In Mark G. Lakatos’ Meat Locker, an elegant dinner date unfolds for an expecting couple—Man (Dániel Illés) and Woman (Dániel Illés)—as they sit down to eat the large whole pig in front of them. As they pick at it, they debate the line between necessity and cruelty, especially when it comes to how humans use animals for food and experimentation. The conversation stays sharp and tense, with the Woman pushing back on the idea that living beings exist to be exploited, while the Man argues from a colder, human-survival stance.
Mid-meal, the night kicks into emergency mode when the Woman suddenly goes into labor. She’s rushed away for medical help while her partner is left behind. The Woman is taken into an environment that feels off—grimy, uncontrolled, and not entirely aboveboard—as if she’s been delivered to a place operating outside any rules she would recognize. Inside this clandestine facility, the staff conducts experiments using non-traditional birthing methods and medication. Now, who is serving whom?
“…they debate the line between necessity and cruelty…”
I don’t care what country it’s from; silly humor is universally beloved by anyone who still has a sense of humor. Meat Locker pays homage to classic grindhouse cinema. Writer/director Mark G. Lakatos takes a simple debate about animal cruelty and uses it as a doorway into a low-budget body horror bloodbath. It all lands on an ending that pays homage to an American television classic.
There’s not much more to say: simple, to the point, and oozing with blood and organs, Meat Locker is a film worthy of your late-night horror track.
"…who is serving whom?"
