We Need To Talk About Kevin is a film I knew nothing about until the word of mouth started to filter through. This has surprised me as I had also not heard of the novel that the film is based on, which it turns out is rather well known and won the author, Lionel Shriver, the 2005 Orange Prize for female authors of any nationality writing in English.
The film - and the novel from which it is based - is about a writer and mother, Eva (Tilda Swinton), coming to grips with a heinous crime committed by her teenage son, Kevin (Ezra Miller). The film also details Kevin's upbringing and what Eva had to endure from her son on a day to day basis, from being a baby, through his toddler years and up to the present day.
We Need To Talk About Kevin is one of the toughest films I've yet had to review. And one which I discussed at length with the people I saw it with. The sign of a good film is how much it stays with you long after the credits have rolled. And this film definitely achieved that.
We were all in agreement that the performances - especially by the three child actors who played Kevin at varying stages - were exemplary. And it has to be said that the casting of the three actors who played Kevin was flawless. You never felt like you were watching three different actors, you just felt like you were watching Kevin grow up. And the perfomances, from all three Kevins (Ezra Miller, Jasper Newell and Rock Duer) were chilling. To think these perfomances came from such young actors just astounds me.
The other thing we were in agreement on was how the film evoked all manor of emotions from us throughout the viewing. Anger, sadness, fear, sympathy, hate, compassion, you name it and we went through it just as the characters did.
The film also stands out because of the angle it takes. I imagine this is thanks to the novel (although I haven't read it myself), as most films with a subject matter of a high school massacre tend to show the story from the point of view of the killer or the victim. This is the first film of this kind that I have heard of which is shown from the mother's point of view. It's a fresh take on what could have been a film seen before and made for interesting viewing.
The reason a film like this is difficult to review is that the end result is not enjoyable, or fun. It's a hard movie to sit through and one which I'm not sure I would want to see again (not in a hurry anyway), but that's not to say that it isn't good or that I'm not glad I saw it, because it is good and I am glad I saw it.
It won't be everyone's cup of tea but I would recommend seeing it if you would like to see something more challenging than the below average fare that's littering the cinema these days. And something which will start a debate between you and your friends. 8 out of 10.
Viewing Date - 29th October 2011
UK Release Date - 21st October 2011
Cast Overview:
Ezra Miller ~ Teenage Kevin
Jasper Newell ~ Childhood Kevin
Rock Duer ~ Toddler Kevin
Tilda Swinton~ Eva
John C Reilly ~ Franklin
Ashley Gerasimovich ~ Celia
Director ~ Lynne Ramsay
Writer(s) ~ Lynne Ramsay (Screenplay) and Rory Kinnear (Screenplay). Based on the novel by Lionel Shriver
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