Movie Review: Let the Right One In (2008) directed by Tomas Alfredson
Oskar, like a lot of twelve year olds, has problems. His parents are divorced (and Dad has a drinking problem), and he’s being bullied at school. Having a strong interest in serial killers, Oskar has taken to carrying a knife and fantasizing about solving his problems with stabbing. But he knows he doesn’t have the guts to do it. The one bright spot in Oskar’s life is Eli (pronounced “Ellie”) the rather strange girl who’s moved in next door. For all her eccentricity, Eli’s nicer to him than anyone else. It’s a pity that there’s bodies piling up.
This 2008 Swedish horror film was based on a 2004 novel by John Lindqvist, who also wrote the screenplay. The story takes place near Stockholm in the early 1980s, with a brief mention of Brezhnev.
The early part of the film has some humor as Eli’s “caretaker” is spectacularly inept at gathering blood for his vampiric ward, but he’s soon out of the picture as the stakes escalate.
Good: Oskar and Eli are portrayed by child actors of the appropriate age, making the film seem more realistic and less Hollywood. There’s good suspense, and the “romantic” scenes are appropriately creepy.
Less good: The trimming of extraneous background material is a little too thorough in places, making it necessary to turn to external sources to determine (for example) that Oskar’s father is not supposed to be gay, just too willing to have a drink or ten with his buddy when he should be paying attention to his son.
Content note: In addition to the bullying scenes and gory violence, there’s a brief moment of unsettling nudity.
Sadly, my DVD would not play the Swedish soundtrack, and I had to settle for the English dub, which comes across a little tinny in places.
Recommended to vampire movie fans, especially if you can get the Swedish soundtrack for the authentic experience.
