My Review: Let the Right One In (9/10)

¨ Oscar, listen. Hit back! You`ve never hit back, have you? So do it! Hit back hard! ¨

(9/10) Låt Den Rätte Komma In is a great Swedish film directed by Tomas Alfredson based on the novel from John Ajvide Lindqvist of the same name which translated means Let The Right One In. Lindqvist also wrote the screenplay for this film so he helped Alfredson with the adaptation of his own novel which is based on a twelve year old girl (who actually has been a vampire for over two hundred years and hasn`t changed her physical appearance) and her relationship with a young kid named Oscar. The title of the film has to do with the vampire legend that they have to ask for permission before entering anyone`s home, they just can`t come in on their own free will. The atmosphere in this movie is great; the director quickly sets us in a very suspenseful state by locating us in a quiet and cold small Swedish town. The scenery is just beautiful with a lot of snow contrasting the dark town and contributing to the overall horror and suspense. I really loved how this movie was filmed. This is probably one of the best vampire movies I have seen because it is so different from the others and stands out alone in its genre. The violence is disturbing, but in a different way because it doesn`t actually show you everything that is going on. You are left imagining a lot of the violent acts because you see it from a distance or someone is in the way so you actually don`t see all the blood or the throat slicing, and the film really plays with your sensory senses because sometimes just imagining it is worse than seeing the violence. Interesting enough the vampire isn`t actually seen as a villain either because the director wants us to see things through her eyes.

At the beginning of the movie we are introduced to Oscar (Kare Hedebrant), a twelve year old boy who is bullied at school by three of his classmates. He is a very quiet kid, but is also very smart. At home he lives alone with his mother and is constantly dreaming of getting revenge. He plays with a knife and constantly repeats the words ¨squeal, squeal like a pig¨ probably making reference to the fact that in school they call him a pig and constantly make fun of him. He also seems to collect clips from the newspapers of violent acts. Oscar is a quiet and sweet kid, but he does have these violent daydreams. It is during one of these daydreams that Oscar sees a man and a young girl move into the apartment complex where Oscar lives. The girl´s name is Eli (Lina Leandersson) and he quickly becomes friends with her although she only goes out at night and dresses very lightly considering the freezing weather (all details which capture Oscar`s attention). Eli and Oscar become friends and she tells him not to allow the other kids to treat him that way, and that he must fight back and hit harder in order to gain their respect. Since Eli lives in the apartment next door to his, Oscar figures out how to communicate with Eli with Morse code and their relationship continues to build. What he doesn`t know is that Eli is actually a two hundred year old vampire and that the man that lives with her is not actually her father, but a serial killer who is in charge of bringing her fresh blood from his victims. His name is Hakan (Per Ragnar) and he doesn`t like Oscar very much. Soon Oscar discovers Eli`s real identity and will have to choose if he wants to continue with her friendship or judge her actions.

This is without a doubt a movie that will be remade in Hollywood because the story is original and gripping. Hollywood has run out of ideas and is actually remaking a lot of foreign film. My advice is go see the original versions because they are much better. It will be very difficult for any vampire movie to top this one because the mood and suspense of the film capture your attention from the very beginning. Also the chemistry between Hedebrant and Leandersson will be very hard to equal because their performances are just brilliant despite their young ages. The movie is very unique and beautifully shot, the scenery is captivating, and the mystery mixed with the romance works well. If you disliked the Twilight saga (which wasn`t my case), don`t worry you will probably love this film because it has a completely different tone and mood. Please go see this film in its original version because it is worth your time. The final ten minutes of the film are very intense. Brilliant movie!