FEMALE PERVERSIONS

Tilda Swinton imbues this character with an impetuous, high-strung hauteur that is both magnetic and infuriating. Evelyn is intended to symbolize a kind of Everywoman, specifically Every-Superwoman, who is struggling to climb the professional ladder while remaining alluringly \"feminine\". Her \"perversions\" are her attempts to force herself to fit a stereotypical male-defined image of the ideal woman.
Thanks to the mercurial fluency of Tilda Swinton's hot-and-cold performance, Evelyn emerges as much more than a symbolic case study of a powerful woman inwardly tearing herself to pieces. As Evelyn swings from frantically obsessing about her image to dreaming of something more primitive, earthy and androgynous, Tilda Swinton makes every zigzag ring psychologically true. (Stephen Holden)