Through association and contextualization, it becomes evident that Kevin killed his father and sister with the new and powerful bow and arrow that he received as a Christmas present from his father. 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. For much of the film, she lives with her husband, son and daughter in an expensive suburban home, and when we realize they've lived there for several years, we begin to wonder, how can four people occupy a home for over a decade and not accumulate anything? Stripping the screenplay off words, the disturbance arises from a seamless amalgamation of image and sound. Kevin's mother struggles to love her strange child, despite the increasingly dangerous things he says and does as he grows up. The film depicts him as a psychopath beyond redemption. 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. Updated Date: With his shaggy hair buzzed off and scars covering his pale face, Kevin avoids her eyes and replies, "I used to think I knew. Lionel Shriver's source novel is a quirky, disturbing take on the high school killer story. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. It discloses its narrative fitfully, in snatches and gobbets that make sense only gradually, like the . ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA Star Katy O'Brian On Deleted Bill Murray Scene, Backstory & More (Exclusive). By. Kevin, it seems, has a method to his madness. Not here. Shortly after the incident with Celia, Kevin and his parents have a confrontation at the dining table. Although these two terms are often used interchangeably in colloquial use, there are some mild differences between these two categories of personality disorders. We also did a lot of blue screen work before, which really helps with the imagination. An excellent movie with great characters, amazing development, and astounding use of cuts, foreshadowing, and visual storytelling. Kevin chooses to conceal the incident from Franklin. Watch Indie Spirit Stars Suggest Indie Gems You Must Watch Right Now. As he grows up, we see him in a blue t-shirt, and consecutively, in a bland white one. Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. 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. Now, mommy wakes up every morning and wishes she was in France! All the community rules apply here. Tilda Swinton, in a bracing, tour-de-force performance,. Ramsay simulates these associative memories, jumping back and forth between the past and the present. Besides their physical likeness, Eva and Kevin also share a certain coldness, which plays into Eva's self-hatred. Motherhood was therefore intended as a punishment.. "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. Her husband Franklin (John C. Reilly) dismisses her concerns and uproots their bustling city life for a quiet home in the suburbs. Eva takes incessant trips down memory lane to cope with her past loss. Eva was never allergic to being a mother of course. Because Kevin is infallible to Franklin, he's also incapable of needing help, and as a result Franklin seems to have no respect to any sort of danger to his son, even giving a disturbed young man a lethal weapon just for fun on his fifteenth birthday - something that could even be considered an act in direct defiance of the reality of his son's deteriorating mental state, or even a dare. One day, Celia loses one of her eyes from toxic cleaning supplies, and Kevin becomes a prime suspect. Going on, she again asks the question of responsibility and says, "I don't know. With Franklin there is no conflict. 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. For more information, please see our Therefore, the sense of clothing provides a link between the otherwise antagonistic mother and son. As a portrait of a deteriorating state of mind, "We Need to Talk About Kevin" is a masterful film. Twice in flashbacks to Kevin's parents in their dating days, a UPS terminal with trucks can be seen in the near background. Kevin appears in a short sleeve red shirt as a toddler. The film primarily shows you the pathos of evil by painting a portrait of a deeply and violently disturbed young man from his mother's point of view, and you watch how this relationship built and how that pathos developed. KATY: Yeah, I mean, a lot of it would be drawn from movies, essentially. He is pursuing a Licentiate in Sacred Theology at Heythrop College in London. When he breaks his arm? Though unlike the Shakespearean character, the question of Evas guilt has a lot less cut-and-dried answer. While Eva and Franklin argue over the accident, Kevin taunts his mother by peeling a litchi, with a smug look on his face. Does their parental neglect make them culpable for the lives he took? 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. ROHAN: Was there anything major cut that you remember shooting? and our There seems to be almost no form of abuse she is not willing to take as belonging to her for what has happened. We see her birthing of him as rather fraught and his incessant crying drives her nearly mad. This model of motherhood so deeply rooted as it is in the biological doesnt leave much room for aberration, such that any rejection by the child becomes an indictment of the mothers entire existence. So, his dressing sense is perhaps not an indictment of his bitterness. Starring: Tilda Swinton,John C. Reilly,Ezra Miller Watch all you want. She frames Eva's discomfort against overjoyed mothers showing off their baby bumps in a pre-natal yoga class. Be respectful! The flow-on problem with Kevin's malevolence is it defies credibility that the father can't see any problem with his son (or, that Kevin is clever and manipulative enough to deceive him from an early age). Annie Graham in Hereditary is conflicted by feelings of love and hate, resentment and remorse, towards her son. 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. For instance, post-partum depression similar to hers is very common and probably didn't do as much damage as she ascribes to it. Some animals sometimes know that something is not right with fetus and can even abort it voluntary or when it is born, they abandon it. We Need to Talk About Kevin: Directed by Lynne Ramsay. The mistake would be to take the film apart and try to reconnect the pieces in chronological order. Kevin knows that Celia is his mothers favorite offspring, and he goes to great lengths to make his mother feel uncomfortable. Franklin and Kevin have no special connections like that, and Franklin appropriates Eva's so that he can have something manly to do with his son. 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. It is so ingrained in our culture even a fellow grieving mother slaps her in the parking lot. But it also doesn't set out to wag a moral finger or make any grand, sweeping statements. It's hard not to see some of Eva's frustration at her changed lifethey leave the city and she is left with most of the child careas manifesting in a kind of resentment of Kevin. And of course from there, we learn he perpetrates a mass killing at a school. Sometimes Zuzu's petals are all you have to hold onto. But Kevin is just getting started, and his final act will be beyond anything anyone imagined. We Need to Talk About Kevin 2011 | Maturity rating: 15 | 1h 52m | Independent Films When her 15-year-old son's cruel streak erupts into violence, his mother wonders how much blame she deserves for his actions. Some of the content presented on our sites has been provided by fans, other unofficial websites or online news sources, and is the sole responsibility of the source from which it was obtained. For instance, the ball game Eva plays with a toddler Kevin: when Kevin successfully rolls the ball back to her, her praise is strained and brittle. His attitude towards his son is warmer, but underneath there's no more depth than there is with Eva. Kevin poops in his pants, and thinking this act to be deliberate, Eva throws him to the ground, breaking his arm. Haunted by the past, Eva's memories are triggered by sounds, objects and everyday minutiae. There are two really great examples of this: the first is the bow. Indeed, Kevin is a relentless film that gives its audience few opportunities to come up for air from the depths of anguish to which it plummets. But Kevin is just getting started, and his final act will be beyond anything anyone imagined. Kevin abused his mother because she developed a relationship with him where he could have honest interactions with her if he did. However, we dont really know why Kevin kills his family. Does Eva's open contempt for Kevin drive him to darkness? There is some resentment over Kevin's arrival deterring her professional ambitions. Will, get up. 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. She's like a fish out of water. When we see an overdressed Eva beside Kevin, the distinction between the two becomes clear as daylight. Like Lady Macbeth, she tries to scrub the guilt off her hands. Index | However, just the neglect of his mother would not amount to the cathartic finale. Swinton gives an outstanding performance, somehow managing to repeatedly convey implacability and vulnerability in the same moment. Yet it is in those infrequent instances of relief, conversion and mercy that the film finds its identity and direction. Alec Baldwin has been charged in the southwest state of New Mexico for manslaughter and faces an 18-month prison sentence, as does the film's armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed. Eva apparently thought her early life was on the right track and tells her screaming baby boy she would frankly rather be back in Paris than changing his diaper. I bring what is actually happening and the severity of what's actually happening to level out, I guess, this part of the movie, because on the other side, you got Kang and Janet are being very, very serious too on that side of things. That the film works so brilliantly is a tribute in large part to the actors. Last March, Bruce Willis family said his aphasia had affected his cognitive abilities. describes the "nature vs. nurture" debate. Still, the film should not be overshadowed by its leads performance, as is often the case with female Oscar nominees. All of the performances are secondary to an urgently compelling narrative that is both agonizing to witness and impossible to look away from. Ultimately what it winds up giving us is perhaps the most important truth of Christianity, namely that God is the hope to be found in the midst of the smoke and ashes. Copyright | 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. Or did Kevin turned this way because she messed him up from the very birth. ROHAN: Jentorra does have a comics counterpart, did you draw on those stories to inform your backstory or did you work with Peyton to create anew backstory for the film? We had a lot more time to prepare for the character, had a lot more time to delve into the script and the role wasn't just like, you know, here's four pages, learn it by tonight, you know? Kevin is neither rational nor articulate enough to identify his desire, that is, to have an authentic and fully realized relationship with his mother. Kevin is a defiant baby who screams incessantly but never around Franklin. This review of the film was originally published on December 22, 2011. Despite his crime, she sells the house to pay the legal fees, moves closer to the prison so she can visit him, and continues to support him. ROHAN: Considering that you had done Black Lightningand Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.,and already gotten a small taste of superhero projects before stepping into this massive MCU project. Firstpost - All Rights Reserved. While she's on the run when we meet her, it's the arrival of Scott (Paul Rudd) and Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton) that brings her right back into the thick of the action. Also, stripes are a striking feature that connects Kevins clothing sense from childhood to adolescence. He's aware of her feelings toward him, and throughout the film, points them out. Directed by Lynne Ramsay, "We Need to Talk About Kevin" is fragments of time, jagged and confusing, lurching around inside her mind. You tell me." His attitude towards his son is warmer, but underneath there's no more depth than there is with Eva. She is less interested in the nature vs nurture debate, more in the crippling weight of societal expectations of motherhood. While Eva is shown throughout the film to be indifferent toward her son, Kevin's actions are fueled by his desire to spite her. But it's also pretty surface level. Home | The white curtains create an ambiance of premonition, and as the camera tracks forward, we see Franklin and Celia lying dead in the middle of the back garden, blood-drenched arrows stuck to their bodies like leeches. Her only crime was perhaps hurrying into the role before she was ready. Trademark | Something just happened. The Ending Of We Need To Talk About Kevin Explained. Eva and Franklin are a happily married couple till Eva gives birth to Kevin. Kevin predominantly shows signs of antisocial personality disorder, and when it is left unnoticed by his parents, Kevins condition takes a wrong turn. The most horrendous thing for her to stomach is not that his misanthropy and violence is really exotic and foreign; the thing that is really horrendous is that she recognises it only too well, because it comes from her. Indeed, Kevin is a relentless film that gives its audience few opportunities to come up for air from the depths of anguish to which it plummets. this is the best pro-antinatalism PSA out there . A flashback, from long before Kevin was born, shows Eva at La Tomatina, celebrating with the crowd. What is the streaming release date of We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011) in Canada? It is true that there is nothing unusual about giving birth to children in order . Swinton told me of a line in the script that wasn't used, wisely, I believe. For full Oscars coverage and commentary by its reviewer, Fr. Outward appearances of mother and son match their steely interiority as neither suffers fools gladly and both abhor artifice and sentimentality. As a baby and toddler, he is merely colicky, irritating and would try the patience of a saint. If you are having trouble tying loose ends, let us assist you in the process. Near the top of the list of the worst movies to watch on Mother's Day is "We Need to Talk About Kevin." We cling to guidelines like the length of Tilda Swinton 's hair to figure out where we are. Nature refers to how they were born, while nurture refers to how they were raised. They never talk about Kevin. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Footsteps approach the tent and a figure walks past. Stripping the screenplay off words, the disturbance arises from a seamless amalgamation of image and sound. A young MAN and WOMAN are asleep in a tent. For mothers always seem to be on trial. With Tilda Swinton, John C. Reilly, Ezra Miller, Jasper Newell. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. ROHAN: You have a few scenes with Kathryn Newton, who is playing Cassie, in the film. An early scene shows Eva apparently participating in an orgy in a lake of blood. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg's response to Donald Trump's refusal to accept any responsibility for the impact his massive deregulations have had went viral on Thursday as video of him encouraging the ex-president to support the Biden administration's efforts went viral. It asks, "who is to blame when something horrific happens?". None of that takes anything away from yet another deeply felt performance by the always-interesting Swinton. Kevin was never the apple of his mothers eye, which he realized from early childhood. 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. He completely denies the reality of Kevin's personality and identity, and thus any agency over their relationship. The film moves without any pattern between past, present and who knows when. As Kevin develops, he refuses to be potty-trained, mocks Eva and rejects her attempts at physical affection. Kevin's mother struggles to love her strange child, despite the increasingly dangerous things he says and does as he grows up. 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 point here is not to understand Kevin at all. He grows into a spiteful toddler, refusing to say "mommy" and egging on her frustrations. She lives with the guilt of what her son did, on top of the guilt of knowing she did nothing about the various warning signs. This cycle is beautifully written and acted by Swinton, so much that you can't help but empathize with her despite her own assurances that every drop of blood her son ever spilt is on her hands, an image weaved throughout the movie. In Morvern Callar, Samantha Morton grieved her boyfriend's suicide. Sometimes Zuzus petals are all you have to hold onto. In a fit of rage at Kevin's soiling his diapers (at 7), Eva throws him down and breaks his arm. Meanwhile, Kevin is planning something that would shatter Evas world forever. Kevin has numerous reasons to hate his mother, Eva. So, you kind of draw from that, but then, you also think about just putting yourself in that position too. He seems to recognize that he has some advantage over her. Before the film opens, the character referred to in the title of Lynne Ramsay's We Need to Talk About Kevin, at the age of 15, has massacred a number of his fellow schoolmates. Years later, the birth of her daughter Celia, on the other hand, feels more festive. Did your prior experience help prepare you for some of what to expect on Quantumania? Little Kevin cries relentlessly, and Eva often uses cruel methods to shut him up. How would I behave if basically the weight of a literal realm was on my shoulders? Neither parent punishes him or seeks outside help, leaving him to his own devices. Alienated from friends and community, all she has left is her son. As she leaves, a troupe of tiny ballerinas in tutus run past her. Privacy Policy. We Need to Talk About Kevin Jump to Edit Summaries Kevin's mother struggles to love her strange child, despite the increasingly dangerous things he says and does as he grows up. As Robin Hood, little Kevin appears in a similar-looking shirt. The source material for "We Need to Talk About Kevin" was purposely crafted to leave readers wondering who was responsible for the massacre. Putting herself through a painful process of introspection, she revisits moments from well before Kevin's birth to the eventual tragedy. Menu. Kevin is far too malevolent, which might work in a Rosemary's Baby horror context, but not here (admittedly it does verge on horror at times but ultimately we are asked to empathise with Eva's travails as a mother). The story goes back to the past to recreate the events that led Eva to her present discontent. When asked about the film adaptation in an interview with The Guardian, Shriver said her biggest concern was if they'd be able to "capture the quality of the slightly unreliable narrator and the ambiguity over who is to blame. And so is Eva. it's difficult to accept why Eva keeps visiting her son in jail, at one point even asking why he did it. Eva can only play at being mommy, and so when Kevin refuses her attempts to breastfeed and is only appeased by the presence of his affable father, played by John C. Reilly, her whole world crashes down around her and her value as a person comes into question. We see it in the wall of canned tomatoes that play backdrop to Evas anxiety attack in a supermarket, and the Cabernets she drowns her sorrows with. But we can safely assume that Kevin did not literally eat the eyeball. The film does not show us how Kevin presents the eyeball to Eva in jail. Release Calendar Top 250 Movies Most Popular Movies Browse Movies by Genre Top Box Office Showtimes & Tickets Movie News India Movie Spotlight. Prefer Ramsay's earlier pictures to this flawed but interesting piece. "We Need to Talk About Kevin" is a movie adaptation of Lionel Shriver's novel with the same title. When the child Kevin is sick and nuzzles close to his mother as she reads, his father comes to the door and is rejected in favor of his mother, the look on Evas face is one of wonder and delight. To rate, slide your finger across the stars from left to right. She finally gets her excuse to abandon Kevin but doesn't act on it. According to medical practitioners, psychopaths are born so, while sociopathy is a result of conditioning in childhood. The kid was screaming nonstop from the go, as infant. He completely denies the reality of Kevin's personality and identity, and thus any agency over their relationship. Following the release of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, we caught up with actress Katy O'Brian to talk about her MCU debut as Jentorra, deleted scenes with Bill Murray, and a whole lot more! About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Policy & Safety How YouTube works Test new features Press Copyright Contact us Creators . True paternal love would have been expressed as abiding concern for the man his son could grow up to be if there really was a danger of mental illness, and result in the appropriate physical and mental health care to avoid a catastrophe. The real horror in We Need to Talk About Kevin is society's dogmatic conception of motherhood,and the pressure to live up to it. All logos and images used on this website are registered trademarks of their respective companies. Crypto Scan this QR code to download the app now. Eva believes that some defect of maternal affection had something to do with Kevin's development. Shortly after, Eva goes back to the house. SPOILERS AHEAD. David Badash. In a film otherwise devoid of hope, these subtle suggestions give the audience a sense of comfort. He grows into a spiteful toddler, refusing to say "mommy" and egging on her frustrations. Privacy | 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. 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. Starring: Tilda Swinton, Ezra Miller, John C. Reilly. Kevin is a story of hope for a new millennium, an It's a Wonderful Life in the age of school shootings and planes crashing into buildings -- a world-weary world that has been bombarded by nihilistic themes in their narratives for the better part of a century. ComicBookMovie.com is a registered trademark and has been officially registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The novel explores themes of nihilism, motherhood, the relationship between violence and depravity, and much more. KATY: I kind of saw Jentorra as someone who was already part of a warrior society, so maybe she was used to fighting already, but in kind of a way different level. Directed by Peyton Reed and produced by Kevin Feige, p.g.a. Yet it is in those infrequent instances of relief, conversion and mercy that the film finds its identity and direction. Not that she has a ton of options she struggles to find work and be accepted by those around her. We find ourselves inside the mind of a woman whose psychopathic son has driven her over the edge. And I really am curious as to how she's handling a society of ultra-intelligent ants that basically flooded her world. Eva, in turn, becomes more protective of Celia. He was exactly right. It is an epistolary novel, comprising the letters that Eva Khatchadourian writes to her husband Franklin in the aftermath of their son's crime. February 24, 2023 at 12:05 PM ET. What if she knew while being pregnant that she is about to give birth to a monster? It suffers from an excess of clunky foreshadowing and there's very little I find believable about the characters' actions. The truth to motherhood is a harsh one. The comedy had to come elsewhere there. We Need to Talk About Kevin is a 2003 novel by Lionel Shriver. Indeed, one of. You've got Braveheart, which it kind of has a similar feeling to. We see Kevin as a troubled kid who may need greater care. 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. I got to try some fight choreo, but all in all, yeah, it helped me prepare, I will say I was much more excited to be a good guy instead of a lame, side character, bad guy. His final act of brutality a school massacre in addition to murdering his father and sister destroys any semblance of normalcy for Eva. I watched this film several years ago and decided today I'd watch it again as I really enjoyed it the first time round! We cling to guidelines like the length of Tilda Swinton's hair to figure out where we are. for disturbing violence and behavior, some sexuality and language, Berlinale 2023 Highlights, Part Two: Reality, Manodrome, The Adults, Inside, Golda, Angela Bassett, Jamie Lee Curtis, Brendan Fraser, Cate Blanchett, Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson Feted at SBIFF 2023, Revisiting Martin Scorsese's Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, Tragically Common: Jamie Dack, Lily McInerny and Jonathan Tucker on Palm Trees and Power Lines.
Bank Of America Savings Account Minimum Balance,
Vehicle Tax Calculator,
Should I Go To The Mental Hospital Quiz,
Mci West Holiday Schedule 2021,
Top 10 Most Narcissistic Celebrities,
Articles W