I never knew this movie was based on a book, until I happened to find it. However, after reading and then watching the movie, I think the book ultimately holds up better.
In this film, you see the slow progression from a difficult baby/toddler/teen into something darker. The story felt a little hard to follow, with cuts happening 24/7 between current Eva (bob haircut) and past (pixie haircut) Eva. It's kind of a subtle difference to figure out. You see her struggle to raise Kevin, and watch his deliberate attempts at driving her nuts.
Is it still creepy? Yes. Is the ending still a shock? Kind of! I think the book did a much better job of building up the story. Instead of blinking back and forth to see the foreshadowing, it focuses on how Kevin grew and changed throughout his entire life, and how Eva changes with him. How her suspicions grew and were dismissed, how her marriage falls apart and how her second pregnancy shakes things up. I think having a better internal idea of what's going on with Eva added to my experience, and that just wasn't present in the film.
Although a terrible person, Ezra Miller did a great job portraying Kevin and being a creep. I think the acting and execution of this movie is good too! I just think substance was lost in translating this book to film, and would recommend the book more. (It is a bit of a read though.)
In this film, you see the slow progression from a difficult baby/toddler/teen into something darker. The story felt a little hard to follow, with cuts happening 24/7 between current Eva (bob haircut) and past (pixie haircut) Eva. It's kind of a subtle difference to figure out. You see her struggle to raise Kevin, and watch his deliberate attempts at driving her nuts.
Is it still creepy? Yes. Is the ending still a shock? Kind of! I think the book did a much better job of building up the story. Instead of blinking back and forth to see the foreshadowing, it focuses on how Kevin grew and changed throughout his entire life, and how Eva changes with him. How her suspicions grew and were dismissed, how her marriage falls apart and how her second pregnancy shakes things up. I think having a better internal idea of what's going on with Eva added to my experience, and that just wasn't present in the film.
Although a terrible person, Ezra Miller did a great job portraying Kevin and being a creep. I think the acting and execution of this movie is good too! I just think substance was lost in translating this book to film, and would recommend the book more. (It is a bit of a read though.)