‘MEATS’
– A Short Film Directed By Ashley Williams.
‘Meats’ is an eleven-minute short film
that is about when ‘A pregnant vegan wrestles with her newfound craving of
meat’ (s.d). At the beginning
of the short, we are introduced to the pregnant protagonist who ends up face to
face with a butcher, surrounded by different types of meat, such as jars of
pate. At the outset, we are unaware about who this character is, apart from
that she is heavily emotional about the experience of buying meat. Instantly, as
spectators it is clear to tell she is battling a moral dilemma around eating meat
as she is that ‘obnoxious’ vegan. Personally, this topic has always been a controversy
especially as ‘The conflict of harming an animal for the joy of eating meat
causes a moral dilemma, affecting consumers’ reactions to, and choices of,
animal-friendly product,’ (2020), meaning that, as spectators we are
led to question are own choice of dietary requirements.
As the short film develops it is now clear
to see that ‘Lane wrestles with her competing forces of having a body that
was built to feed on the flesh of animals, a brain that tells her it is wrong,
and a creature living inside her that is more important than anything she might
think’ (s.d). Arguably, this is shown by when Lane unleashes her confession
about the craving and eating meat on thanksgiving to the butcher, Chris, who
politely nods in acceptance with a smirk. This can show the comedy that Williams
is trying to incorporate as they are two opposites (opposing forces) who have unexpectedly
come together in a time of need. Moreover, this can lead to the understanding
that the conflict she is facing is internal, due to her giving the impression
of guilt towards eating animals and even the anxiety about entering parenthood.
The inciting incident could be when
she rips off the bag from the lamb carcass. As spectators, we get a deeper insight
to her character as there is a moment before she takes off the bag, that her face
is almost angry. This anger can be directed to herself, feeling like a disappointment
that she has turned on her vegan lifestyle since ‘ninth grade’, however this
can be juxtaposed to when she has ripped off the bag and immediately goes into
shock mode by quickly stating ‘Oh God’, almost implying that there is a glimmer
of regret. Lane starts to walk to the front of the lamb, taking off her jacket,
and telling Chris about the Ecuador study of meat. Possibly this could be Lane’s
coping mechanism about buying the lamb carcass to eat, yet she is almost entering
a meat paradox: ‘Belief in the value of animal well being and life may be
held at the same time as the belief that one may eat animals, whose well being
was poor’ (2019). This can support why Lane possibly could be in a state of
guilt yet is also viciously excited to eat meat again, especially when Chris is
describing the Lamb’s life and how shooting it may have been a better death
than natural causes, causing Lane to snap back but retreats herself and states ‘I
appreciate that you said arguably.’
Moving more
forward into the story, a montage is shown of Lane and Chris deconstructing the
lamb, making it the climax. Lane has gotten what she has wanted, but it can make
the spectator question is it really what she needed? Did she just need someone,
like Chris, to confess her secrets to without being judged to overcome her meat
craving? Nevertheless, it brings us full cycle of the short film questioning if
our diets are sustainable and ethical. When watching this sequence, the
characters turn quite animalistic almost as though they are dehumanized or dissociating
from themselves. It is possible to get into a debate where people argue that ‘Numerous
studies have shown that meat is not ideal for the human body and may actually
be making us sick and killing us.’ (s.d) or that ‘not only did
processing and eating meat come naturally to humans, it’s entirely possible
that without an early diet that included generous amounts of animal protein, we
wouldn’t even have become human’ (2016), therefore, Lane and Chris are just
being like our ancestors by indulging on the lamb meat.
As we
follow on from the climax, the falling action arrives when Lane and Chris are
sat on the table with some beers and the lamb is now bagged up in pieces. They have
a conversation about names, including of her child and it is in this moment
that the spectators can gauge her worry about parenthood where she states her
son is going to be a vegetarian, linking to Williams true meaning behind this
short film: “I wanted to take a look at the ethical dilemmas and the pathos
that happens when raising children, in relationship to food and meat sources.” Lane
and Chris both state they feel sorry for the son and proceed to take a final sip
of their beers.
In this
short film, the resolution is quite vague or arguably non-existent, as the spectators
are shown clips of a heavily pregnant Lane in a field with lambs. This draws
parallels to her struggle at the butchers to the equilibrium and state of
comfort she feels within those clips. The last shot is of the lamb carcass, and
this can potentially show Lane’s grown respect for animals and even the peace
of mind she feels that she has now accepted her craving and devouring of meat. Interestingly
‘In Christianity, the lamb represents Christ as both suffering and
triumphant; it is typically a sacrificial animal, and may also symbolize
gentleness, innocence, and purity. In addition, the lamb symbolizes sweetness,
forgiveness and meekness.’ (s.d) If there was a resolution, it is possible
to argue that it is the forgiveness between Lane and the lamb/sheep, as ‘In
the Book of Genesis God asked Abraham to sacrifice his own son, and on the way
to the altar Abraham said to Isaac, “God will provide himself the lamb for a
burnt offering” (2017) , leading to the fact that she is having a son who
is offering or making her crave the lamb, she is sacrificing her own purity to
her vegan life for a better outcome.
Bibliography:
Meats by Ashley Williams | Sundance Short Film (shortoftheweek.com) (19/10/2021)
Short Film Review: 'Meats' - mxdwn Movies (19/10/21)
Animals | Free Full-Text | The Meat Paradox, Omnivore’s Akrasia, and Animal Ethics | HTML (mdpi.com) (19/10/2021)
Are Humans Supposed to Eat Meat? | PETA (19/10/21)
Sorry Vegans: Here's How Meat-Eating Made Us Human | Time (19/10/21)
Lamb (umich.edu) (19/10/21)
How the lamb became a powerful Christian symbol (aleteia.org) (19/10/21)
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