Let The Right One In
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Movie Reviews of Let The Right One In
Movie Review: A Lyrical, Poetic, Deliberately Ambiguous And, Most Importantly, 'Faithful' Adaptation Of John Ajvide Lindqvist's Novel
Summary: 5 Stars
**The following review pertains to a DVD release of the film featuring the original "theatrical subtitles". I can't pass comment on the 'hacked about' subtitles that appeared on the original US domestic release DVD of the film as I haven't seen it; but I am led to believe that it vastly changes the timbre and tone of the film as much of the more nuanced dialogue is sacrificed. Seek out the original "theatrically subtitled" version where you can.**
Oskar is a bullied twelve year old who lives with his mother in a council estate in the Blackeberg suburb of Stockholm. His life is a painful litany of physical abuse at the hands of his peers, over-mothering, and impotent rage expressed through the collection of articles about serial killers from newspapers and magazines.
However Oskar's life is to be forever changed by the arrival of the new girl next door, Eli - who is something far more and also far less than she appears...
Tomas Alfredson's film of "Let The Right One In" is a lyrical, poetic, deliberately ambiguous adaptation of John Ajvide Lindqvist's novel. Adapted for the screen by Lindqvist himself, the film is far more focussed on experience of childhood (through the travails of Oskar and Eli) and decidedly less focussed on the lives of tertiary adult characters such as the 'Sun Palace' regulars (Jocke, Lacke, Virginia, Morgan and Larry).
That is not to say that this isn't a faithful adaptation of the novel - it is. It's just that Alfredson and Lindqvist have quite wisely realised that film is a very different medium to literature and in paring down the sub-plots, and characters at work within them, they throw the themes and concerns of the novel into sharp relief in a way that would probably only have been possible to achieve through the medium of a television mini-series had they retained the depth and multitude of sub-plots and characters from the original book. Purists may bemoan the absence of a number of characters (Oskar's wayward adolescent neighbour and his rigid policeman stepfather are nowhere to be seen, and Hakan's obscene sexual predilections have been excised and his character subtly reinterpreted in a way that may suggest that he and Oskar may have a lot more in common than is at first apparent) and sub-plots (the zombie-style rampage of a character who has received Eli's sanguine attentions has been removed; and what has been perceived by many to be the novel's most controversial twist is vaguely alluded too rather than explicitly stated), but to my mind, this only strengthens the film as one focuses directly on the uniquely un-sugared vision of a world seen though a child's eyes. The only other film that I can think of that has so perfectly provided a window into the experience of childhood is Terry Gilliam's stunning, Tideland (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
Performances are extraordinary. Lina Leandersson is perfectly cast as Eli and she uses her strange, otherworldly - but rather pretty - young face to dynamic effect. At no point did I relate to her as a child actress; she really 'is' Eli. Similarly, Kare Hedebrandt perfectly captures all the naivety, rage and introspective joy of Oskar's lonely young soul.
The period setting of Stockholm in 1981 is perfectly captured. I grew up on a council estate in the UK in the early 1980's and was stunned by how the Swedish council estate in th film evoked the look and feel of my own experience growing up 'on the block'. Similarly, the fashions of the clothes and décor of the time are perfectly evoked to the point that I forgot that I was watching a film made in 2008 rather than a period piece.
In terms of set-pieces, I was expecting a lot from this film, in particular from the swimming pool sequence towards it's end - and it delivered. Boy, did it deliver. That one sequence alone was worth purchasing the film in my opinion. It really did feel like I was watching exactly what I had envisioned when I read the book.
Although not to everyone's taste, if you're in the mood for a beautifully filmed, languidly paced examination of young love and the loneliness of childhood (or is it a chilling portrait of the emotional manipulation of an isolated, vulnerable young boy by a ruthless predator that just appears to be a twelve year old girl? or even an allegorical tale of the primoridal manifestation of a wounded anima?) with some oblique horrific overtones, then you could do a lot worse than to pick this film up.
A word of warning for more impressionable viewers though. This film has haunted my waking hours in the week or so since I've watched it and has effected me in a way that no film - not even Darren Aronofsky's Requiem for a Dream (Director's Cut) or Gaspar Noe's Irreversible - ever has before. It may be the air of nostalgic melancholia, the pervasive sense of loneliness that haunts every frame, or it may just be due to some unresolved issues from my own childhood, but be careful of this one - it gets into your head. That said, it may well now be my favourite film of all time.
If you're a fan of the novel - consider it a must-see.
Movie Review: "To FLEE is Life...To Linger DEATH"
Summary: 5 Stars
I have always had a strong fondness for vampire films. Honestly, much of the vampire films these days are full of cliché and while most of them does attempt at something original, they all have one common denominator; to induce HORROR. Well, Sweden seems to have mastered an original take on the vampire lore and yes, this film has been marked to be "Americanized" very soon. "Let the Right One In" is a film adapted from the novel and written for the screen by John Ajvide Lindqvist with very powerful direction by Thomas Alfredson. Rather than a vampire film geared to induce scares, this film is heavy on mood that will definitely terrify and touch our very hearts.
Oskar (Kare Hedebrant) is a 12-year old boy whose parents are separated, he collects news clippings, and who gets bullied in school by his classmates. He usually wanders his apartment grounds at night while pining for vengeance against his tormentors. One evening, he meets Eli (superbly played by Lina Leanderson), a mysterious young girl of the same age with whom Oskar forms a provisional friendship. The two become quite close, as bizarre murders begin to run rampant in their community. Eli is a girl with powers that Oskar can barely understand, and she sees Oskar as an innocent, kindly soul worth preserving. Oskar sees Eli as his friend and confidant, as he becomes attracted to her. However, Eli has been twelve for quite a long time--she is a vampire. Their world is about to fall apart as things begin to spiral out of control.
Ever wonder what would happen if a 12 year old girl is turned into a vampire at such an early age? Being an immortal stuck at this pre-teen age can become quite complicated. Well, this Swedish vampire tale attempts to answer that question. The film is a moody affair and is full of hauntingly effective emotions. The film's main focus is the relationship between Eli and Oskar, and Eli as an immortal with a tortured soul and a conscience. "..Right One" observes the naïve sensuality between pre-teens and the brutality of having to kill to survive. As an immortal, Eli is longing for companionship, there is a subtle hint that the man who brought her into Oskar's apartment complex isn't exactly her father but that definition isn't really revealed which gives Eli a sense of being an enigma.
Eli isn't a villain, but rather also a victim. It was wise for the screenplay to treat her as another casualty rather than the antagonist--her situation itself is the film's "bad guy". "..Right One" is also a thematic affair in regards to isolation, loneliness as reflected by our two leads, and an empty life to live that requires viciousness to survive. The direction has a methodical approach, as it slowly brings Eli and Oskar together, introduces the violence without any elucidation to build on the film's psychological impact. Director Alfredson cleverly plays on how each scene of violence is shown, the violence is brutal but never for a minute do we forget about feeling sympathetic to Eli's situation. He allows the sympathy to steadily build within his audience but never for a minute does he forget to hold the viewer's interest. The way the film is shot is a form of minimalism, it avoids fancy camera shots, it lingers on some scenes to convey its mood and uses a lot of perspective. The film looks gorgeous, and the atmosphere has that darkly foreboding look that exudes sympathy accentuated further by its soundtrack.
Of course, the film does have its dose of blood and gore, but it is very calculated. Most of it occur throughout the film as it builds towards its excellent climax. "..Right One" also has the usual rules that apply to vampires; vulnerability to sunlight, dependent on blood for sustenance, the usual powers, and the need to be invited to one's home. (It was quite interesting to see what happens to a vampire when they aren't invited to come in one's home). Eli kills her prey after she gets her fill, she doesn't want to turn anyone and she only kills because she has to. The performances by Lina Leanderson and Kare Hedebrant is just brilliant with their simplicity and the two never for a moment falter in showing their age. Their awkward but endearing relationship is the film's showstopper as it endears, charms, frightens and explores the boundaries of their friendship.
Now, don't think that Alfredson and Lindqvist does nothing else with the script. When we aren't watching Eli and Oskar, we become privy to the paranoid community as they talk and gossip about the murders. The film goes into poetic visceral overdrive as a mistake becomes the turning point for our young leads and all hell threatens everything and turns the wheels of destiny.
I highly doubt that this film would translate well in becoming "Americanized" in its intended remake, given its very distinct European roots (as with the case with Asian Horror). "Let the Right One In" perfectly balances visceral punch with thrilling emotions that takes its brutality into sincere purity. The film takes some chances and I commend it for asking us to forgive a child and to accept her form of evil--to give her a show of compassion and sympathy. The film is grisly, grotesque, unnervingly beautiful and gentle, and is a welcome installment in vampire lore. It features the concerns of pre-teens mixing it in with waiflike atmosphere. It is one dishearteningly stupendous art house horror film!
Highly Recommended! [5-Stars]
Movie Review: An old-fashioned yet very modern vampire film...and so much more! 4.5 stars.
Summary: 5 Stars
Finally coming to the little "art house" movie theatre in our city (Albuquerque) was a little Swedish film I had assumed I would have to see on DVD someday: LET THE RIGHT ONE IN. Thank goodness I was able to get in during its five-day run...it's a real treat.
This is a horror movie that is also simply a romantic drama and sometimes a very dark comedy. It hews closely to "vampire conventions" yet turns them pretty neatly on their heads at the same time.
12 year old Oskar is a shy, weak awkward little boy. Not surprisingly, he is prime target for school bullies and also nurses some pretty deep fantasies about exacting bloody revenge on his tormentors. He drags through his colorless days (the film is set mostly in and around an apartment complex in a rundown suburb of Stockholm during the early `80s...and it's snowing ALL THE TIME) with little to interest him. He lives with his mother, who doesn't seem to be home much, and only seems to enjoy occasional visits to his father out in the country.
One day, some new neighbors move in next door. A middle aged (closing in on old) man and a 12 year old girl, Eli. I don't think I'm spoiling much if I let you know now that Eli is actually a vampire, and the old man is her Renfield, the human who takes care of her during the day and helps acquire blood. While Oskar doesn't figure this out for a while, the viewer picks up on it pretty quickly.
Here's what great: the vampire in the film is stealthy, thirsty for blood and very strong (just like in all the "old school" vampire films). She is also vulnerable to daylight, and her bite, if you aren't killed by being completely drained and having your neck broken, will turn you into a vampire. There's none of the toying around with what defines a vampire as we've seen in the last couple of decades worth of vampire films. Yet the movie shows us Eli as a person who is capable of human vulnerabilities and most importantly, human caring, loyalty and affection.
The film shows us the slowly developing friendship between Oskar and Eli. These scenes are handled with great delicacy and if you took out all the vampiric elements, you'd still have a nice story about the blossoming friendship / love between two lost 12 year olds.
The film also shows us just how mundane the details of being a modern vampire are. The acquiring of blood, the darkening of windows in a modern apartment, etc.
And when there are bursts of violence, they are thrilling in their abruptness and ferocity. The sound editing is great, and while the movie shows you very little of what is happening, you don't feel like it is skimping either. You are able to conjure up all you need to give yourself a decent case of the willies.
The two young actors in the lead (Kare Hedebrant as Oskar and Lina Leandersson as Eli) are terrific. They are very natural and unforced...they feel NOTHING like Hollywood child actors. They are not perfect physical specimens...but the both exude a particular brand of innocence that can only come from a child just barely, but not quite, pushed over into adolescence. Even the bullies in the film, while certainly not carefully fleshed out, are not cardboard characters. They are all the more menacing because they seem completely possible.
This movie will make you laugh as you shudder. It will make you feel warm and sentimental, even when something brutally violent is happening. There is nothing simple about this seemingly simple story.
It is VERY slowly paced. While it held my interest throughout and certainly captured me emotionally, I must also admit to a little squirming in my seat from time to time. Part of it stems from the fact that the movie is set in such a bleak time and location. Snow falling on gray, industrial looking dwellings and schools. A washed out palette was used overall, and this made the film seem oppressive. While very effective and highly believable, that isn't necessarily the stuff that ENJOYMENT is made of. But these feelings were fleeting and only sporadic.
This is a somewhat challenging film, not just because you have to read subtitles (which frankly shouldn't be considered a challenge at all), but because it demands that you see the world from a slightly different point-of-view and to show sympathy for a vampire and a 12 year old boy with murder in his heart. But if you remember that this is, after all, fiction...I don't think you'll have any moral qualms. I didn't!
There are many more elements that come up later in this film, but I don't want to hint at them for fear of spoiling its many pleasures for you. Just suffice it to say that if what you've read above intrigues you about the film...you won't regret seeing it. For me, one test of the worth of a film is if I find myself thinking about it days later. It's been awhile since I saw LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, and I can still feel many of its moods and picture many of its scenes as though I had just walked out of the theatre. By that measure, and many others, this film is a great success and highly recommended.
Movie Review: Why This Movie (And The Arts) Really, Really Matter. LET THE RIGHT ONE IN. A Critical Review
Summary: 5 Stars
I am not a horror-film fan.
The Jasons and the Freddys and the forgotten-half-brother-of-the-high-school-jock who grows up to kill the children of his tormentors at summer camp, don't do it for me either.
There are a few, though, that are really well done and speak more about phobias that plague each of us and how we adapt or are marginalized by them. Films like The Exorcist, Carrie, The Amityville Horror and even Fright Night whose dark expose offers up the spiritual in a backhanded way whereas the viewer is made to understand the esoteric mechanics of life.
The great works of Art do. This is their purpose.
When Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein, nearly a century and a half ago, the issue she (and her mother and step-father for that matter) wrestled with was the idea of how to re-construct the human being to get him/ her to see beyond the psychology that defines gender and nature. The Hollywood bastardization of this great novel with its grotesque redepiction of the Creation undermined the motivation of the author and, by default, the message.
LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (2008) is director Tomas Alfredson's visionary adaptation of author John Ajvide Lindqvist's novel of the same name.
In this film, the Swedish version (and the far, far superior version to the US release) we meet Oskar (brilliantly played by Kare Hedebrandt) a twelve-year old or as he'd say to Eli, "twelve years, eight months and nine days!"
Oskar is the stereotypical outcast. He's fearful of going to school. Fearful of what the school day will bring in the form of the school's bullies, who relentless taunt him because he doesn't "fit in."
Does Oskar really not "fit in?" I suggest that it would be a gross misunderstanding to characterize his isolation by a few as being someone who doesn't "fit in." Of course, he fits in. He was a normal teenager. He loved swimming, loved his Rubic's Cube and admired the girls who wouldn't give him (or many of us, at that age) the time of day, preferring the company of those who made his life (and ours) a living hell.
Oskar lets out steam in a time and place where he feels completely free to express himself: outside in the cold, dark evenings of the deserted playground directly under the watchful eye of his loving, single-mother. He fancies taking out his aggressions not on society at-large, not on any innocent classmates, but on the bullies themselves. And, that's an important distinction to make.
It was during one of these moments, coincidentally, where he meets Eli (played equally brilliant by Lena Leandersson) a mysterious girl who looks to be about the same age as Oskar. And, in fact, just before he tells her how old he is, she tells him that she is "twelve... more or less."
"More or less?" What does that mean, "more or less?" Oskar's inquiry leads him no where. Who is this girl? Why doesn't she know how old she is? Why is she dressed like this? And, why is she out here in the cold, barefooted in nothing but a nightdress? He has so many questions but they seem to elude his naturally inquisitive mind when he stopped to look at her friendly face.
This movie, unlike its predecessors, has only a few moments of violence (considering the subject). That is to say, you'll not be shocked by excessive gore. She is a vampire, of course, and as such she is driven by solely survival propensities and nothing more.
The film, to its director's credit, doesn't rely on the creature's physiological pursuit. This is a relationship film, plain and simple. And, we relate because we understand. We see ourselves in the many faces that play different characters.
At the heart of this film is an intimate discussion about friendship, loyalty, about confronting fear and daring to ask the unspeakable questions to and about ourselves and the people we have relationships with.
This is the genius of this film. This is a work of art.
Right now, we're facing cut backs in art programs in schools all around the US. The prevailing notion is that the arts are an unnecessary expenditure. LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, the film (and I venture to say the book, as well) is an argument against that notion. There are but a few who're profiting financially from this film and book, but to reduce the value of what we experience in terms of dollars and cents is to miss the whole point.
What can be gained? How about the same conversation that Shelley had? How about re-imagining ourselves, not as a grotesque Hollywood reinvention, but as an amalgam of ideas, dreams, lessons, as thinking, rational, compassionate human beings who share the wealth of their experiences with their fellow man for no other motivation than to see and to be a part of a more prosperous community.
LET THE RIGHT ONE IN.
Movie Review: "Be me, for a little while."
Summary: 5 Stars
The more I mull over this fascinating film the more I'm convinced that all the hype and praise it received (being toted as the best vampire movie ever) is accurate. I mean, I am not a vampire aficionado by any means, but I have seen a few of the more well regarded vampire films and this one blows them all away for me. There is just such raw and sinister relevance to this poignant story that I can't help but hold it in high esteem.
I really, really need to read this novel!
The film tells the story of a young boy named Oskar who meets a young vampire named Eli. Oskar isn't aware right off that Eli is a vampire, but they bond due to a mutual feeling of exclusion. Eli, being a vampire, is reclusive almost impulsively and has no real companions outside of a man named Hakan who takes care of her by killing men and bringing her blood. Oskar is a small and wimpy young boy who is constantly picked on and finds himself internalizing his rage in wild fantasies of killing the boy who is harassing him. That is how Eli and Oskar meet. One night while acting out his frustrations on a defenseless tree, Oskar is approached by Eli and they soon strike up an unlikely friendship. This relationship takes them through mutual hardships and helps the other to grow in areas they are struggling.
This is very much a love story that is far less about love and more about affection.
When one dissects the core of this film they find so much more than they bargained for, or than they initial thought they'd discover. This is far more than just a monster movie, this is a beautiful depiction of adolescent angst and the need to find someone to share in and thus alleviate your pain. There is also a lot here that is so subtle and merely hinted at. I have read on some of the novel's broader scope and I love they way that this film insinuates a lot while leaving the majority of the back-story to your imagination. Eli is a mysterious character, but there are plenty of hints to her story dropped for us to nibble on. These tidbits add to the layers of pain in her eyes and the emotional depth we see in her undead soul.
"If I wasn't a girl...would you like me anyway?"
The subject of revenge and childhood alienation and subsequent domination is given proper and enlightening treatment as we consider Oskar's situation as well as the similar yet contrasted state that Eli finds herself. Eli is very much like Oskar, yet she is a matured variation of him (beings that she is 200+ years old) and yet she maintains the same need for vengeance that he feels at his young age. This detail tragically shows that pain etched on the skin of the young very rarely fades with time. Oskar's undeniable desire to be older himself (he knows his age to the day, which is a tell tale sign of someone counting the days until something better) is also a tragic detail, showing the loss of youth in today's society. With all the pain and all the heartache, our young ones are chucking away what should be crucial years of their development for adulthood.
The title of the film alone (English translation being `Let the Right One In') is a testament to the level of emotional relevance this film carries. The title refers to the emotional bond between Eli and Oskar, a statement referring to letting one in emotionally. Throughout the film Eli makes it known that she must be invited inside, and this is metaphoric for the need she has to belong and or be wanted. The same is true for Oskar, and once Eli begins to share her truth with Oskar it becomes apparent that she has `let him in' just as he has `let her in'.
Carrying the film's heavy themes, young Kare Hedebrant and Lina Leandersson (both making acting debuts here) are astonishingly effective. It doesn't hurt that director Tomas Alfredson baths them in a sea of rich metaphoric light. Alfredson allows his actors to become one with the imagery, creating a beautifully complete film. The attention to detail is simply breathtaking. From the score to the cinematography to the script to the acting, everything is a perfect compliment of the other.
This film is truly haunting, but not in that generic horror way. `Lat den Ratte Komma In' is far from generic. It is intoxicatingly real, a film that shies away from the clichés presented in this overdone genre (the characters are real and gritty as apposed to sexed up and artificial), giving us something with a purity rarely seen in a film containing this much bloodshed.