"Let the Right One In" Review - Written by TonyD

“Låt den rätte komma in” (“Let the Right One In”)
2008
**** out of ****
Director: Tomas Alfredson
Cast: Kare Hedebrant, Lina Leandersson, Per Ragnar


In all of the films that I’ve seen, I threw words around such as “amazing,” “brilliant,” and “kickass.” I’ve seen films that I would consider to be “fantastic” and “great,” but I have also seen films that I would consider to be “terrible” and “worthless.” But there is one word that I don’t use much. Actually, I only used it once in my life, and it was to describe my all-time favorite film, “Sin City.” That word is “magnificent,” and yesterday, I used it a second time.

Last night, I saw the ultimate film of the year. “Let the Right One In” is a daring and horrifying film, but it is masterful and poetic in every way. It is beautiful and filled of love, but it is also one of the most realistic fantasy films I have ever seen. This is something that I wasn’t expecting. I have gotten people to go see films in the past, but I’m making everyone go see this one little film. It is magnificent. Once the word gets out that “Let the Right One In” is the best film of the year, I guarantee you that you will never forget this film. It will be engraved in your memory and you’ll never lose it. And after the film ends, you’ll want to watch it again, and again, and again.

Simply, “Let the Right One In” is a masterpiece.

Oskar (Kare Hedebrant) lives with his mother in an apartment complex who is frequently picked on by school bullies. He carries around a knife for self-defense but never uses it, and saves newspaper clippings on violent crimes that have occurred. In the apartment next door, a little girl Eli (Lina Leandersson) and her father Hakan (Per Ragnar) have moved in. Oskar and Eli begin talking on the jungle-gym in front of their complex, and they start becoming great friends. But Eli is hiding a huge secret – she’s a vampire. And it is only a matter of time until Oskar finds out…

“Let the Right One In” is based off a novel by John Lindqvist, who also penned the screenplay. He very well knows his own material, and instead of showing a horror flick that contains jumpy moments, he creates a more psychological film that causes you to look deeper into the characters’ relationships with one another.

The relationship between Eli and Hakan is pretty complex, but it is just right to examine. Her father and Eli live off of blood, and it is Hakan’s job to go get the blood. But Hakan asks, when is enough enough? Hakan and Eli have to travel from city to city so they can get away from the crime that they have caused, but Hakan is tired of living the life. In a scene in which the film takes a right turn, Hakan asks Eli to kill him so Eli could survive and live by herself. It is a beautiful and poetic scene of just how much her father really does care.

When it comes to Oskar and Eli, we are seeing one of the most compelling relationships of the decade. Here is Oskar, who is defenseless and is just looking for a friend. When Eli comes along, she puts a little bit of life into Oskar. You can tell as the film progresses how much Oskar changes once she comes along. He begins to grow a little bit more self-confident and starts standing up for himself more. He feels comfortable around her and even asks her to be his girlfriend. Once he discovers that she is a vampire, he doesn’t feel the least bit forsaken.

The same goes for Eli. When she and Oskar first began talking, there was a sense of awkwardness in their relationship. Later on in the film, you can tell how much she has fallen in love with him, and it makes it hard for her to keep traveling around Sweden while leaving him behind. A scene comes where Oskar purposely stabs himself in the thumb so he can show just how committed he is to their relationship, and Eli jumps all over his blood while screaming for him to leave. It shows how she doesn’t want anything bad to happen to him. Remember when I said that “Wall-E” was one of the greatest love-stories ever told? This very well just may be the GREATEST.

There are a few little subplots here and there that make the film a lot more interesting. It describes the power that she has even more and shows just how hard it is to maintain it. Now, I haven’t read the book, and apparently, there is a little “thought” in the book that Eli was a boy at one time. Maybe the book dives into the topic a lot more, but the film questions throughout the flick such as whether or not Eli is a boy or a girl. There is a little “shot” that leaves us questioning, but the film doesn’t dive into it anymore than that. There is so much to look for the next time I watch it.

But I’m going to do something that is shunned upon all film critics. I want you guys to e-mail me at TonyD@FilmArcade.net if you really want to see the film. I will post the trailer at the bottom of the review, and if you are interested, I want you to e-mail me. I won’t post anything here, but I’ll reply back, and perhaps you may be interested…

“Let the Right One In” is a fascinating film that has so much to offer. It is too bad that it is being remade in the next couple years, but I’ll never forget this film. I want everyone to see this movie. I want everyone to feel the same way that I did.