Vampires are getting around a lot lately. Whether they’re seducing teen girls in 2008’s Twilight or wowing art-house fans in the critically commended Let the Right One In, Dracula’s ancestors are certainly having a hefty impact on the film industry. It’s just such a shame that of the two films, the wrong one is gathering all the commercial attention, leaving the other to gratify niche audiences worldwide, and it’s certainly a movie that doesn’t deserve overlooking.
Let the Right One In is an experimental Swedish vampire flick homing in on a bizarre love-story between a young outsider, Oskar, and the mysterious Eli. Whilst it’s easy enough to just immediately associate the connotations of a vampire with the horror genre, Let the Right One In breaks conventions regularly. It’s certainly a chilling affair on the surface, but dig a little deeper and you’ll find a beautiful, romantic gem, awash with childhood anecdotes and a very important message about accepting people for who they are, regardless of race/religion/background etc.
The performances are stellar, with Kåre Hedebrant perfectly portraying the role of the protagonist, Oskar; a tormented victim of childhood bullying. Lina Leandersson also puts in a fantastically chilling performance as Eli; a mysterious girl new to Oskar’s neighbourhood, and his first friend. It’s the growth of this friendship that propels the narrative forward, with progressive revelations as to the origins of this girl adding to the discomforting sense of foreboding that gains momentum as the film progresses.
Of course, there’s no doubting that Let The Right One In is, on the surface, a standard vampire-horror movie, making a point to follow the conventions of the genre in serious detail. Whether it’s the paradigmatic choice of an isolated rural neighbourhood, or the context of the title (and how it links closely to the myth of ‘letting the right one in’), Let The Right One In makes no attempt to disguise the fact that it is a clear cut horror. However, one of the key conventions broken is the absence of an antagonist. Instead, a focus on how our inner demons can become our worst enemy essentially becomes the major problem for our characters. In some ways, it can be argued that Let The Right One In has more in common with a family friendly flick than the vampire genre, as the nods to E.T go as far as to show a close-up of hands connecting, resembling the extra-terrestrial’s relationship with Elliot early in the Spielberg classic. This only further elaborates just how much of a hybrid this really is, borrowing from a plethora of genres.
And just when you thought there couldn’t possibly be another positive around the corner, the cinematography is also paramount in Let The Right One In. Practically every establishing shot of the cold, empty mise en scene creates perfect connotations of isolation, and in the more action-heavy scenes, the camera does its best to hide the gore from the audience to leave it to our own individual interpretations. Furthermore, a clever little technique noted throughout is the use of mirrors to reveal several simultaneous angles that wouldn’t usually be possible by the means of just one camera. This allows more versatility in shooting, and saves the need for constant obtrusive cuts.
On a whole, Let The Right One In is a fantastic achievement for first time director Thomas Alfredson, and news of an American remake for 2010 deeply disturbs me as there’s no conceivable way it could possibly improve on this.
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A bold, beautiful directorial debut, Let The Right One In is a benchmark example of film-making at its finest. If you must see any vampire movie this year, make sure it’s this one. I try not to make a habit of giving five-stars away regularly, but for two to achieve this within the space of a month is a fantastic reflection of just how good foreign horror is at the moment.
5/5
