Like a lot of you, we’re simultaneously excited and worried to see Cloverfield director Matt Reeves’ Americanized make over of the fantastic 2008 Swedish vampire movie Let the Right One In. Reeves’ adaptation, titled Let Me In stars Kick-Ass’s Chloe Moretz as the vampire girl, at once renamed Abby and Kodi Smit-McPhee as the boy she befriends, now renamed Owen. The film won’t be released until Oct of this year, but tonight I got a storm when just before calling it a night an email came on in my inbox from a while, utterly reliable CB scooper, Keith Canon, with what is as far as I can tell is 1st ever review of Let Me In. Keith caught Let Me In last night at a secret essay screening. From what he tells me, the film came along to be almost entirely finished, lacking only a title sequence and missing some minor FX sequences in places. October is still by way off though, so it’s entirely possible that director Matt Reeves may allay make drastic changes. That told, here’s Keith’s review of what got on screen to represent Let Me In last night. Warning, it may contains a few very, very minor spoilers for anyone who has not already seen Let the Right One In, but largely, this is a spoiler safe read! Here’s Keith: A remake of the 2008 Swedish movie Let the Right One In, Let Me In is all the same a movie about two kids and inch particular about a twelve-year-old girl who’s not a girl. She’s lead a sheltered life, but justifiably, since she’s a vampire. The remake opens with an ambulance ride to a Los Alamos, New Mexico infirmary with a victim of severe acid burns to his face and throat. It is shot in a great perspective that does not show the person’s face, just one horribly burned hand. From there you’re drawn into the story as it seems the guy, whoever he’s, would prefer die then tell the police what happened. As he lays in that the hospital, Reagan’s voice blares from the television, discoursing evil outside America. But Let Me In is a lot of interested in the evil inside it. Fortunately besides spelling out what happened and why at the beginning of the story and so dragging us through the particulars of something we already know, in the fashion of most distinctive Hollywood movies, Let Me In is content to leave you wanting more. The story jumps away from the acid burned humans and back to where it all started, in the midst of winter in 1983. Kick in the high desert, it’s still the snow-filled world we saw in the Swedish version. This time the era it’s adjust in is a bigger player fears meet Owen, a loner latch key kid targeted by bullies and mostly ignored by his alcoholic female parent. The movie makes the interesting choice to never actually show us his mother. She’s only seen blurred call at the background, as if she doesn’t ever exist in the least. As in the first movie, our bullied boy lives in a low end apartment complex where he’s nothing to do but haunt by himself in the courtyard or spy on his neighbors with his scope. Owen is happy to see afresh neighbor drawing in, Abby and her father. And it’s then that the film arouses, unless naturally you like being spoonfed all the details of a story. This is a movie for people who like to think, a movie which much like the film it’s
remaking, is full of subtle details. For instance we soon learn that Abby is a vampire but the movie never really appears and tells us the details of her past. She appears to be twelve-years-old, but she’s anything but. The movie never appears and says how old she’s, but the clues are there. The scene with the Rubik’s Cube from the first film remains intact, offering clues into Abby’s nature. There are more elusive things too, ancient puzzles scattered around her apartment for example. But Let Me In expects you to be invested enough to piece who she’s together on their own. Let Me In also remains remarkably admittedly to classic vampire lore. All the touchstones from Let the Right One In are here: Abby can’t get into unless she’s invited, vampires still burst (stunningly) into flames in the sun instead of glittering in it like a figure skater. But it works, really well, because this is the story of Abby, it’s all all but understanding why she never turns her beginner figure or her new friend, Owen, and that worked really well for me. It all fits together on such a coherent level, and the story doesn’t jump around in random directions, but rather exhausts in a way that it would if this were real. Abby and Owen’s relationship feels real. Visually the film sometimes strikes a a different tone from Let the Right One In. Let Me In uses creative camera angles which put the audience’s focus entirely on the main character most of the time. You won’t find yourself wandering in the background or caring about characters that are only there because they’ve to be, like Owen’s mother. What’s best is that nothing has been lost in the remake process. Most movies redone to suit American cinema end up losing their souls in the translation, however, this movie’s conversion has brilliantly handled director Matt Reeves. Much of the film remains exactly as is, in some cases scenes are shot by shot identical, and in the places where Reeves has changed it, the changes are only to help it strike a deeper chord with Americans, not to pander to them. It’s only minor details which have changed. Minor character relationships have been modified, there have been changes in the way Abby’s father/caretaker gets his victims, and there’s a cop where there wasn’t one before. Most changes are for the better though. The 80s, as a decade and a cultural influence are a much bigger player, in a way that’ll connect with anyone who lived through it. Because of that and more, you’ll find yourself drawn into the story a lot of than ever, feeling sorry the kid when he gets beat up, or having to deal with his torn apart life. You are able to understand why Abby doesn’t want to make friends with anybody, but find yourself smiling when it happens. It’s a taut, thrill ride that will have you going from jumping with fright to heart tugging compassion. It’s visually arresting too, even out run of the mill scenes being more interesting by putting the camera in the action rather then watching it from the sidelines. Particularly there is a car accident which is absolutely unforgettable, the camera used to bring you along for the ride, not left outside watching it. There are no missteps in that remake. Every part is essential. Let Me In is a suspense movie of the type we rarely see here in America. It grabs your attention and keeps your interest right up to the end, while doing a great job of telling an unusual vampire story.
source: Cinema Blend