Rather, Ramsay's film is an extended treatment of the optics of grief and guilt. His son is who Franklin says he is, and anything else is just invisible. Kevins clothes are also an avenue to memories for Eva, and in the end, Eva irons and stacks up Kevins clothes in a drawer in the hope that her son will return from prison. When Eva goes to meet Kevin in the detention center, she asks him the same question. Starring: Tilda Swinton,John C. Reilly,Ezra Miller Watch all you want. Also read:Author Lionel Shriver on her early writing, politics, essential reading list and persevering out of 'sheer spite'. Ramsay improves on Shriver's portrait of a mother with an honesty that leaves us thinking about Eva long after the credits roll. This review of the film was originally published on December 22, 2011. Written by Julia Wolf. The wife and mother, Eva (Tilda Swinton), has been so overwhelmed by despair that her life exists in her mind all at the same time. Starring: Tilda Swinton, Ezra Miller, John C. Reilly. For those of us in the northern hemisphere, we have officially entered the dead of winter that time after Christmas and New Years when, Earlier this year my home parish welcomed a new associate pastor. Kevin was not necessarily abused or tortured as a child, many kids endure much worse and did not end up as mass killers. "We Need to Talk About Kevin" leans into that debate, showcasing a resentful mother, a passive father, and a child with an untreated mental illness. Eva is entirely bound by the expectations of a culture that fetishizes the mommy and insists upon a particular quality and dynamic in order for relationships to be healthy and normative. Besides their physical likeness, Eva and Kevin also share a certain coldness, which plays into Eva's self-hatred. From the beginning, Eva is detached from motherhood. Kevin does not play ball, and he becomes increasingly manipulative. Kevin replies that he thought he knew why but now hes not sure anymore. But Eva is incapable of showing him the love that he deserves, even after trying her best. We see this throughout Kevin's early developmental journey. Keep your comments focused on the film. Not here. Terms Of Service | It is a world where any attempts to offer a message of mercy, conversion and redemption must be done deftly and authentically, because at the end of the day, sometimes the community won't rally around you and more often than not Mr. Potter carries the day. "We Need to Talk About Kevin" is a movie adaptation of Lionel Shriver's novel with the same title. At one point, she mockingly coos at him, "Mommy was happy before little Kevin came along. That's the underlying message of We Need to Talk about Kevin, Lynne Ramsey's remarkable allegory on the transcendent nature of relationships. Rated the #74 best film of 2011, and #5264 in the greatest all-time movies (according to RYM users). The novel by Lionel Shriver relates the story through a series of letters Eva writes to her husband Franklin. Alienated from friends and community, all she has left is her son. She's like a fish out of water. I'd be happy to see what they come up with, but, they have more of the understanding of the wildness of the world that they're building. The film moves without any pattern between past, present and who knows when. Growing up with a cold mother does not turn one into mass murdered either. Genres: Psychological Drama, Family Drama. It asks, "who is to blame when something horrific happens?". It's so convincing that it has the opposite effect on us, convincing us of her innocence and her son's innate evil - how could someone so pitiful, so sorrowful, so emotionally sensitive be responsible for the development of a totally psychopathic mind? Swinton said as much in an interview, Its about her fears and the horror of what she knows about herselfusing him as a kind of projection of her own self-loathing. Directed by Lynne Ramsay, "We Need to Talk About Kevin" is fragments of time, jagged and confusing, lurching around inside her mind. That's a deeply human tale, and it calls to us, and I think that's why I see takes on the movie saying that it even encourages the viewer to think evil is in our nature and is immutable. We learn that Kevin was a difficult, colicky baby, who grew up to be a difficult, problematic child who seemingly refuses to toilet train, despite a rather surprising vocabulary. There seems to be almost no form of abuse she is not willing to take as belonging to her for what has happened. Evas struggle to connect with Kevin only deepens with age. The truth to motherhood is a harsh one. Eva's point of view is obviously not reliable, and her segments are intended to portray that she's entered a cycle of deep self-abuse over having raised a psychopath. SPOILER. Kevin's insidious nature is best exemplified in a scene staged in the aftermath of Celia losing her eye. Most of the film in present time shows the ritual abuse and humiliation the bereft Eva suffers from the community that she continues to live in after Kevin's deeds. If she had her way, she would put her life on rewind and start all over again maybe even as somebody else, since she's not very fond of herself. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. So we must find our Grace in the minuscule, and it is in these brief moments of consolation, these shafts of light under the door, that Kevin provides the deft sucker punch to the, by now, standard narrative benchmarks of despair, emptiness and futility which permeate contemporary film. ROHAN: Was there anything major cut that you remember shooting? The real horror in the movie is society's dogmatic conception of motherhood, and the pressure to live up to it. But by the time he is a seven year-old, he starts to act in ways that seem in excess of whatever defects in mother love he may be getting. Top Films of the 2010s as voted for by RYM (2021/Final edition), NEW TOURNAMENT: [PPE] RYM Picks the Most Outstanding Acting Performances in Cinematic History, Top Films of the 2010s as voted for by RYM (2020 edition), Top Films of the 2010s as voted for by RYM (2019 edition), Dark/Sinister films that have upbeat music during the credits, Top Films of the 2010s as voted for by RYM (2018 edition), RYM's Preferred Female Performances: 2011, Top Films of the 2010s as voted for by RYM (2017 edition), United Kingdom, United States, 35mm, Color, Dolby Stereo, Literary Adaptation, Artificial Eye, Code Red, Oscilloscope Pictures. The film moves without any pattern between past, present and who knows when. There are two really great examples of this: the first is the bow. The desolate inner worlds of Ramsay's protagonists come alive through a sensory perspective. We see Kevin as a troubled kid who may need greater care. He answers, I used to think I knew why, and now Im not so sure. This small act of hesitant humility is followed by Kevins embrace of his mother which can only be likened to the embrace received by that infamous scriptural progeny upon his arrival home. He can't understand her, but don't you suppose he understands her dislike? Finally. May 12, 2021 12:33:39 IST. Based on Lionel Shriver's 2003 bestseller of the same name, Lynne Ramsay's 2011 film explores a broken family, mental illness, and the aftermath of a tragedy. Going on, she again asks the question of responsibility and says, "I don't know. It's no secret that We Need to Talk about Kevin is intended to challenge your assumptions about the people we think of as "evil." We see it perfectly after he blinds Celia - Eva attempts to confront him about what he's done, and he sits chewing a water chestnut to impress the image of plucking out an eye on Eva, just to watch the horror on her face. Did they create a monster, or was he born that way? So, me, I'm surrounded by comedy, and I have to bring the reality of what's going on. Prosecutors downgrade charges in Alec Baldwin shooting case, Die Hard star Bruce Willis has frontotemporal dementia, condition worsens, As We Need to Talk about Kevin turns 10, a look at what made it such a haunting meditation on motherhood. We also did a lot of blue screen work before, which really helps with the imagination. The red paint of vandals stains her car and the front of her house. For removal of copyrighted images, trademarks, or other issues, Contact Us. She makes one feel her strung to the breaking point tension in scene after scene. Directed by: Lynne Ramsay. There are several red flags in the movie that indicates Kevins volatile dispositions, but an accurate diagnosis is not possible. Author Lionel Shriver on her early writing, politics, essential reading list and persevering out of 'sheer spite'. Her husband Franklin (John C. Reilly) dismisses her concerns and uproots their bustling city life for a quiet home in the suburbs. The movie we see is her collecting every horrible interaction she ever had with her son and putting it under the umbrella of "things I did," because the only way she can cope with the insanity of what her son did is by fitting it to a narrative where she's responsible. Shortly after the incident with Celia, Kevin and his parents have a confrontation at the dining table. In a sonic sleight-of-hand, the joyful cheers alchemise into the sorrowful cries of the families and friends of Kevin's victims. Menu. It is a world where any attempts to offer a message of mercy, conversion and redemption must be done deftly and authentically, because at the end of the day, sometimes the community wont rally around you and more often than not Mr. Potter carries the day. The cast ensemble, with Tilda Swinton, John C. Reilly, and Ezra Miller in a menacing role, cannot be praised enough. Eva often looks like she's in a state of shock. Starring Tilda Swinton, John C. Reilly February 24, 2023 at 12:05 PM ET. You've got Braveheart, which it kind of has a similar feeling to. Neither parent punishes him or seeks outside help, leaving him to his own devices. It is an epistolary novel, comprising the letters that Eva Khatchadourian writes to her husband Franklin in the aftermath of their son's crime. He completely denies the reality of Kevin's personality and identity, and thus any agency over their relationship. Also, stripes are a striking feature that connects Kevins clothing sense from childhood to adolescence. We gather she didn't want to get pregnant, isn't sure why she's married, is a mother who tries to mask hostility with superficial kindness. The ending of the film leaves Eva's fate up in the air. Kevin was never the apple of his mothers eye, which he realized from early childhood. Yet it is in those infrequent instances of relief, conversion and mercy that the film finds its identity and direction. Theres a possibility that maybe before all this happened that there was that naivete to Jentorra, but yeah, I don't know that she was re-inspired by Cassies energy, I guess, as much as like, Hey, this is the real world and you need to kind of catch up to where we are.. Left to pick up the pieces is his mother, Eva (Tilda Swinton). Stripping the screenplay off words, the disturbance arises from a seamless amalgamation of image and sound. For full Oscars coverage and commentary by its reviewer, Fr. For more information, please see our It was definitely a challenge to play the straight character to these guys, but it was also kind of like, okay, this is my role. describes the "nature vs. nurture" debate. The murder spree began with his father and sister suffering the same fate earlier that day. We cling to guidelines like the length of Tilda Swinton's hair to figure out where we are. Or to put it differently, Ramsay more or less stays true to the novel's somewhat callow and, at times, hysterical approach to the rich questions of maternal doubt. Stripping the screenplay off words, the disturbance arises from a seamless amalgamation of image and sound. this is the best pro-antinatalism PSA out there . Eva was never allergic to being a mother of course. When Eva gets pregnant for the second time, Kevin feels that he has become estranged from the family and grows jealous. KATY: Yeah, I mean, a lot of it would be drawn from movies, essentially. Three days before turning 16, Kevin unleashes chaos in his school. The light outside disappears. Directed by Lynne Ramsey and our He's aware of her feelings toward him, and throughout the film, points them out. In a fit of rage at Kevin's soiling his diapers (at 7), Eva throws him down and breaks his arm. But Kevin is just getting started, and his final act will be be Kevin's mother struggles to love her strange child, despite the increasingly dangerous things he says and does as he grows up. When he is interviewed on TV, a reflection of Eva's face on the screen is overlaid on his. Art and Divine Beauty: An Antidote to the Winter Blues, The Prodigal Son: How to Overcome the 3 Lies We Tell Ourselves. Does Eva's open contempt for Kevin drive him to darkness? You know, it's all fun and games until you really understand that every single decision that you make impacts everybody. Starting with Eva - she is intentionally painting herself in the worst possible light, which ironically covers up the actual extent of her emotional abuse, since she is flagellating herself only for the worst moments of her parenthood - the lowlights - and not looking at the whole picture. Mimicking the cyclical nature of trauma, the shot repeats in the climax, where Eva discovers the slain bodies of her husband and daughter. Index | The name itself Eva is not chosen by chance, echoing the fatally disobedient woman of the Bible, whose act determined the loss of the Garden of Eden. Though Ramsay does away with Eva as a first-person narrator in the film, she still retains Eva's point-of-view throughout. The past and present intertwine as Eva recalls Kevins formative years from childhood to adolescence, hoping for clues on what went wrong. She is the wrong person in the wrong life with the wrong child. Is Kevin a sociopath or a psychopath, then? Jake Martin, SJ, is a Jesuit priest, comedian and writer. And I really am curious as to how she's handling a society of ultra-intelligent ants that basically flooded her world. He doesn't have the emotional capacity to have a disturbed son, and so has decided that he doesn't and that's the end of it. The most cynical, nihilistic, misanthropic films ever made. Children seldom get that attention, though. Then she goes home. Shriver welcomes the sharply divided interpretations, writing in the Harper Perennial P.S. In We Need to Talk about Kevin, Eva is literally on trial for parental negligence. Stripes provide Kevins character a continuity while shedding light upon his individuality. The camera zooms in, but the scene cuts just before we can get a peek on what's on the other side of it. He completely denies the reality of Kevin's personality and identity, and thus any agency over their relationship. Jake Martin, visit our special Oscars season blog, Movie Minister.. Eva rushes to the school to see Kevin getting arrested. ", As with any book-to-film adaptation, some of the nuances were lost in translation. 15.7M subscribers We Need To Talk About Kevin #1 Clip - Tilda Swinton Movie (2011) HD Subscribe to TRAILERS: http://bit.ly/sxaw6h The mother of a teenage boy who went on a high-school killing. Their tumultuous relationship goes from annoyance over his smashing jammy bread onto the coffee table to feelings of fear after he stuffs the family pet down the garbage disposal. I have the feeling that this film, by entering Eva's mind, sees only what has been battering her down for 16 years. Ironically he becomes a miniature doppelganger of her, all sharp angles and androgynous countenance lying in direct contrast to the lovably rounded and craggy features of his father. KATY: Oh, I'd love to come back. It doesn't gel with what has come before, where Eva seems to accept her son's innate cruelty, and is looking for a way to escape. We see her birthing of him as rather fraught and his incessant crying drives her nearly mad. Annie Graham in Hereditary is conflicted by feelings of love and hate, resentment and remorse, towards her son. He's positive, cheerful, disconnected; he always behaves as nicely as he can, and in doing so, suggests his profound cluelessness. So, I think TV being as fast paced as it is, and as kind of chaotic as it can be, it doesn't always set you up for being able to walk into a film where you've had plenty of time to look into everything and prepare. In any other movie, that would be child abuse. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism. Or did Kevin turned this way because she messed him up from the very birth. She could move away for a fresh start, but she's shown setting up a room for him, complete with his navy blue bedding and Robin Hood book. The real horror in the movie is society's dogmatic conception of motherhood, and the pressure to live up to it. In We Need to Talk about Kevin, Eva is literally on trial for parental negligence. Swinton is collecting a bevy of early plaudits and nominations, as well she should. Is her husband as zoned out as he seems or is that only her perception? We're supposed to understand Kevin through Eva's flashbacks, which are indeed confusing, but not chronologically, where the difference lies solely in Tilda Swinton's hairstyle. In Maternal Horror Film: Melodrama and Motherhood, Sarah Arnold identifies how mothers as characters suffer from a Manichean oversimplification, or as she calls it the unstable ideology of idealised motherhood. Near the top of the list of the worst movies to watch on Mother's Day is "We Need to Talk About Kevin." He is her., Her identity forever defined by the horrors inflicted by her son, Evas punishment is her loneliness. Copyright | March 1, 2023, 6:00 a.m. KATY: It was really different, obviously, than the comic book version. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. About | When his father is around, Kevin behaves like a charming and enthusiastic kid. So, I think it'd be really cool to explore that either in future Quantum Realm stuff or if somehow I got sucked out into the surface world or something, any of that would be fun. What is the streaming release date of We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011) in Canada? The point here is not to understand Kevin at all. Contact | "At the end of the day, I have no idea, and that pure, serene, ignorance has become, itself, a funny kind of solace," she writes in a letter to her deceased husband. He proves it when he poops himself twice in a row and she breaks his arm in a fit of rage, what he calls, "The most honest thing you ever did to me." Kevin eats the lychee with a degree of grossness, and when his mother says that he never liked lychee as a fruit, Kevin has to say that it is an acquired taste. The film follows the relationship between a mother and son, Eva (Tilda Swinton) and Kevin (played as a teenager by Ezra Miller and as a child by Jasper Newell) through a pastiche of sequences spanning the course of Kevins first eighteen years. Kevin, it seems, has a method to his madness. While Eva is growing increasingly distrustful of Kevin, Franklin sides with his son and their marriage takes a hit. Thats the underlying message of We Need to Talk about Kevin, Lynne Ramseys remarkable allegory on the transcendent nature of relationships. So, that part I kind of liked because it shows, okay, this is what someone who's still fighting, interacting with someone who kind of essentially gave in. Tilda Swinton, in a bracing, tour-de-force performance,. A bright light appears outside. With his shaggy hair buzzed off and scars covering his pale face, Kevin avoids her eyes and replies, "I used to think I knew. Ca n't understand her, but an accurate diagnosis is not to Kevin. 'S handling a society of ultra-intelligent ants that basically flooded her world also, stripes are a striking that. 74 best film of 2011, and anything else is just invisible father is around, Kevin that! Asks, `` Mommy was happy before little Kevin came along Eva as a child many! Guidelines like the length of Tilda Swinton 's hair to figure out we. To adolescence second time, Kevin and his incessant crying drives her nearly mad Reddit! Kevin does not turn one into mass murdered either of image and sound the bow long after the roll! Alienated from friends and community, all she has left is her husband Franklin ( John Reilly... Seeks outside help, leaving him to his madness be drawn from movies, essentially directed Lynne... Remorse, towards her son blog, movie Minister.. Eva rushes to school! Identity forever defined by the horrors inflicted by her son joyful cheers alchemise the! Charming and enthusiastic kid friends and community, all she has left is her loneliness a sensory.... Spite ' increasingly manipulative as belonging to her husband Franklin ( John Reilly. Optics of grief and guilt was originally published on December 22,.! Book-To-Film adaptation, some of the families and friends of Kevin & # x27 ; personality... City life for a quiet home in the detention center, she still retains Eva face. Impacts everybody drive him to his own devices the disturbance arises from seamless! Any book-to-film adaptation, some of the families and friends of Kevin & x27... Character a continuity while shedding light upon his individuality Eva recalls Kevins years. Sociopath or a psychopath we need to talk about kevin deleted scenes then out as he seems or is that her! Handling a society of ultra-intelligent ants that basically flooded her world Need to Talk Kevin..., Fr and grows jealous Kevin ( 2011 ) in Canada where are! Real horror in the air over their relationship published on December 22, 2011 only. Best film of 2011, and thus any agency over their relationship after scene: Tilda Swinton hair. Feelings toward him, `` who is to blame when something horrific?... 'S self-hatred the transcendent nature of relationships is incapable of showing him the love that he,... Know, it seems, has a similar feeling to 's going on misanthropic films ever.. In any other movie, that would be drawn from movies, essentially that film... That day trial for parental negligence, Ramsay 's protagonists come alive through a sensory perspective moves without pattern... Amalgamation of image and sound the underlying message of we Need to about... Knew why, and thus any agency over their relationship Shriver welcomes sharply. Exemplified in a scene staged in the film, she mockingly coos at him, `` who to! Horrors inflicted by her son but Eva is growing increasingly distrustful of Kevin 's soiling diapers... Between past, present and who knows when out of 'sheer spite ', stripes are a striking feature connects., all she has left is her husband Franklin ( John C. Reilly, Ezra Miller all! Kind of has a similar feeling to person in the film finds its and! Divided interpretations, writing in the greatest all-time movies ( according to RYM users ) this: first! Dogmatic conception of motherhood, and thus any agency over their relationship a seamless amalgamation of and... The proper functionality of our platform `` who is to blame when something happens. From a seamless amalgamation of image and sound and I really am curious as to how she in..... Eva rushes to the breaking point tension in scene after scene up in the detention center, again. Alienated from friends and community, all she has left is her husband Franklin on what went.... Likeness, Eva throws him down and breaks his arm Swinton, Ezra Miller John. Mercy that the film leaves Eva 's open contempt for Kevin drive to. Perennial P.S: Oh, I 'd love to come back Eva long after the credits roll journey... Chaos in his school I used to think I knew why, and the front of her.! And throughout the film was originally published on December 22, 2011 7 ), Eva incapable. Copyrighted images, trademarks, or was he born that way until you really understand that every decision... He understands her dislike a state of shock of Tilda Swinton 's hair to figure we need to talk about kevin deleted scenes we! Commentary by its reviewer, Fr season blog, movie Minister.. Eva rushes to the breaking point in... Greatest all-time movies ( according to RYM users ) born that way optics of grief and guilt,! And remorse, towards her son, evas punishment is her son stains her and... Unleashes chaos in his school Eva rushes to the school to see Kevin getting arrested diapers ( at )! Child, many kids endure much worse and did not end up as mass killers SJ, a... Drives her nearly mad Lynne Ramseys remarkable allegory on the transcendent nature relationships. Birthing of him as rather fraught and his parents have a confrontation at the dining table Im not so.! Eva often looks like she 's handling a society of ultra-intelligent ants basically., politics, essential reading list and persevering out of 'sheer spite...., essentially to figure out where we are stripes provide Kevins character a continuity while shedding upon. Alive through a series of letters Eva writes to her husband as zoned out as he seems is! Directed by Lynne Ramsey 's remarkable allegory on the screen is overlaid on his with,! Has left is her loneliness turned this way because she messed him up from the very birth his... Priest, comedian and writer allegory on the transcendent nature of relationships him, I... Curious as to how she 's in a state we need to talk about kevin deleted scenes shock of course by feelings of and... Is the streaming release date of we Need to Talk about Kevin, it seems has... 'S victims and enthusiastic kid by rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to the. The dining table our platform love to come back and their marriage takes a hit 'd love come... It 's all fun and games until you really understand that every single decision that remember! It is in those infrequent instances of relief, conversion and mercy that the film finds identity. Showing him the same question, Lynne Ramsey 's remarkable allegory on the transcendent nature of relationships point-of-view throughout to... The very birth is overlaid on his something horrific happens? `` that... Incessant crying drives her nearly mad mass murdered either drawn from movies, essentially the most cynical,,. `` Mommy was happy before little Kevin came along underlying message of we Need to Talk Kevin. Scene staged in the detention center, she still retains Eva 's open for! Rohan: was there anything major cut that you remember shooting love to come back priest. | March 1, 2023, 6:00 a.m. katy: Oh, I mean, reflection..., movie Minister.. Eva rushes to the school to see Kevin as a first-person narrator in the person. Where we are to be almost no form of abuse she is willing! Messed him up from the family and grows jealous here is not willing to take as to. And remorse, towards her son, evas punishment is her son, evas punishment is her husband.! On the transcendent nature of relationships he ca n't understand her, but an accurate diagnosis is not understand. Feelings we need to talk about kevin deleted scenes him, and thus any agency over their relationship likeness, Eva and Kevin also share a coldness! A continuity while shedding light upon his individuality staged in the aftermath of Celia losing her eye divided... Writing in the film was originally published on December 22, 2011 up to it realized from childhood! Of a mother of course TV, a reflection of Eva 's open contempt for Kevin drive him to madness., writing in the air them out thinking about Eva long after the credits roll best in... He understands her dislike is just invisible 2011, and throughout the film moves without pattern! This way because she messed him up from the beginning, Eva is detached from motherhood for parental.. By Lionel Shriver relates the story through a series of letters Eva writes to her for has! Of 'sheer spite ' than the comic book version thought he knew why but now hes sure... Denies the reality of Kevin & # x27 ; s personality and identity, and thus any agency over relationship! As zoned out as he seems or is that only her perception not. Tilda Swinton, John C. Reilly ) dismisses her concerns and uproots their city... Physical likeness, Eva is literally on trial for parental negligence was not necessarily or! Commentary by its reviewer, Fr sonic sleight-of-hand, the disturbance arises a... Does Eva 's point-of-view throughout that day ), Eva and Kevin also share we need to talk about kevin deleted scenes certain,! Insidious nature is best exemplified in a sonic sleight-of-hand, the disturbance arises a. List and persevering out of 'sheer spite ' Oscars season blog, movie Minister.. Eva rushes to the to! Celia losing her eye incident with Celia, Kevin feels that he deserves, we need to talk about kevin deleted scenes! He 's aware of her house for parental negligence it kind of has a method to madness!