Let The Right One In Is The Film Twilight Wishes It Could Be

Posted by Kevin Kelly (kevinkelly@filmschoolrejects.com) on October 10, 2008

Let The Right One In

The final trailer for the upcoming teen vampire flick Twilight hit the web last night, and I have to say that I’m less than excited. Not only am I suffering from Twilight overload, but the sounds of the screaming masses from Comic-Con are still ringing in my ears. We were shown a few teaser scenes in San Diego that had about as much emotional resonance as an episode of The Price is Right, and the front few rows of the audience shrieked like the Beatles had come back to life and taken the stage.

My main problem with Twilight was that I liked the premise well enough, back when it was called Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The whole Buffy / Angel thing, a romance between a human and a vampire, was beaten to death back when that show covered it. Not that a human falling for a vamp is anything new, since it even happens in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. It’s just that we don’t really need to see it again with sulky teens.

What really makes this film look pale by comparison (that’s a vampire joke, yuk yuk) is the Swedish film I saw in Austin called Let The Right One In. You might have heard of this movie by now. It’s about a 12 year old boy, bouncing between a divorced mother and father, bullied at school, and a bit of a loner. He finally finds a playmate one day, a young girl his age, and they become fast friends. Of course, she turns out to be a vampire.

However, what really makes this film work is how touching it is. This isn’t a CGI-laden, special effects fest of a film that smacks you in the face with tons of gore, hyperspeed bloodsuckers, and emo teens. It’s a real, human (sort of) story that feels so real and believable, despite the fact that the girl happens to be a vampire. If you watch this movie and aren’t moved by Kåre Hedebrant’s performance, then you just have no feelings left inside and you might already be a part of the undead masses.

This film nails the relationship between vampire and human, and it’s made all the more emotional by the fact that the kids are so young. Oskar (Kåre) is so vulnerable and real that you just want to stop the movie, find the kid, pat him on the back and tell him that everything will be okay. And this is even before he meets Eli (Lina Leandersson), the girl who has a very dark secret. There’s even a creepy turn at the end of the film that makes this so sinister and disturbing that you’ll be talking about it for weeks.

So my advice to you, dear theater-goer, is forget about Twilight. Let The Right One In gets it right and is ten times the movie Twilight could ever hope to be. Unless you think white-powdered wannabe teen heartthrobs is the way to go, then save your dough and wait until next year when Let The Right One In comes out either at a theater near you, or dunk it into your Netflix queue. Just do it before the hollywood remake comes out, which is being helmed my Cloverfield’s Matt Reeves. How I wish that was just a joke. Now someone fetch me the garlic and holy water so I can fight off the ravenous Twilight fans who will come for my blood.


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  • Sam
    I'm so disappointed I heard about this after it played here and that I have to wait to see it now.
  • Obviously Twilight isn't out yet, so it's tough to make a call - although it's reasonable to assume that the target market will play heavily into how the story is told.

    Let the Right One In is a brilliant film. I'm hoping that it receives enough of a boost to get a wider audience when it's released in November (limited). Beautiful, sweet, innocent. It succeeds with the vampire love story because it's about 12-year olds. Young love is the purest right? That first playground crush? It's powerful stuff.
  • Always the 'Twilight' apologist Cole... but the fact is it's a certainty that 'Twilight' will be a lesser film than 'Let the Right One In.' But that's okay, because the error in this article's title is the assumption that 'Twilight' wants to be a smart, beautiful, contemplative, shocking, and touching film... when instead it really only wants to be a blockbuster beginning to a lucrative franchise for tweens and their depressed mothers.

    And if I'm wrong about 'Twilight' and it turns out to be a great movie... I'll perform the milkshake monologue from 'There Will Be Blood' at next year's Comic Con. I swear.
  • I don't think the films can really be compared because while they might be both about a vampire and a human and their relationship, it's like comparing a romantic comedy to a dark drama.

    Twilight is a YA Romance. It's simplistic and follows a very specific formula because that's what it's supposed to do.

    Let the Right One In seems like a really interesting movie, and it's certainly more my style. But I don't think the movies should really be judged together at all.
  • I have no interest in seeing Twilight, but I want to see this, but I think it is unfair to compare the two films without having seen one of them. I mean, I tore into all those mothers about wanting to boycott "Tropic Thunder" without having seen it, so I would by hypocritical to slam a film without seeing. (Except Spoof movies, because they are the product of the AntiChrist)
  • Robin
    Let the Right One In is a great film. I'm not a fan of the Twilight saga and the trailers just look so predictable.
    If ever there was a great unpredictable vampire film it's Let the Right One in.
  • D Train
    Indeed, Fury. Let's let spoofs be the exception. Selzer and friedberg need to star in a parody of snuff films directed by me.
  • Meli
    I think it's unfair to compare these two movies Let the Right One In isn't for the same age group as Twilight. As a (non-drepressed:P) mom I'm looking forward to both these films. One I plan to see with friends when it shows in LA and the other I will take my daughter to see. I enjoy vampires stories in all forms even the teen oriented cheesy affairs. Twilight may not turn out be a good film, but as long as it entertains me I'll be good.
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