruptly cut to black.

One thing is for sureY though: you've never seen anything like this.

"Lamb" opens exclusively in theaters October 8th.