It has long been debated if a person can be inherently evil or if circumstances and environment make someone a monster. There is plenty of evidence to support either argument, but in We Need to Talk About Kevin, the monster is clearly born with sociopathic tendencies that fester as the title character grows into adolescence.

Based on the 2003 novel of the same name, this film is presented as the fragmented memories of Eva (Tilda Swinton), a mother whose mind wanders at mundane times like when she is sitting in a waiting room as a fan causes the corner of a poster to flap against the wall (the word “lovers” prominently displayed on the poster’s corner). As Eva’s mind sorts out the details of various incidents from her past, the viewer is forced to make sense of seemingly random images such as John C. Reilly playing with a little girl wearing an eye patch and the recurring sound of a water sprinkler being heard through white curtains flapping in the night wind.

But what at first seems like random thoughts gradually coalesces to form the story of a mother whose teenage son (Ezra Miller) has, since birth, had a dark side that is only apparent to her. When he’s an infant, Eva finds the sounds of jackhammers soothing over his incessant screams. As a toddler, he emptily glares at her as he learns to shoot a toy bow and arrow. And as a teenager he seems to find sick delight in otherwise embarrassing moments such as his mother walking into the bathroom while he’s masturbating.

At first, Eva thinks her son may be autistic. But as time goes on, she realizes he was born with a very different ailment that is nearly impossible to diagnose. Especially since he seems polite and chipper to everyone else, including his father (Reilly). Miller’s portrayal of a natural born killer is profoundly chilling, and the fact that his mother is left with the proverbial blood on her hands (which is masterfully illustrated through flashbacks of her scrubbing the red paint vandals have spattered on the front of her house) makes the situation heart-wrenchingly hopeless.

These increasingly horrific memories are juxtaposed with upbeat and jovial folk and Americana songs by the likes of The Beach Boys, Buddy Holly, Lonnie Donegan and Washington Phillips that are somehow very appropriate despite their contradictory tone. But everything seems to serve a purpose in We Need to Talk About Kevin, from the sounds that drift in and out of Eva’s memories to the Jackson Pollock-like paint spatter a young Kevin applies to the walls with water guns (foreshadowing the culmination of his lifelong disregard for anyone but himself).

Though it is not likely to be categorized as such, We Need to Talk About Kevin is one of the best horror movies of the past few years. Sociopaths often never show their true soullessness to the world, but Kevin’s ultimate act of hubris exposes his inner monster in a big way, leaving Eva with nothing but her memories of what was and what could have been. And it’s only when he is forced to face the consequences of his actions that Kevin finally shows some sign of a human conscience.

We Need to Talk About Kevin. Directed by Lynne Ramsay. Starring Tilda Swinton, Ezra Miller and John C. Reilly. Rated R. www.kevin.oscilloscope.net.

Review by Jonathan Williams