Weekly Review -- Sins of the fathers... mothers... sons?

We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011) -- Can a child ever be born evil? Can a parent ever be disconnected from their descendant? Then again, is a child always and undeniably an everlasting part of the parent? A heart-wrenching study of malevolence in its most terrifying form, this Lynne Ramsay film shows the weight of emotions and grief in a new light, through the story of a family torn apart by their firstborn.

**THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS**

Soon after giving birth to Kevin (Ezra Miller), travel writer Eva (Tilda Swinton) starts noticing alarming signs. Awkward and lacking the need for affection, Kevin has a propensity toward spiteful, hateful, dangerous behavior. While her naive husband Franklin (John C. Reilly) puts everything down to boys being boys, Eva grows more weary and distant from Kevin, with things going from bad to worse when the couple have a daughter. Ambiguous about becoming a mother from the start, Eva worries that Kevin's cruelty is beyond reproach, but no one is ready for what he is about to do next... 

The film makes compelling arguments for and against parenthood in the context of the "bad seed" potential. At the same time, it examines the nonexistent bond between Eva and Kevin and brings a new dimension to the nature versus nurture debate. From the start, Eva is not happy about being pregnant; in fact, the condition is depicted as an out-of-body experience. One wonders why she would want the life change, with the film suggesting that it is a natural progression to everyone but her. The maddening part is that this particular woman gets punished by giving birth to the devil incarnate, who then proceeds to wreak havoc onto the world and onto her world. She tries her valiant best to get close to him as the years go by, but her efforts are nothing when up against what at best is complete psychosis and at worst utter evil. Even the horrifying arm-breaking sequence leads to Kevin relishing his mother's anger, turning the balance of power upside down for good. This is what absolves the character of any culpability for the way Kevin evolves. When a mother is unable to bond with her baby, the situation may indicate that there is something inherently wrong with the child, as the film suggests. After all, Eva does resolve that she loves her son following the massacre and in spite of everything that he has done to their family.

One of the film's baffling aspects is Eva and Franklin's courtship and marriage. One has to wonder why Eva had decided upon the rather oafish Franklin as her mate, since he is nowhere near Eva on an intellectual or cultural level. I wish the film had examined their relationship further, because a concrete reason why they are together is unclear to the viewer during the proceedings. Sure, he is a good person, but his crude gullibility and perhaps deliberate blindness to Kevin's diabolism is absolutely infuriating. To name but one example, why on Earth would Franklin think that archery was a suitable hobby for his son, what with his wife's numerous fears and doubts? I find it unbelievable that he is unable to see through Kevin's transparent lies and overall find the character pretty cartoonish. Perhaps he is supposed to symbolize the good in Eva's life versus Kevin's evil taking over; if that is the case, the metaphor is too murky to be effective. 

Another thing that eludes me is why Eva and Franklin do not provide Kevin with psychiatric help and why the option is never even discussed. True, Franklin is clueless and true, a traditional psychoanalysis route does not do much good for a psychopath or a sociopath, but the question lingers -- why does Eva not take the lead? This omission is a true plot hole if ever there was one. They needed to talk about Kevin indeed.

The performances appear to be etched with mathematical precision. Swinton seamlessly alternates between desperate frustration, bare horror and ultimate detachment. At the beginning, she is a woman with options; at the end, all of the options have been taken away from her through sheer circumstance. Miller shines as Kevin, showing all of the character's ominous colors from behind a veil of mischief and bringing us into the mind of a soulless killer. The only thing missing from the actors' portrayals are Oscar nominations. Reilly is sufficiently bewildered and bewildering as Franklin, while Rock Duer gives a terrific performance as the toddler Kevin.

We Need to Talk About Kevin is a masterpiece of psychological and birth horror, a film that plays with our ingrained notions of childhood innocence. It claims its territory and never lets go, taking us on a ride that can only lead to the hellish realm of tragedy. It is a work that plays and preys upon universal givens such as motherhood and parentage, shattering them all and making the audience walk all over the broken pieces in a stupor of disbelief.

9/10