We Need To Talk About Kevin is based on the novel of the same name by Lionel Shriver. It focuses on the life of a mother whose son committed Columbine-like crimes at his high school. This trailer exceeds in portraying the film as incredibly dark, thought-provoking, and unsettling, just like the deeply emotional book from which it was adapted.
In We Need To Talk About Kevin, Eva (Tilda Swinton) never really got along with her son, Kevin (Ezra Miller), quite like his father Franklin (John C. Reilly) did, dating all the way back to the womb. While the family’s triangular relationship was always troubled, their lives became surreal after Kevin’s unthinkable actions.
The film’s star is Eva; in fact, the entire book is written in Eva’s letters to Franklin after the incident and their resultant divorce. Most of her scenes with Kevin take place in jail, and many of Franklin’s scenes are in flashbacks. It will be interesting to see how such a form is adapted into a film.
Swinton is perfect for Eva, who was an ice queen even before she had Kevin, and Reilly is excellent for Franklin, who is warm and teddybear-ish down to his very name. But, Miller may be the best casting of all as Kevin. It’s difficult to explain his character, who is really up to interpretation in the novel, but the actor is spot-on in this trailer.
Ezra Miller recently finished filming The Perks of Being a Wallflower with Logan Lerman and Emma Watson. That, along with We Need To Talk About Kevin, seems to be just the beginning of his impressive resume.
Shriver’s novel felt surreally personal from the beginning until the end, and if this film can capture that feeling, it will surely be fantastic.
