Film Reviews

Let The Right One In

• Rating:
• Director: Tomas Alfredson
• Starring: Kare Hedebrant
• Details: Sweden / 116mins (16).

12-year-old Oskar (Hedebrant) is a lonely kid living with his divorced mother and spends his days fantasising of stabbing the school bully who makes his life a misery. Into his bleak world steps Eli (Leanderson), a girl who has just moved into his apartment block. Eli is 12 too, but has been 12 for 'a very long time', only comes out at night, doesn't mind the cold and doesn't go to school. When a series of murders occur in the area, Oskar begins to suspect his new best friend is not all she seems...

Adapted by John Ajvide Lindqvist from his own novel, this coming of age horror-drama injects some much-needed originality into a genre that was screaming out for something new. Although Alfredson obeys all the vampire rules and there are some familiar elements - the 12-year-old vampire girl is right from Interview With The Vampire; the humanising of the inhuman is Bram Stoker - but the director finds wiggle room within that. Alfredson downplays everything and takes his time telling the story, but the slow pacing gives the audience a chance to empathise with the characters and appreciate the performances: these 12-year-old kids make the Twilight crowd look immature by comparison.

This horror gives the tender but sad romance angle prominence, so those expecting guts and gore will be a tad disappointed, as a lot of the murders happen off screen; the murders that happen on screen are carried out with a banality-of-evil coolness by Eli's 'father' (Ragnar) who suffocates, hangs and then drains the blood of his victims - so attention won't be drawn to Eli. Horror fans frustrated with the slow pacing would be best advised to wait for the shocking final scene. We're looking at a modern cult classic here.

Review by Gavin Burke