Comments on: Film review – Let the Right One In (2008)

By: aisyah

aisyah — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 07:11:48 +0000

i never heard about this film before in indonesia, but when i watch this film in not intentionally situation, well..i really like this film.
this is so brilliant and unique.
i watched the dvd many times. this is one of my favorite film ever.
and now i am waiting for the remake.
and good luck for it :)

By: Pete Stich

Pete Stich — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 19:07:26 +0000

I just found the film and have been enjoying it more times then I should.

The fact that it can be interpreted many different ways has astounded me. I thought of 2 ways (love and recruiting another father). One that floored me was that the whole pool scene and after was Oskar dying and going to heaven, and I could not fault that.

Watch the hands in this movie (another thing I did not catch). The are working on borders and communication. Sometimes the hands are showing “letting the right one in” esp. during the seen at Eli’s apartment the first time when Oskar is confronting Eli with the fact she is a vampire. The voices are talking but the hands are breaking down the barrier of understanding. Wow!!

By: Lombano

Lombano — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 23:48:59 +0000

Gordo, Oskar would be a terrible guardian, and is shown to be supremely incompetent at violence in the scene of Jocke trying to kill Eli – Oskar can’t wield a knife even with everything on the line. Eli shows remarkable self-restraint when Oskar bleeds, and takes a huge risk when entering uninvited – what if Oskar had fainted? Also, a father figure like Hakan would have been far more practical than a child. Finally, Eli returns only when Oskar needs help, not when Eli does. So the only plausible motive is that it is genuine love rather than self-interest. Lindqvist himself implies in an interview that Eli is not pretending.

I loved both the book and the film – be warned, the book is much darker and brutal. I will not be watching the American remake – I agree that the title loses the whole point of the novel’s title. Just to muddle things further, Let Me In is also how the Swedish film was translated into Spanish and Italian I think, and apparently the novel was translated as Let Me In for the American edition (apparently they originally wanted to translate it as Let Her In which, as Lindqvist points out, makes you wonder if they even read it)

By: Julia Ann

Julia Ann — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 23:28:05 +0000

Eli did leave Oscar behind and we do not see that she insists he join her. Also, she is vulnerable to him in coming into his home w/out his invitation. I think she genuinely cares for him.

By: Thomas Caldwell

Thomas Caldwell — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 05:35:39 +0000

All very valid points Gordo so thanks for your comment.

However, I stand by my description that Let the Right One In is a first love and coming of age story because I regard Oskar as the focus of the film and it is his emotional journey that carried the most resonance for me.

By: Gordo

Gordo — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 04:31:13 +0000

While I loved the movie I did not find the idea of first love nor coming of age to be very descriptive. How can a vampire who is a couple of hundred years old be thought of as new to the game ? Eli must be an expert at seduction and ‘misrepresentation’ to have survived this long . Oskar experiences infatuation but given the circumstances his emotions are simply a one way street. Eli needs a new familiar to survive and after this long has undoubtedly come up with a plan and routine. Eli is like Benjamin Button at age 12, she’s seen the world many times over. She is NOT a 12 year old and hasn’t been for a long, long time.

By: Benicio

Benicio — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 01:46:51 +0000

Good points about all remakes looking, sounding and feeling the same Aurelia. Hollywood really need to throw away those templates.

By: aurelia aurita

aurelia aurita — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 22:52:24 +0000

Hi again, thanks for your answer!:)

I’ve just discovered your site, searching for more information about this touching film. Yes,I mean Ju-on, in Greek it was translated as “The Curse”. I totally understand what you’re saying about America, it’s true they live in another planet… – but this “English-mania” unfortunately seems to be taking over the rest of the world as well! And this is spoken by a person that loves the English language…I don’t know…I blame Globalization!:))

You were here? How nice-yes, it’s a lovely country. If only the Greek people could care more about it..

Ok, enough grouching! Glad I found your blog, I’ll be visiting. Goodnight! (or is it morning there? hehe)

By: Thomas Caldwell

Thomas Caldwell — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 22:20:22 +0000

Welcome aurelia aurita and thanks for your comments. Don't worry about mistakes - you clearly write English better than most English speakers could write in another language (including myself)! I'm assuming that when you mention The Curse you mean the Korean film Ju-on? I know it as The Grudge but it was marketed as The Curse in other countries. Anyway, I understand your frustration about remakes and it is something I mentioned yesterday in the comments for Knowing. I basically said that the majority of English-speaking audiences won't see films in another language or films that even contain references to cultures different to their own (apparently only 50% of Americans own a passport - they just aren't interested in what happens in the rest of the world). So in order to make money it makes sense for Hollywood to remake a film that has been successful overseas for an English speaking market. Not all of these films are inferior but they often are and I find the general trend very depressing. By the way - I went to Eurovision when it was hosted by Athens! Greece is a beautiful country.

By: aurelia aurita

aurelia aurita — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 21:40:15 +0000

Hi!
Well, I loved the film, and I’d like to state my opinion about the american remakes…

It’s such a pity. Many many awsome films (Abre los ohos-Vanilla Sky, The Curse and many many others) destroyed! Instead of letting the audience discover them in their original version and open open their minds to another style of cinematography, know other cultures, languages and points of view…they make them all speak English! And after they do that, all the films look the same. Thrillers? The same music, scenes designed to make you jump of your chair, no depth, only surface…Same thing happened with the Eurovision contest. Once it had the colour of each country, now they all sing the same songs, in English of course! I wonder, when being different became such a bad thing…
(excuse the mistakes, I’m from Greece…:)

bye

By: Benicio

Benicio — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 12:26:42 +0000

You serious about Ginger Snaps? My only recollection of that film is meh…

By: Thomas Caldwell

Thomas Caldwell — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 00:59:57 +0000

He he – Glad you liked that. But, Ginger Snaps is underrated! More people should know about it and it’s one of my favourite horror films from the past 10 years.

By: Gemma

Gemma — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 00:51:05 +0000

‘the underrated Canadian werewolf film Ginger Snaps‘.

Lol

By: moogirl22

moogirl22 — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 04:09:11 +0000

So it could be a nominee/winner next year?

YIPPPPEEEEE!!

By: Thomas Caldwell

Thomas Caldwell — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 03:41:41 +0000

Oskar – a massive thank you for clearing that up.

By: Oskar

Oskar — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 03:13:07 +0000

Actually, Let the Right One In was not snubbed by the Academy because Sweden chose to submit another movie.
It was simply released in Sweden too late to meet the requirements for a Foreign Language nominee.

Unlike the other awards (for which movies released between January 1 and December 31 are eligible), movies submitted in the Foreign Language category must be released in theaters and run for seven consecutive days in its country of origin between October 1 and September 31 (2007/2008 in this case).

While Let the Right One In was screened at a festival in Sweden as early as January 2008, the actual release (playing for more than 7 consecutive days) came after the deadline, on October 24, 2008.

In other words, Sweden could submit the movie for the next Academy Awards.

By: philipb1961

philipb1961 — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 18:46:00 +0000

Speaking of first-rate Swedish directors: Jan Troell’s new Everlasting Moments, a period piece set in the early 1900s, has just opened in the U.S.

It’s getting great reviews. I’ve yet to see it.

By: Benicio

Benicio — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 07:41:04 +0000

Finally you tracked down a copy of this film. I’m so glad you were moved by it as I was.
It has been months since I saw it and still the feelings linger from this movie.

By: moogirl22

moogirl22 — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 07:02:01 +0000

Thanks for the rec, I’ll look out for some of his stuff. I’ve heard of that film before, but I didn’t realise it was Swedish. Hm.

By: Thomas Caldwell

Thomas Caldwell — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 06:37:08 +0000

That new name really is stupid as it looses the essence of the film, not to mention further removing it from the Morrissey song, "Let the Right One Slip In", which the book was originally named after. You've got to love Bergman, but really, how can any serious film lover not? The rather excellent Melbourne Cinémathèque are currently running a spectacular programme of his films so I've been recently re-watching a few favourites. I'm not claiming to be an expert but if you are interested in Swedish cinema then another director to look out for is Lukas Moodysson. Some of his more recent work has become very challenging to sit through, but the early films of his that I've seen are great. In particular I recommend Show Me Love, which is one of my favourite teen films.