So, having been neglecting things here lately, I thought I’d make a comeback this afternoon. Before I carry on with the comeback, just in case you don’t know, having moved my Arsenal related ramblings from the apparently defunct Arsenal Mania to here, I’ve now moved them again. Well, how could I refuse the lovely Leanne at LadyArse? Even if she is apparently mental.
That’s a joke, Lee…
Anyway, that’s what’s happening. Which means this blog can now become what it began life as, an excuse to talk about something other than Arsenal as and when i see fit. Which, clearly, is mainly music. But today, I’d like to talk about a couple of films that I’ve seen in the last couple of weeks. I’d like to talk about them because they affected me quite profoundly and if, well, if you can’t talk about stuff like that, then what the hell are you going to talk about?
I first came across We Need To Talk About Kevin in its original form; the totally devastating novel by Lionel Shriver which takes the form of a series of letters from a wife, Eva, to her husband, Franklin. You make a natural presumption at the beginning of this book and then read on as Eva details how the love they shared was spoiled by the birth of their son, the titular Kevin. I can’t remember now, I read the book three years ago, whether what Kevin does is explicitly addressed early on or whether it is saved for the climax. But what I do now is that I read the last 100+ pages with a mounting sense of dread and disbelief at what I guessed was coming.
Sitting in the Greenwich Picturehouse a couple of weeks back, I’d forgotten lots of the details but, obviously, not the story itself. How could I? So I think it’s massive, massive tribute to the film’s director Lynne Ramsey and the performances of John C.Reilly, Ezra Miller and, in particular Tilda Swinton as Eva that the film was such an uncomfortable watch. There are no surprises in this adaptation, I don’t think any of the important details are changed and, really, there should have been nothing for me to get so tense about, I knew where this was going.
Despite that, at the climax of two extraordinary hours, I was squirming in my seat, desperate to get out, away from this picture. It was so intense. Part of that was unmistakably down to one of the creepiest performances I’ve ever seen from Miller. The other part of that is the way Ramsey constructed her hallucinatory film, red, blood red, is everywhere from the very first second and it leaves you nowhere to escape to, no room to breathe in. At the end I ran from the cinema, straight to the toilet and stood, “OhmyGod OhmyGod OhmyGod.” And, to quote Madonna, I’m not religious. Obviously, I also needed to pee, but I really, really, needed to get some air.
One scene in particular really stuck in my mind and, curiously enough, it didn’t involve Miller. It was a beautiful shot of Eva and Franklin, in their younger (pre Kevin) days, embracing on the corner of a street in some, presumably, exotic locale. The rain is beating down on them and they are bathed in various shades of light. It was evocative and erotic and provided a glaring counterpoint to the Eva living in her post atrocity world, unloved and alone.
On the other hand, Take Shelter concerns a man played by Michael Shannon, Curtis, who is very much loved. He has a loving wife, Samantha, played by Jessica Chastain and daughter, Hannah, and a faithful dog named Red. But he can’t shake dreams of an impending storm. A storm of oily rain and biblical proportions. A storm in which both friends, dog and shadowy unknowns provide an ever increasing threat threat to this dedicated family man. So, he begins to take measures to protect both himself and his family, but is he really seeing the future or just going quietly insane? This question is always left in the balance which leads to a heartstopping climax where Curtis almost literally holds his family’s life in his hands. The tension is unbearable.
I tweeted, having just seen the film, that this was my film of the year, having had a few days distance from it I think that it is possibly a bit slight. But it does have an absolutely riveting performance from Michael Shannon, in a much more sympathetic vein than Boardwalk Empire’s Nelson Van Alden. He is superb and pulls you in, much like Peter Mullan in Tyrannosaur, as a man battling to overcome his demons. Jessica Chastain felt a bit like she was ACTING in places, but come the film’s denouement playing your heartstrings like the most skilled violinist.
I realise I’m a bit late with my thoughts on “Kevin”, but if you haven’t seen it yet, then if you can, you should. Take Shelter opened last Friday and is a thoroughly rewarding journey. Take it.
antstothenational 