« Back to all posts in FilmOlogy

'We Need To Talk About Kevin' Is A Merciless Masterpiece

Film Rundown:

Genre:

Horror

Parental Rating:

NC-17

Director:

Lynne Ramsay

Starring:

Tilda Swinton, John C. Reilly and Ezra Miller

Runtime:

112

Our rating:

by The Ology Team .

On Jan 18, 2012

"Terror is the desire to save your own ass, but horror is rooted in sympathy." - Horns author Joe Hill via A.V. Club

"We Need to Talk About Kevin is a tough watch and it’s really unpleasant, so I don’t know if I liked it, but in a world where nobody is thinking of it as a horror movie, it’s totally a horror movie." - House of the Devil director Ti West via my upcoming interview

Kevin is the horror film I never knew I didn't want. Unlike even the most nerve-jangling classics, it is decidedly not fun. But it is brilliant. Director Lynne Ramsay has fashioned a tragedy that looks, sounds and feels way too much like real life. Her merciless details bore into your brain, leaving you transfixed with dread. Imagine watching a car accident in slow motion from afar. You can scream and flail all you want, but you can't prevent the inevitable.

As Ramsay weaves us through the nonlinear fabric of her narrative, we learn of the ever-escalating war between mother (Tilda Swinton) and son (Ezra Miller). Little Kevin wasn't made a monster, he was born one. The only pleasure he gets out of life stems directly from destruction and manipulation. His bedroom is blank, as is his personality. His hobbies include archery and collecting crippling computer viruses. "There is no point. That's the point," he proudly proclaims. He detests other people. In that way, he's not entirely unlike his mother.

Consider this: there is undoubtedly a kid out there who will watch this film and see Kevin as the hero. Ghosts and goblins don't exist, but psychos do. Hell, I can name five off the top of my head. I doubt I can name five football players. What Kevin does, and unflinchingly so, is confront head-on the nature of pure, innate evil, as well as humanity's tireless fascination with it. Are there occasional lapses in logic? Sure. But Ramsay's brazen artistry doubly earns your suspension of disbelief.

Sometimes, I force myself to think of awful things, simply because awful things actually exist. Horror, as a literary and film genre, exists because we all want to test ourselves, to teach ourselves, to remind ourselves how lucky we are. Evil is real, and thus, we must embrace every moment of its absence.

SumOlogy: Enough to scare you off having kids forever.

Connect with other Filmologists on My.Ology and follow me on Twitter.