Thursday, July 2, 2009

Let the Right One in Review


I finally got around to getting a hold of Let the Right One In. It was actually available to stream from Netflix which was great and convenient but unfortunately a lot of it ended up being completely silent and the only reason I know what was said in certain parts was because of the subtitles.

I found LROI fairly disturbing. This is not a gory action vampire film; it is a coming-to-age film about two twelve year olds, each with their own set of problems. Oskar is a boy with no friends, is bullied constantly and although fantasizes about his revenge, he is too cowardly to stand up for himself. His mother is hardly home and while he greatly enjoys himself when he visits his father, his father quickly abandons him when more appealing company shows up. After meeting Eli, an odd 12 year old girl he later finds out is a vampire, he quickly becomes interested in her and impressed by her puzzle solving skills. They begin to befriend each other and live out their lives the way they choose to.

I found this film to be unique in the way Eli the vampire was portrayed. It seemed as if she was forever stuck as a young girl in not just body, but in mind somewhat as well. The film also puts a different spin on the popular belief that vampires can’t be invited into your home unless invited.

The film doesn’t exactly make you scared; you don’t jump in out of your seat, you simply feel a bit horrified at the behavior and feelings of Eli and Oskar. After the last scene we wondered if it would be categorized as a happy ending, a sad ending, or something else all together.
Rumor has it that there is going to be an American remake of this film which will probably be quite tragic.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

You shoul read the book, it's much more detailed and really presents vampire in a unique way. Also, you find out more about Eli (in case you were wondering about the scar in the nude scene).