The Lobster · written by Yorgos Lanthimos and Efthimis Filippou · 2015

Heartless Woman tells David she killed Bob; he hides his grief, breaks down in the bathroom, and she announces they are going to the Hotel Manager for punishment.

Scene 55 of 123 · ≈ 1 min on screen · Act two

Five-Act Structure: Climax
Heartless Woman
David

Act oneAct two

Begins 44 min into a 1:28 film

The story so farBefore scene 55

After his wife leaves him, David has 45 days to find a partner at a hotel or become an animal; he escapes, falls for a shortsighted loner, and must decide whether to surrender his sight so they can stay together.

Scenes 1–15
David moves from his broken home into the hotel, where couplehood is imposed as the norm.
Scenes 16–24
He must find a partner before the 45-day limit turns him into an animal.
Scene 25
David loads a tranquilliser gun and joins the hotel’s hunt, entering its violent courtship system.
Just before
Scene 52
Heartless Woman fakes choking on a cherry while David does not react; she stops the act and declares they are a match.
Scene 53
David and Heartless Woman move into a double room and have sex, but she watches his face when he tries to hide pleasure.
Scene 54
David kicks Limping Man’s daughter and explains he is giving her a limp; Heartless Woman suggests he should also give her a nosebleed.
Scene 55
This scene

55INT. DOUBLE ROOM 202 - DAY

David wakes up. Heartless Woman stands over him in a quite a threatening way.

HEARTLESS WOMAN

Good morning.

DAVID

Good morning.

HEARTLESS WOMAN

I killed your brother. I left him

to die very slowly. He may not be

dead yet, even as we speak. I was

kicking him for ages.

She shows him her leg. Her shoe is covered in blood. David tries very hard not to show his true feelings - he’s devastated but pretends that he’s indifferent to what’s happened.

DAVID

It doesn’t matter.

HEARTLESS WOMAN

He whined a little. A strange kind

of bark. Something like this. Woof

ow-woof. It must’ve been from the

pain. You didn’t hear anything?

DAVID

No.

HEARTLESS WOMAN

You really are a deep sleeper.

Would you like some coffee?

DAVID

I’d love some.

David goes to the bathroom.

HEARTLESS WOMAN

Right. I can’t wait to hear the

story you promised to tell me last

night, about that student of yours

at the university and his awful

final project.

DAVID

It’s really a very funny story. His

name was Ryess. R-Y-E-S-S. Ryess.

David splashes water on his face and then finally bursts into tears. Heartless Woman enters the bathroom and slaps him.

DAVID (CONT’D)

These aren’t tears. It’s just

water.

HEARTLESS WOMAN

I knew you were lying. I can’t

understand why you did it when you

know as well as anyone that a