Fitting the Mold
“The Lost Thing,” a short film about a futuristic, dystopian society addresses the age old relationship between growing up and becoming more monotonous. The creature and his world, despite being ostracized by the ‘normal society,’ is a personification of innocence, individuality, and its benefits. Ultimately, the thing that is lost in this film isn’t the creature itself, but individualism and originality.
The moment the movie began, calm sounds in the background transfer viewers into a gray, dusty, and simple world where everyone looks and acts the same. The people seem to have a never changing daily routine. People are oblivious to the world around them, not able to see or just don’t want to notice something that differs from them. On the beach, when the work day was over, all people packed up and left the beach at the exact same time, not even noticing the boy and the “thing” playing right beside them. Society in the gray futuristic world wants to eliminate oddness and uniqueness from the world.
On the other hand, the creature’s world is vibrant and thriving. The radiant colors, bright lights, and lack of straight lines implies a much more relaxed and enjoyable environment. Despite these creatures being ostracized and regarded by society as ‘lost,’ it appears as if they are enjoying their lives a lot more than the normal world.
Ultimately, juxtaposing the main character and his world with that of the creature exposes the innocence and creativity that comes with youth. The narrator, a teenager who is in the intermediate stage between childhood and adulthood, is about to transition into the grownup world, yet isn’t quite there yet. He, unlike the adults on the beach, acknowledges the creature, and is able to sympathize him. When he takes the creature back to his own world, he notes that he, like the adults in the normal world, no longer pays any attention to the ‘lost’ creatures. The creature itself is a personification of childhood innocence and individuality. It is unlike anything else, but is still able to have fun and enjoy its life, proving that it is unnecessary to fit a specific mold in order to live a good life. Ultimately, “The Lost Thing” makes an overarching point about the desire to fit a particular mold and how, in an attempt to fit into said mold, people lose their personalities and ultimately the thing that makes society unique as a whole.