Forget everything you’ve ever seen on modern vampires, correction forget all that Ann Rice crap that took a compelling figure and “de-fanged” him by making him mopey, whiny, wispy, emo- tortured whussy. Ya know, like the singer of “Fall Out Boy!”
Also forget the interpretation that continued on with the brain-dead “Twilight” series with the main Vamp looking like a heroin addict attracted to a girl who was even deader than he was. Much to the chagrin of everyone with good taste, the young stupid girls who had never had an orgasm and the old bags who hadn’t had one in twenty plus years ate the tripe up, pulling in huge book and box-office sales oblivious to the fact that it was ripping off the infinitely superior and strangely similar television classics, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Angel.”
Forget all that.
Also, forget that this is a Vampire flick or that it is a remake. Just remember that it is the best Vampire movie ever made!
A remake of the also brilliant 2008’s Swedish version “Let the Right One In,” the film is a rarity, a treasure of a creation that shocks you with its freshness and vitality. A surprise unto itself as most of the European films that are westernized lose something in the translation by changing for the sake of change and dumbing everything down to the bone. Many fans of the film objected to the remake, fearing all would be lost and replaced with a glammed-up, glitzy, crappy typical horror film.
Not the case here, as the intent and the flavor of the original are still very much alive Twilight and it brings attention to the little-known Director Matt Reeves, who creates a winner in a genre known for mostly awful, forgettable product, especially when it deals with Vampires.
His interpretation does not cower to the audience’s expectations with a scare quota or required gore; (although there is plenty of each) he subverts our viewing experience and explores territory rarely touched on in modern horror films, the human soul.
Reeves moves deliberately and delicately, never rushes into anything, lets the events unfold organically. He lets the camera do the work; there is no hacky vibrating, shaking or idiotic thrusting of the camera so common in the industry today, (Paul Greengrass this is you!) the shots are staid, but fluid, they flow like a ballet dancer walking on air, gracefully and with intent never missing a beat and only move when necessary, none of the awful gyrating crap that passes off for tension and movement today.
The film’s best moment for me is a clever nod to Hitchcock, during the father’s search for a victim for Abbey, it starts off sinister enough, but due to his bungling, we began to feel sympathy for the guy almost rooting for him to succeed.
Some of the best horror films ever made have an underlying theme and are really about something else. Ridley Scott’s 1979 masterpiece, “Alien,” was the best example of claustrophobia. George Romero’s 1978 “Dawn of the Dead” is a sarcastic commentary about America’s addiction to consumerism and “John Carpenter’s The Thing,”& the original and clever remake, “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” were about paranoia.
“Let Me In” follows that route, the horror element is just on the surface. It does not rely on cheap gimmicks or special effects; it digs deeper as the real meat of the story begins as a cautionary tale of the perils of Divorce and its effects on children. Even though the film drags its feet kicking and screaming about being defined as just a horror film, it still very much is and creates a creepy milieu; an eerie, ironic contrast set against the pure, unspoiled, and sometimes beautiful snowy landscape.
The dreary setting, this time in Los Alamos, New Mexico, circa 1983, sets things in motion of the conventional, unconventional relationship between Owen and Abby; they need each other, but not for the obvious reasons. Owen is a lonely kid, small for his age and picked on relentlessly by several school bullies. Abby is a mystery, but she seems nice, lonely and needs the friendship of another child. They become close and are soon forever linked, committing acts that will forever define their strange relationship, which is something not quite love, but beyond friendship.
Having recently suffered through his parent’s divorce, Owen (Kodi Smit-McPhee) finds very little to be happy about; missing his father and dealing with Kenny, the leader of a gang of schoolyard bullies. Until he meets Abby, (Chloe Moretz), a 12 year-old girl that moves into his apartment complex along with her father, (Richard Jenkins), together they set out to create a unique friendship; she solves his Rubik’s cube, he introduces her to bubble gum and Donkey Kong, both provide friendship as the film’s beating heart lies within their relationship. Two outstanding performances that have received some award recognition, but none from the shameful mainstream press.
It is hard to believe these kids are kids, they reach deep down and travel dark places most adult actors could never pull off. Credit must also go to Director Reeves who keeps a steady hand on the leads and never lets them come off as if they are mimicking emotions; these kids do real acting with real emotional complexity. Reeves, who also co-wrote the screenplay along with John Ajvide Lindquist, asks some thought provoking questions about human nature and what it means to be human.
The ironic contrast is the films greatest asset as it moves back and fourth between the sweetness, innocence and honesty of youth to the cruelty and evil inflicted first by Abby’s father and then by Abby when she must feed.
The story’s dichotomy is fascinating as the characters go from acts of self-sacrificing love to straightforward evil, often times in the same scene, like when Abby’s father attempts murder in order to find blood for his daughter, yet pours acid on his face to prevent the police from making a connection after his murder attempt goes awry.
Bizarre, sure, but the act has a strange beauty to it that despite her evil nature, he loves her and wants to protect her. The concept of what it means to be evil is constantly thrown around; Kenny the bully and his older brother appear to be the true evil characters in the story as they pick on Owen relentlessly for no discernable reason and even attempt to kill him for just the same. Abby of course, does evil things, but it is her character and one could argue she does not really know any better. She only attacks for food after he father is gone and she is left to fend for herself and she hesitates when she could have attacked Owen. The film’s most profound question is- the one character that was not human showed the most sympathy and humanity by befriending Owen.
Another question poised, is evil in the eye of the beholder? For Owen it must be, as he does not really seem to care that Abby is a bloodsucker who kills people for food. Also, evil is not always presented in a familiar package, Kenny and his friends and his older brother all appear to be the all-American kids, but of course are the nasty little turds.
WOW! Without sounding like one of those clichéd advertisements for the latest blockbuster, this really is a fantastic film from start to finish, not one shot is wasted or one performance weak and not integral to the story. Not since Ridley Scott’s 1979’s “Alien,” has there been a better genre-busting horror film so artful and delicately shot, the objective is not to assault the senses and gross you out, although we get some of that, but to be moved by the nuances and implications. Every scene has so much going on, it’s hard to believe that this is a horror film and sadly, I’m sure many will just write it off as such and not give it a proper chance.
The biggest kick is that this is first feature film released by the revived Hammer studios of yore, yes, THAT Hammer studios of the 1950’s through 70’s that gave us so many classic scares and if they keep it up with gems like this, they should be around for many more years.
Director Matt Reeves has created a startling masterpiece that will leave an indelible mark on horror fans forever making this without hesitation the best film of 2010!

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