OFW editor, Katrina Monroe reviewed “We Need to Talk About Kevin” by Lionel Shriver in our Spotlight, and although I’d seen the film, I wasn’t eager to pick up the book until I’d read her review. I’d have missed out big time, so thanks, Kat.
“We Need to Talk About Kevin” examines life through Eva Khatchadourian's eyes as she copes with the aftermath of a school shooting rampage carried out by her teenage son Kevin. She is writing to her absent husband (and Kevin's father) Franklin about the events, pondering who is at fault for Kevin's actions on that Thursday. Does the blame lie solely with her? She certainly lacked the appropriate motherly affection. But how could she love such a child? Wasn’t Kevin simply born evil?
In this disturbing tale, we see a mother’s view of her son in an exploration of violence via a fictional high school massacre. The horror is so graphic, and the subject matter is so uncomfortable, I wondered which format portrayed it better?
The book is written as a series of letters. This is not used in the film. It is still portrayed from Eva’s (Kevin’s mother) point of view. The acting is exquisite, and the imagery is fantastic, but the opportunities missed are many.
The story is filmed in a choppy manner that feels too drawn out in some places, and many of Kevin’s truly dark and creepy moments are not portrayed. This might have been fine, but the scenes left out were the ones that gave us insight into Kevin’s twisted mind, leaving the viewer with the impression that he’s just a brat that needs a good kick in the ass. In the novel, you see from page one that there is something not right with Kevin almost from birth. This disturbing knowledge is vital to the story.
The film also missed the opportunity to go beyond Eva and her son, and didn’t show that others around the family also had an aversion to Kevin, thereby validating Eva's perception of her son. This omitted information is also vital to the story.
The film has won numerous awards and high praise, and it deserves every one. It is truly a brilliant film with spectacular performances. The acting is flawless. Whoever chose the actors for these roles should win a big giant medal. I don’t think you could have cast the film any more perfectly. I don’t think it could have been filmed better, but when compared to the book, it still comes up short. The problem, I think, is that this book does not lend itself to film adaptations.
We have an unreliable narrator as the entire book is written based on Eva's perception. She insists that she seen things, warning signs and that Kevin’s father disagreed with her when she voiced her concerns at the time. Her version of events comes after the fact, so they may be slightly misleading. The reader understands this throughout the book and reads with a certain amount of cautiousness as a result. How much of what she’s telling is an exaggeration or something that never happened? The reader can’t know. This ambiguity is what makes this book exceptional. There is not a single thing spelled out to the reader. In the film, this ambiguity is lost. The film is portrayed in Eva’s POV, but there is no monologue or narration. It appears more as fact than Eva’s perception of events.
One huge surprise on reading the book, having seen the film first, was the small changes the film version made to very crucial points in the story. For example, the dialogue between Eva and Kevin in the jail was one of the most revealing and riveting parts of the book. Eva asks questions she couldn’t ask before the shooting, and this reveals more about their relationship than any other scene in the book. In the film, this is given remarkably little significance. Their visits are largely depicting the two sitting in silence. As I read, I wondered repeatedly why this wasn’t included in the film.
Overall, the film is beautifully shot, perfectly cast and haunting. It avoided sensationalizing the deaths and instead focused on the characters. This was a brilliant decision as the focus of the book is primarily Eva and her son.
The subject matter in “We Need to Talk About Kevin” is a disturbing challenge for any book or movie to tackle. I loved both book and film, but I related to the Eva in the book more than the film because I felt she spoke directly to me. The book also allowed me to make my own interpretations. The film just could not do that. It was truly a memorable visual experience, but it fell short of what I felt reading the book.
A brilliant book, and an excellent film, but when comparing the two, the book left a far more enduring impression after “The End.”
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Veronica Sicoe Tuesday, 10 Jul 2012 03:37 AM
I've seen the film, and loved it! It appealed to my fascination with psychopaths in a very direct fashion. Also, my old thesis paper was on high-school shootings in the States, so I have done a lot of research on this at the time.
Tuesday, 10 Jul 2012 03:37 AM
I've seen the film, and loved it! It appealed to my fascination with psychopaths in a very direct fashion. Also, my old thesis paper was on high-school shootings in the States, so I have done a lot of research on this at the time.
Now I've just got to read the book! ;)
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