We Need to Talk About Kevin ( film ) - wikipedia We Need to Talk About Kevin ( film ) We Need to Talk About Kevin Theatrical release poster Directed by Lynne Ramsay Produced by Jennifer Fox Luc Roeg Bob Salerno Screenplay by Lynne Ramsay Rory Stewart Kinnear Based on We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver Starring Tilda Swinton John C. Reilly Ezra Miller Music by Jonny Greenwood Cinematography Seamus McGarvey Edited by Joe Bini Production companies BBC Films UK Film Council Footprint Investment Piccadilly Pictures Lipsync Productions Independent Artina Films Rockinghorse Films Distributed by Oscilloscope Laboratories Release date 12 May 2011 ( 2011 - 05 - 12 ) ( Cannes ) 21 October 2011 ( 2011 - 10 - 21 ) ( United Kingdom ) Running time 112 minutes Country United Kingdom United States Language English Budget $7 million Box office $10.8 million We Need to Talk About Kevin is a 2011 British - American psychological thriller drama film directed by Lynne Ramsay, and adapted from Lionel Shriver 's novel of the same title. A long process of development and financing began in 2005, with filming commencing in April 2010. Tilda Swinton stars as the mother of Kevin, struggling to come to terms with her son and the horrors he has committed. The film premiered at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival and was released in the United Kingdom on 21 October 2011. Swinton was nominated for the Golden Globe Award, Screen Actors Guild, and the BAFTA for Best Actress in a Leading Role. It was given positive reviews by both critics and audiences alike. Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Development 4 Release 5 Reception 5.1 Critical response 5.2 Awards and nominations 6 References 7 External links Plot Teenager Kevin Khatchadourian is in prison after committing a massacre at his high school. His mother, Eva, once a successful travel writer, lives alone in a rundown house and works in a travel agency near the prison, where she visits Kevin. She looks back at her memories of him growing up as she tries to cope with the hostility of her neighbors. Kevin is detached and difficult from childhood. He appears to loathe and deliberately antagonize Eva, and she has trouble bonding with him. As a baby, he cries incessantly, but only around her ; as a child, he resists toilet training, rebuffs Eva 's attempts at affection, and shows no interest in anything. He behaves like a happy, loving son when his father Franklin is watching. Eva 's frustration drives her to throw Kevin against the wall, breaking his arm. Kevin tells Franklin he fell, using the incident to blackmail Eva into doing what he wants. Franklin dismisses Eva 's concerns and makes excuses for Kevin 's behavior. When Kevin is confined to bed with a fever, Eva reads him a book about Robin Hood ; when Robin competes in Prince John 's archery contest, Kevin shows Eva affection for the first time. Franklin gives him a bow and arrow and teaches him archery. Eva and Franklin have a second child, Celia, who is lively and cheerful. However, Kevin is disdainful and jealous. A few years later, Celia 's pet guinea pig is killed and she is blinded in one eye by caustic cleaning fluid. Eva is suspicious, but Franklin insists that Kevin is not to blame. Eva 's suspicion ruins their marriage and she and Franklin divorce. Eva comes to fear her son, as she sees growing evidence of Kevin 's sadism. As a teenager, Kevin locks several students in the school gymnasium and murders them with his bow. When Eva arrives home, she finds Kevin has murdered Franklin and Celia. On the second anniversary of the massacre, Eva visits Kevin in prison. Eva asks him why he committed the murders. Kevin, who is about to be transferred to an adult prison, responds that he used to think he knew but is no longer sure. Eva hugs Kevin and walks away sadly. Cast Tilda Swinton as Eva Khatchadourian John C. Reilly as Franklin Plaskett Ezra Miller as Kevin Khatchadourian Jasper Newell as young Kevin Rocky Duer as infant Kevin Ashley Gerasimovich as Celia Khatchadourian Siobhan Fallon Hogan as Wanda Alex Manette as Colin Development In 2005 BBC Films acquired the rights to adapt the book as a film. Executive producers Paula Jalfon and Christine Langan took it through the development stage, and were joined by executive producer Steven Soderbergh. Lynne Ramsay, who became available after her involvement in the film adaptation of The Lovely Bones came to an end, signed on to direct, and was working on a script with In the Bedroom writer Robert Festinger by 2006. Shriver was offered a consultative role in the production process but declined, stating she had `` had it up to ( her ) eyeballs with that book, '' though she did express concern for how the film would capture Eva 's role as the unreliable narrator. Production had not begun by 2007, though BBC Films renewed the adaptation rights early in the year. In an interview with The Herald in September 2007, Shriver stated that she had not been in contact with Ramsay about the film for over two years. Ramsay 's spokesperson told the newspaper that a new script draft was being prepared and, at the time the interview was published, had not been submitted to the producers. Michael Clayton producer Jennifer Fox joined the production team in 2008 ; the film was expected to begin shooting that year. The script appeared on the 2008 Brit List, a film - industry - compiled list of the best unproduced screenplays in British film. Ramsay 's partner Rory Stewart Kinnear also contributed to the final shooting script. Christine Langan told the London Evening Standard in February 2010 that the long delay in production had been caused by BBC Films having difficulty funding the high budget ; Ramsay rewrote the script so the film could be made for a lower cost. The UK Film Council awarded £ 18,510 to the production from its development fund in the same month. Financial backing was also provided by Footprint Investments LLP, Caemhan Partnership LLP and Lipsync Productions, and production is in association with Artina Films and Forward Films. Filming commenced on 19 April 2010 on location in Stamford, Connecticut, and concluded on 28 May 2010. A key filming location was J.M. Wright Technical High School in Stamford. Jonny Greenwood of the band Radiohead composed the film 's score. Release In October 2009, IFC Films picked up the rights to international sales, and made pre-sales at the American Film Market. Artificial Eye distributed the film in the UK from 21 October 2011. Oscilloscope Laboratories distributed the film theatrically in North America in the winter of 2011. The film premiered In Competition at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, where it was met with praise from film critics. We Need to Talk About Kevin opened in a limited release in North America in a single theater and grossed $24,587, ranking 53rd at the box office. The film ended up earning $1,738,692 in America, and $5,754,934 internationally, for a total of $7,493,626. We Need to Talk About Kevin was released on Blu - ray and DVD on 29 May 2012. Reception Critical response We Need to Talk About Kevin received positive reviews. The film currently holds an approval rating of 76 % on Rotten Tomatoes ; the site 's consensus reads, `` We Need to Talk About Kevin is a masterful blend of drama and horror, with fantastic performances across the board ( Tilda Swinton especially, delivering one of her very best ). '' On Metacritic, the film received a score of 68 out of 100 based on 37 critics, indicating `` generally favorable reviews. '' Chicago Sun - Times critic Roger Ebert gave it 4 out of 4 stars and said, `` As a portrait of a deteriorating state of mind, We Need to Talk About Kevin is a masterful film. '' British film critic Mark Kermode of BBC Radio 5 Live named We Need to Talk About Kevin as the Best Film of 2011. Richard Brody, in The New Yorker, wrote that it `` masquerades as a psychological puzzle but is essentially a horror film full of decorous sensationalism. '' He opined that the film exploited but did not explore the fascination that `` bad seed '' children exert. Jake Martin, a Jesuit priest and movie critic, wrote in his review in Busted Halo that the film is not `` yet another installment in the pantheon of post-modern films intent upon assaulting the human desire to give meaning to the world. '' Instead, he says, `` We Need to Talk About Kevin in fact needs to be talked about, as what it is attempting to do by marrying the darkest, most nihilistic components of contemporary cinema with a redemptive message is groundbreaking. '' Tilda Swinton was nominated for a number of acting awards, including a Golden Globe Award, Screen Actors Guild and BAFTA for Best Actress in a leading role. Her acting also received praise by film critic David Thomson in a review of the film for The New Republic. Awards and nominations Award Date of ceremony Nominee ( s ) Result Austin Film Critics Association Best Actress Tilda Swinton Won AACTA International Award 27 January 2012 Best Actress Nominated Best Direction Lynne Ramsay Best Film Jennifer Fox, Luc Roeg, Bob Salerno Best Screenplay Lynne Ramsay, Rory Stewart Kinnear BAFTA Award 12 February 2012 Best Director Lynne Ramsay Best Actress in a Leading Role Tilda Swinton Outstanding British Film Jennifer Fox, Rory Stewart Kinnear, Lynne Ramsay, Luc Roeg, Robert Salerno Bodil Award 16 March 2013 Best American Film Lynne Ramsay British Independent Film Award 4 December 2011 Best Director Won Best Actress Tilda Swinton Nominated Best British Independent Film Best Screenplay Lynne Ramsay, Rory Stewart Kinnear Best Supporting Actor Ezra Miller Best Technical Achievement ( for cinematography ) Seamus McGarvey Cannes Film Festival 11 -- 22 May 2011 Palme d'Or Lynne Ramsay Critics ' Choice Movie Awards 12 January 2012 Best Actress Tilda Swinton Best Young Actor / Actress Ezra Miller Dallas - Fort Worth Film Critics Association 16 December 2011 Russell Smith Award Lynne Ramsay Won Best Actress Tilda Swinton Nominated European Film Award 3 December 2011 Best Actress Won Evening Standard British Film Award Best Film Lynne Ramsay Best Actress Tilda Swinton Nominated Best Technical Achievement ( for sound design ) Paul Davies Flanders International Film Festival Ghent Canvas Audience Award Lynne Ramsay Won Grand Prix for Best Film Nominated Golden Globe Award 15 January 2012 Best Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama Tilda Swinton Irish Film & Television Awards 11 February 2012 Best Director of Photography ( Film / TV Drama ) Seamus McGarvey Won Best International Actress Tilda Swinton Nominated London Film Critics ' Circle 19 January 2012 British Film of the Year Won Actress of the Year Tilda Swinton Nominated British Actress of the Year Director of the Year Lynne Ramsay Technical Achievement ( for sound design ) Paul Davies London Film Festival Best Film Lynne Ramsay Won National Board of Review of Motion Pictures Best Actress Tilda Swinton Top Ten Independent Films Online Film Critics Society Award 2 January 2012 Best Actress Tilda Swinton Best Editing Joe Bini Nominated Best Adapted Screenplay Lynne Ramsay, Rory Stewart Kinnear Rembrandt Award Best International Actress Tilda Swinton San Diego Film Critics Society 14 December 2011 Best Actress San Francisco Film Critics Circle Best Actress Won Screen Actors Guild Award 29 January 2012 Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role Nominated Southeastern Film Critics Association 18 December 2011 Best Actress Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival Jury Prize : Best Director Lynne Ramsay Won Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association 5 December 2011 Best Actress Tilda Swinton Nominated Writers ' Guild of Great Britain Best Film Screenplay Lynne Ramsay, Rory Stewart Kinnear Won References Jump up ^ `` We Need to Talk About Kevin ( 15 ) ''. British Board of Film Classification. 21 July 2011. Retrieved 22 October 2016. Jump up ^ `` We Need to talk About Kevin running time, production dates, budget ''. MovieInsider.com. Retrieved 9 November 2011. Jump up ^ `` We Need to Talk About Kevin ''. The Numbers. ^ Jump up to : Miller, Phil ( 14 September 2007 ). `` Why does this author need to talk about filming Kevin ? ''. The Herald. Jump up ^ McClintock, Paula ( 23 April 2010 ). `` Ramsay rounds out ' Kevin ' cast ''. Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved 23 April 2010. Jump up ^ Arendt, Paul ( 6 June 2006 ). `` Ramsay needs to shoot a film about Kevin ''. The Guardian. London : Guardian News & Media. p. 21 ( G2 supplement ). Jump up ^ Kemp, Stuart ( 18 May 2008 ). `` BBC Films has diverse slate ''. The Hollywood Reporter. Nielsen Business Media. Retrieved 18 May 2008. Jump up ^ Thomas, Archie ( 3 October 2008 ). `` Brit List brings scripts to light ''. Variety. Reed Business Information. Jump up ^ Burgeson, John ( 30 March 2010 ). `` In Stratford, sweet love drowns out sour weather ''. CT Post. Hearst Newspapers. Jump up ^ Curtis, Nick ( 19 February 2010 ). `` The women behind the British film industry ''. London Evening Standard. ES London. p. 27. Jump up ^ `` Awards Database : We Need to Talk About Kevin ''. UK Film Council. Retrieved 25 February 2010. Jump up ^ Staff ( 23 April 2010 ). `` '' We Need to talk About Kevin '' starts filming this week ``. HollywoodNews.com. Retrieved 24 April 2010. Jump up ^ Dawtrey, Adam ( 22 April 2010 ). `` The welcome return of Lynne Ramsay ''. London : guardian.co.uk ( Guardian News & Media ). Retrieved 22 April 2010. Jump up ^ Dundas Wood, Mark ( 28 May 2010 ). `` New York Production Listings ''. BackStage.com. Retrieved 30 May 2010. Jump up ^ O'Connell, A.J. ( 1 August 2010 ). `` Hollywood East : On location in Connecticut ''. The Hour. The Hour Publishing Co. Retrieved 3 August 2010. Jump up ^ Kemp, Stuart ( 14 February 2011 ). `` Radiohead 's Johny Greenwood to Score ' We Need to Talk About Kevin ' ( Berlin ) ''. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 14 February 2011. Jump up ^ Kay, Jeremy ( 22 October 2009 ). `` Independent boards We Need To Talk About Kevin for AFM ''. ScreenDaily.com ( Emap Media ). Retrieved 22 October 2009. Jump up ^ `` We Need to Talk About Kevin : world exclusive trailer - video '' ( includes video clip ). The Guardian. London. 12 August 2011. Retrieved 12 August 2011. Jump up ^ `` Cannes Showstopper ' We Need to Talk About Kevin ' Picked up By Oscilloscope / Film ''. Slashfilm.com. 2011 - 05 - 24. Retrieved 2011 - 12 - 23. Jump up ^ `` Festival de Cannes - From 16 to 27 may 2012 ''. Festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 2011 - 12 - 23. Jump up ^ `` BBC News - Cannes gets talking about British Kevin drama ''. bbc.co.uk. 2011 - 05 - 12. Retrieved 2011 - 12 - 23. Jump up ^ We Need to Talk About Kevin at Box Office Mojo Jump up ^ `` We Need To Talk About Kevin Blu - Ray Gets A US Release Date ''. Retrieved 2012 - 05 - 29. Jump up ^ We Need to Talk About Kevin at Rotten Tomatoes Jump up ^ `` We Need to Talk About Kevin ( 2011 ) ''. Metacritic. Retrieved 7 August 2017. Jump up ^ Ebert, Roger ( 25 January 2012 ). `` We Need to Talk About Kevin Movie Review ( 2012 ) ''. RogerEbert.com. Retrieved 25 May 2013. Jump up ^ Kermode, Mark ( 6 January 2012 ). `` Eleven from Eleven ''. BBC Online. Retrieved 25 May 2013. Jump up ^ Brody, Richard ( November 2011 ). `` We Need to Talk About Kevin ''. The New Yorker. Retrieved 10 June 2012. Jump up ^ Martin, Jake. `` We need to talk about We Need to Talk about Kevin ''. Busted Halo. Retrieved 2011 - 12 - 23. Jump up ^ Thomson, David ( 8 March 2012 ). `` Thomson on Film : A Movie About a School Shooting That Ignores the Shooter ''. The New Republic. Retrieved 25 May 2013. External links Official website We Need to Talk About Kevin on IMDb We Need to Talk About Kevin at AllMovie We Need to Talk About Kevin at Box Office Mojo We Need to Talk About Kevin at Rotten Tomatoes We Need to Talk About Kevin at Metacritic Films directed by Lynne Ramsay Ratcatcher ( 1999 ) Morvern Callar ( 2002 ) We Need to Talk About Kevin ( 2011 ) You Were Never Really Here ( 2017 ) London Film Critics ' Circle British Film of the Year Life Is Sweet ( 1991 ) Howards End ( 1992 ) The Remains of the Day ( 1993 ) Four Weddings and a Funeral ( 1994 ) The Madness of King George ( 1995 ) Secrets & Lies ( 1996 ) The Full Monty ( 1997 ) Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels ( 1998 ) East Is East ( 1999 ) Billy Elliot ( 2000 ) Gosford Park ( 2001 ) All or Nothing ( 2002 ) The Magdalene Sisters ( 2003 ) Vera Drake ( 2004 ) The Constant Gardener ( 2005 ) The Queen ( 2006 ) Control ( 2007 ) Slumdog Millionaire ( 2008 ) Fish Tank ( 2009 ) The King 's Speech ( 2010 ) We Need to Talk About Kevin ( 2011 ) Berberian Sound Studio ( 2012 ) The Selfish Giant ( 2013 ) Under the Skin ( 2014 ) 45 Years ( 2015 ) I, Daniel Blake ( 2016 ) Dunkirk ( 2017 ) Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=We_Need_to_Talk_About_Kevin_(film)&oldid=835502481 '' Categories : 2011 films English - language films 2010s drama films 2010s independent films 2010s psychological thriller films American films American independent films American thriller films American drama films British films British drama films British independent films British thriller films Films about psychopaths Films about dysfunctional families Films directed by Lynne Ramsay Patricide in fiction Sororicide in fiction Films based on American novels Films shot in Connecticut Films about school violence Best Film, London Film Festival winners Mass murder in films Films scored by Jonny Greenwood Hidden categories : EngvarB from May 2016 Use dmy dates from May 2016 Film articles using image size parameter Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikiquote Deutsch Eesti Español فارسی Français Galego 한국어 Italiano עברית Magyar 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Русский Simple English Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska 中文 13 more Edit links This page was last edited on 9 April 2018, at 02 : 15. 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Question: who played kevin in we need to talk about kevin
Answer: Ezra Miller