Bird's Eye View

BEV Review: Lynne Ramsay’s We Need To Talk About Kevin.

We Need to Talk about Kevin is the latest offering from critically acclaimed filmmaker Lynne Ramsay. Having previously gained recognition for her stunning and brave dramas Ratcatcher (1999) and Morvern Callar (2002), both scripted also by Ramsay and both multi-award winners, Ramsay’s new work is an adaptation of Lionel Shriver’s powerful Orange Prize-winning 2003 novel about the family behind the teenage perpetrator of a high school massacre. The film has been engulfed in a wave of overwhelmingly positive reviews and recently received the Best Film award at the BFI London Film Festival, but is it possible for the film to live up to its exceptional critical reputation? BEV reviewer Sonia Zadurian delves into the high-profile work.

Tilda Swinton as Eva and Rock Duer as young Kevin

We Need To Talk About Kevin centres on Eva (Tilda Swinton) and utilizes a non-linear structure to portray certain periods of her life, particularly focusing on the childhood and adolescence of her son Kevin (Ezra Miller). From the early stages of her pregnancy it becomes apparent that Eva feels utterly unconnected to Kevin and to motherhood in general. Kevin immediately shows signs of being willfully maladjusted, but his acts of destructive defiance only escalate with age and culminate in a disturbing act of calculated violence which changes their lives forever.

The non-linear plotting of the film is expertly edited and harshly contrasts varying time periods to great effect. A perfectly fractured counterpart to the cognitive process of memory, these often short bursts of time engage with Eva on a fundamental level as the viewer is forced to visually remember with her. These memories are both clear and complex, as simple visual tools are used to anchor the audience. However, whilst helping to craft a specific timeframe for each scene, these signposts also contribute to the consistently uneasy tone of the piece. As well as using Eva’s hair length to signify points in time, the film also flashes forward to employ remnants of violence, such as an eye patch or scar, to indicate that terrible things are to come.

An anxious tone and restless tension are deeply rooted within every aspect of the film. From the striking use of red throughout and the sparse inclusion of dialogue within the tight script to the interruption of the frequently quiet soundscape with jarring percussive surges, the audience continually fluctuates between states of eerie calm and subtle danger. These conditions are strongly supported by the captivating central performances from Swinton and Miller, who ensure that every gesture and glance pulsate with meaning.  

Swinton’s involvement in the film extends to an executive producer role, combining with Ramsay’s direction and Shriver’s original novel to mark a triumphant female collective responsible for one of the most powerful films of recent years. The themes and questions which the film poses are deeply rooted in issues surrounding motherhood and the traditional roles of women in society. However, We Need to Talk about Kevin never attempts to provide the audience with easy answers as to character motivations or its thematic questioning, in particular the ongoing nature vs. nurture debate, offering instead an ambiguity which forces the viewer to consider the issues for themselves. 

We Need to Talk about Kevin is an extraordinary piece of pure filmmaking which is utterly worthy of the reputation which precedes it. The film is a striking yet subtle depiction of universally complex themes and combines both the startlingly visceral and deeply intellectual to create an intensely unique creature which targets both the heart and mind.

By Sonia Zadurian