Grace Spencer

The film “We Need to Talk About Kevin,” directed by Lynne Ramsay, follows the life of Eva and her son Kevin. Eva struggles to love her child, Kevin, as he grows up doing and saying increasingly weird and dangerous things. Eva struggles from the very beginning to connect with her son, which from the audience’s perspective, is intentionally made difficult by Kevin. Kevin ruins her bedroom, taunts Eva and his sister Celia, shows signs of violence, and in the end murders his father, sister, and many classmates with a bow and arrow.

The film is narrated through the lens of Eva. Everything the audience is privy to is the same as Eva. Like the situation that caused her to throw Kevin against the wall as a child, the audience knows the truth of what happened and why, which can not be said for Franklin as he just believes it was a little accident. As well as the cleaning supplies getting into Celia’s eye, the audience doesn’t have confirmation that this happened though we can speculate just as Eva does. One symbol that is recurring throughout the film is the use of paint and vandalism. We see Kevin vandalize Eva’s maps in a flashback, and in the present, we see Eva’s car and house vandalized with paint condemning her for Kevin’s murder spree. This vandalism is very representative of Kevin ruining Eva’s life. From the moment he was born it appears that Kevin has it out for his mother and as much as Eva tries to “fix” it or feel a sense of normalcy, Kevin finds a way to ruin it.

The film uses a lot of dark lighting, adding more shadows which is a common convention that we see in the thriller genre. It adds to the suspense as a viewer as the audience doesn’t have a clear concept of the characters and environments as the lighting is dim. The dark lighting and shadows are also reflective of the dark nature of Kevin throughout the film. The sound in the film is also very reflective of Eva’s emotions and adds to the suspense of the thriller. Specifically in the scene where Eva returns home to find Franklin and Celia dead, there is suspenseful and eerie music leading up to the discovery of their bodies. Both lighting and sounds are used to reflect the emotions Eva has as well as reflect the suspense the audience expects from a thriller.

Director, Lynne Ramsay, uses this film to show the struggles of motherhood, especially when doomed from the beginning. It follows the themes of nature vs nurture, as well as lasting guilt. We see these themes specifically in the differences between Eva and Franklin as parents. Evas struggle to connect with Kevin is contradicted by Franklin and his immediate bond with Kevin as a child. This constant contradiction, perpetuated by Kevin, even goes so far to the possibility of divorce between the two. This film is haunting and suspenseful, constantly making the audience feel uneasy and worried for both Eva and Kevin as they go through life together.

“We Need to Talk about Kevin.” (R). dir. Lynne Ramsay (2011); 112mins.