Review of Let the Right One In (2008) by Chris B — 11 Jan 2012

"Let the Right One In" is original and a wonderful representation of what a tired out genre can be if put in the right hands and created without compromise! This is a super atmospheric and beautiful, even with it's more disturbing scenes, film that is very Swedish in not only it's low key setting but also the muted color palette used.

The vampire genre is hit or miss, the older films are mostly masterpieces (1920s-1940s) and even after but nowadays we have Twilight and various takes that are carbon copies and have no originality. This picture combines a dark and gothic atmosphere and stunning cinematography and focuses more on the relationship aspect of the young boy who befriends the vampire girl when she moves in next to him.

It's soft, quiet and mesmerizing and yet during the feeding scenes and several others can be terrifying, haunting, and gory at the same time. The film also has an ending that can be interpreted as happy, like the Director envisions it, or sad if you look to the future and the possible same fate as the girl's earlier helper.

I can't recommend this one highly enough, as many have seen and loved "Let Me In" (The American remake/retelling of this film) and haven't yet seen the Swedish original. ***Of note, on the blu-ray the English dub is the default audio track which hinders the mood and feel of the film and the Swedish track which is also in DTS-HD 5.

1 should be selected to get a more accurate representation of the filmmakers intentions.***.