Personal response to We Need to Talk About Kevin

We Need to Talk About Kevin is a British-American psychological drama-horror film adapted from Lionel Shriver’s novel of the same name and was directed by Lynne Ramsay. The film builds a fractured narrative of the troubled, distant relationship between Eva Khatchadourian (Tilda Swinton) and her sociopathic son Kevin (Ezra Miller). It is directed in a non-linear style and moves between three key periods: Kevin as a baby/toddler, Kevin as a 6-8 year old and Kevin as a teenager. I found this captivating as instead of being told the story I had to piece it together myself through short insightful scenes. It is centred throughout around an event which is gradually revealed to be a high school massacre and referenced through things such as repeated red symbolism and flashbacks. The film deals with both the causes and the aftermath of this event through Eva’s eyes; an interesting twist. Eva's hatred of Kevin and motherhood itself reaches disturbing heights when she tells him “Before you were born Mommy used to be happy!” and breaks his arm. Her chilling behaviour suggests that she too may suffer a mental illness causing this detachment. This is one of the significant moments which questions whether Kevin’s sociopathic nature is entirely natural or if it developed due to Eva's inability to bond with him since pregnancy. The air of uncertainty this creates adds depth and intrigue. At times like these I could pity Kevin as his youth victimises him. This too is the case for his father Franklin (John C. Reilly) who is blind to the concerns Eva has about Kevin. Red symbolism is first presented in the second scene; it features a young Eva in a mass of swarming bodies churning through a sea of tomatoes at a festival in Spain. This creates a very striking image which I found mesmerising yet as the film continued it seemed more like a horrifying premonition. The vivid hue is continued in the next scene through lighting and props giving it a heavy eerie glow which contrasts the organic freedom and vitality of the festival. This lighting is also used in flashbacks to the massacre. The red details give the film a sense of unity and ties together the short, erratic scenes. This is a film which is designed to have a lasting impression on it’s audience. The harrowing narrative and imagery explore dark depths of the human psyche and it’s development. Tilda Swinton plays Eva hauntingly well with a tentative, almost horrified approach to Kevin which continues as their alienated relationship progresses. Ezra Miller is cold and calculating with a fixated glare occasionally permeated by a sly grin to further manipulate his father and sister, sending Eva deeper into her prison of misery. Despite the horror of the actions leading up to the massacre I found the sight of Franklin and Celia’s bodies on the ground with arrows in their backs is repulsively shocking. It represents a betrayal of humanity itself and asks how much of a part did Eva really play in this tragedy?