Why We Can't Talk About We Need to Talk About Kevin

By Rob Christopher in Arts & Entertainment on Oct 11, 2011 7:40PM

This is part of Chicagoist's coverage of the Chicago International Film Festival.

We had been planning to tell you all about the new Lynne Ramsay film starring Tilda Swinton and John C. Reilly. Yesterday we attended a press screening for the film, and as the end credits rolled we found ourselves both stunned and curiously elated by what we'd just seen, a reaction very similar to when we saw Hunger at CIFF a few years ago.

But unlike Hunger, we can't post a full review of the movie. Oscilloscope, the movie's US distributor, and CIFF have both requested that "full reviews of the film be held until its February theatrical release." Does that request sound absurd to you? We Need to Talk About Kevin is, after all, screening twice during the festival, and was reviewed extensively at Cannes and Toronto. It's already one of the most acclaimed movies of the year. Moreover as members of the press, we attended a press screening yesterday--presumably, not just for our own amusement or edification.

Yet, we must hold our tongues. And, sad to say, this is not the only movie playing at CIFF that we can't review. Like so many other aspects of the film industry this absurdity is standard protocol, an "understanding" that's been in place for years. The thinking is, of course, that if we're allowed to post a review now, when the film is actually released in February you, dear readers, will no longer care to see it. "Why, I read about that movie way back in October," you'll say, "That's old news! I don't want to see it now." Sound familiar? "Why gee, that Foo Fighters album leaked already. No need for me to buy it now." Right? Wrong.

Now, we could go ahead and post our review. But that would probably put our future access to CIFF in jeopardy. And this is how the system works: your fear of getting blackballed successfully ensures that you'll follow the industry's rules, no matter how nonsensical they are.

When will the film industry learn that, especially in the case of a movie like We Need to Talk About Kevin, ten months of non-stop buzz and positive reviews can only help? Because frankly even if we did post a review now, we'd be only too happy to review it again in February. Like most great movies, it deserves multiple viewings and multiple assessments. For, if anything, the entire movie functions as a giant anti-spoiler. Told largely in flashback, we already know what happened: after meticulous preparations, Kevin goes on a rampage of violence at his high school, killing or wounding untold numbers of his peers. The movie is about the how. Each scene ratchets up the tension, and every terrible element falls into place, one by one.

But you'll just have to take our word for it.

We Need to Talk About Kevin screens tonight at 7:30 p.m. and Tuesday, October 18 at 7:45 p.m. Both screenings have Rush Tickets only at this point.