100 Movie Challenge 2014 - # 111: We Need to Talk About Kevin

Director: Lynn Ramsay

Genre: Thriller/ Drama

Runtime: 112 minutes

Year: 2011

Starring: Tilda Swinton, John C. Reilly, Ezra Miller

Description: Eva (Tilda Swinton) struggles to love her strange child Kevin, despite the increasingly vicious things he says and does as he grows up. But Kevin (Ezra Miller) is just getting started, and his final act will be beyond anything anyone imagined.

Review: Could she have prevented is? Does she feel guilty? Could she have seen it coming? These are the questions Eva Katchadourian asks herself. Her son Kevin was a troubled child. When he gets older, his behavior becomes unmanageable, manipulative and obstinate. At age sixteen he kills nine classmates and the families despise Eva ever since that event.

“We Need to Talk About Kevin” is based on a novel written by Lionel Shriver. It shows the battle Eva is fighting with her own demons, but also how she’s trying to deal with society. It’s hard to translate the story to film, because the book is told through letters from Evan to her husband Franklin. Director Lynn Ramsay uses flashbacks and the story isn’t told chronologically. She mixes the events and trusts on the intelligence of the audience to put the pieces of the puzzle together. You feel her fear, sorrow and tension, Eva is a wreck. From the moment she finds out she is pregnant, she is filled with doubts. There are plenty of moments where we can see how she is struggling as a mother and that Eva doesn’t always make the right decisions. As Kevin grows older, Eva even feels fear of her own son.

Teenager Kevin is played by Ezra Miller, and very convincing may I say. He is also very scary and manages to keep up with veteran Tilda Swinton. Swinton however is the star of the film. It doesn’t take long before she wins over your sympathy. But the further you get dragged into the family history, you start doubting her innocence.

The movie is pretty heavy and disturbing. Ramsay’s approach is brave and could seem a bit pretentious. “We Need to Talk About Kevin” gets its power not just from its complexity, but also from the great performances by Miller and Swinton. It’s a beautiful movie that gets under your skin. Fascinating and disturbing all together.

Rating: 4/ 5