The mother of a teenage boy who went on a high-school killing spree tries to deal with her grief -- and feelings of responsibility for her child's actions -- by writing to her estranged husband.
Lynne Ramsay admirers can breathe a sigh of relief. Her first feature since Morvern Callar in 2002 confirms that she has lost none of her skill as a compelling storyteller or visual stylist. Her smart, thought-provoking adaptation of the Lionel Shriver bestseller maintains the narrative core of the book whilst rendering it in fresh cinematic terms.
The result is an intense, provocative film which rattles around your subconscious for days.
A triumph for Ramsay — though no easy watch — anchored by terrific performances. Guaranteed to haunt you for days, and possibly prompt a rethink on your position on parenthood.
Atmospheric and beautifully shot but ultimately empty and meaningless, the picture plays like an art-house version of The Omen as we track Kevin’s journey to infamy through the memories of his mother.
Ramsay gets the best out of Swinton and the story, delivering a tale that’s brutally spare in everything except the images, which range from the lyrical to the truly shocking.
Kevin is a piece of vital, visceral cinema in its own right; teeming with words and images to mull over, pick apart and talk about. And you will need to talk about it.
What American Psycho was to consumerism, We Need to Talk About Kevin is to both sexism and feminism, a brilliantly extreme parable, operatically pessimistic.
Like The Omen without the supernatural guff, Kevin plays on all our worst fears about parenthood. A triumph for ramsay and swinton, but it’s a lacerating experience to watch.
A dizzying visual trip anchored by Swinton’s superlative central performance.
It’s chilling and agonising, almost a horror in its intensity and dread, though never exploitative.
It's a peculiar, liquid film. Dreamy as all hell.
Tilda Swinton’s performance is towering, but the story around her doesn’t convince.
Ramsay seems more interested in empathising with a character in an impossible situation. That she’s managed to do so in such an absorbing, artful fashion is one more reason why her return is something to be celebrated.
It all adds up to the best horror film of the year. Only don't call it a horror.
This is Ramsay's show, and while her symbolic imagery may occasionally feel heavy-handed, the film as a whole is a remarkable cinematic experience.
Seeing Kevin a first time, one immediately rejoiced in the return of one of British film-making's genuine free spirits. On a second viewing, the flaws are more apparent – this elliptical work doesn't congeal into the more intensely troubling whole that it promises. But a straight take on Shriver would have been a flatter, familiar thing. Frustrating as it is, this is a Lynne Ramsay film to the hilt. It's not the Kevin you know, and it may not be the Kevin you want – but if you see it, you'll certainly need to talk about it.
This is a thoughtful, deeply disturbing story...Tilda Swinton has never been better.
As disturbing and thought-provoking as its source. This may be the chilliest film you’ll see this year; at the same time, the questions it raises about nature versus nurture in the formation of evil are worth the discomfort.
Brutal, unforgiving and unnerving, We Need to Talk About Kevin is a completely original and altogether different film that needs to be seen to be truly appreciated and understood.
You will definitely need to talk about Kevin.
Lynne Ramsay on We Need to Talk About Kevin
Talk About Kevin: Portrait of a parent's worst nightmare
Delving into the dark side of motherhood with Lionel Shriver
We need to talk about Kevin's lack of empathy
We need to talk about men, not Kevin
'We Need to Talk About Kevin': When does a little horror turn into a psychopath?
Edinburgh Filmhouse, Edinburgh from Wednesday October 19, 2011, until Thursday November 17, 2011. More info: www.filmhousecinema.com
General release. Check local listings for show times.
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