Recently the vampire film genre has been suffering from a lack of fire and overall flair. Although a large number of people got their fix from last year’s “Twilight,” it is likely safe to say hardcore vampire film buffs were able to find a gem in the form of “Let the Right One In.” Released roughly around the same time as “Twilight,” it was overshadowed by the success of the pop-culture phenomenon and missed by the mainstream media.
It is unfortunate to say the least because of the artistic spin the film puts on the typical vampire story. The film takes on a cliché plot, as 12-year-old social outcast Oskar befriends and ultimately develops a school-boy crush on 12-year-old Eli, who eventually is revealed to be a vampire.
However, it also is able to make it original by focusing more on the relationship the two children have compared to other vampire films, which put too much thought into their gore or high school-like drama. Oskar is consistently bullied and made fun of by his schoolmates, and along with Eli being able to relate to being an outsider, she also is able to teach him which battles to fight and how to fight them.
For the first time in quite a while a vampire film addresses the issue of vampire-human relations in a humanistic approach. The actual separation between the two characters is actually felt in this film and makes it more and more heartbreaking as it progresses and the two children are threatened to be separated. Perhaps because this is the first film to really focus on child vampires, their innocence and naivety becomes the film’s staple and gives it something that the typical vampire film lacks.
The two leads in the film are extremely well-acted, especially considering they are children and really have some heavy material to deal with. Kare Hedebrant, who plays Oskar, is able to maintain a consistent level of creepiness throughout while Lina Leanderson, who plays Eli, is able to provide the film its emotional depth and sensitivity to a character that just as easily could have been gruesome and unappealing.
Yet as original as it is, there is enough done by the film to make it appeal to those who are also looking for the typical vampire flick. But when the film starts off by taking an approach looking to be original, its use of these clichés almost becomes counterproductive to what it accomplishes.
Things such as constantly focusing on the color red, old people being victims of vampires and poodles around vampires are just some of the many typical things other vampire films would do, and shouldn’t have been done by this film. Also, paying homage to other vampire flicks becomes a little excessive.
Overall though, the film never becomes unwatchable. Entertaining would not be a word that would describe “Let the Right One In,” but it is none the less interesting throughout and thought provoking to boot. It goes much deeper than likely any vampire film ever has, and that can never really be a bad thing.
– Scott Hansen
