I realize I am way too late to the party in terms of this swedish film (parties were never really my thing anyways).
When this film was released, I rolled my eyes in disappointment. It seems that every film these days are riding on the coattails of Twilight's financial success, so it was no surprise to me if Let the Right One in turns out to be shit. And the fact that it's about a budding romance between a human and a vampire didn't do things to quell my fears.
But let me tell you, this is what Twilight should be.
Let the Right One in is a story about Oskar. His parents are divorced and we see that for the most part, the only friend he really has at this point is his mother.
At school, he's picked on by this little rascal of a kid who's no bigger than he is, which is sort of sad. But then again, the bully has like two other bigger guys to do his bidding for him. It raises the question though, who in the fuck would listen to this scrawny little bully if you're two times bigger than he is? I don't know, it's been a while since I was part of the playground power structure. Maybe the kid's got a shit-ton of candy at home. I remember back in elementary school where the person with the best snacks made the most friends. Everyone flocked around the kid with the best snacks at recess. It's sorta like a currency. The better and more plentiful your snacks are, the more people hung around you, even if no one gave you the time of day when you were in class.
You got Old Dutch chips? Hey man, you're my best buddy for the day. Bullies picking on you? No worries, just share some of them chips with me and a few of my buds, we got your back. Oh, you got carrot sticks? Shit out of luck. Maybe Oskar should've invested in some really delicious snacks so he could hire some muscle to defend his scrawny ass.
The poor bastard likes to spend most of his days out in the play structure right outside the apartment complex, playing by himself and living out a fantasy where he takes up the courage to stand up to his foes. Basically he's talking to himself. Yeah, he's lonely.
A new tenant, Hakan, moves into an apartment where he lives. He's quiet, middle aged, and the type of guy you don't want little Susy to hang around at all. The first order of business for this guy when he moves in is to board up all the windows in the apartment using cardboard.
While hanging out by himself one cold night, Oskar is visited by a mysterious little girl, no more than 13. She's out and about wearing only the minimal amount of clothing in the form of a long dress shirt in what looks like subzero weather. They have a little chat, Oskar being a little defensive about his playing space. He's cautious about her and Eli tells him that "We cannot be friends". But it's ok though, it seems to be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Hakan goes out in the middle of the night and knocks out some poor bastard. He hangs him up, slits the dude's throat and starts to drain his blood into a small tank. But his operation is cut short when a curious doggy comes sniffing around, and not too far behind, the dog's owners. So no blood drain tonight. The guy abandon's ship and leaves the scene of the crime.
Obviously, this Hakan hasn't seen an episode of Dexter. I'm sure that after years of trying to kill people, the guy would've perfected his serial killing skills to know NOT to do any of this stuff out in the open should someone accidentally find him. I mean come the fuck on. So he goes home empty handed and the vampire is getting complacent. No food = bad mood. Eli can't take starving anymore so she goes out one night and lo and behold, one of the tenants from the apartment finds her there. The guy seems concerned about her being out in the cold. Eli takes this opportunity to FEEED... and the guy dies. Unfortunately for her, someone saw the entire incident and Eli, being the bitch that she is, leaves the body buried underneath the snow. Guess who's the poor fellow that has to dispose of this body? Hakan.
As if he doesn't have enough on his plate, he has to figure out Eli's next meal. So Hakan goes on scheming to find someone else to drain blood out. This time he tries going for a teenager.
After Hakan fails at delivering the blood to Eli a second time (again, this guy has got to be one of the most retarded serial killers, he chooses a youth centre to kill a kid in, while there's still people around! My god watch an episode of Dexter, it would've saved your life!!), he pours acid on his own face to avoid being identified by authorities and relinquishes himself as a meal for Eli. Guess who's next in line to be Hakan's replacement?
It looks like Oskar can provide a delicious snack. Albeit deliciously bloody snack suitable only for a vampire. Muscle hired! And she's got superhuman strength. Give this fucker an award for investment!
On a more serious note, what I love about Let the Right One In is the character's emotional journey. Oskar is this lonely kid, no real friends, family's split, constantly bullied at school. In comes Eli, a girl who seems to be the answer to everything he's searching for. An anchor, a friend. Someone who's there for him when he needs it. Of course, it's not without some sacrifice on his part.
It's a dangerous relationship. She's a force of chaos, and he's young and impressionable. And he thinks he finds what he's looking for when he befriends Eli. That's what I love about the movie, it presents a difficult choice for the protagonist. He's bullied and doesn't have any friends until he meets Eli, and Eli
Should he abandon such a toxic friendship and continue being bullied and alone or let the relationship between he and Eli grow that could take him down a dark path?
It's equally heartbreaking to see the relationship between Oskar and Eli grow. We know where the dark road lies ahead for Oskar if he keeps his relation with Eli going. But if he breaks off and rejects her, he loses the closest thing to a friend he has. It's truly a heartbreaking dilemma for young Oskar and it's not something that has an easy answer.
The performances by the child actors is phenomenal. I usually hate watching kids act in films because, let's face it, kids can't fucking act unless their names are Dakota Fanning and Chloe Moretz (who incidentally plays the Eli role in the american remake), so it's a wonder to watch these young actors at play.
When I said this is what Twilight should be, I meant it. This film explores the concept of a vampire/human relationship and the consequences of pursing it.
It's a terrifying film, but not in the "Oh shit" jump scares. It's terrifying because you see this kid descend into a life where he's held as a slave for Eli. The moment he helps Eli feed, he commits his first murder, and it sets the track for the sure cycle that is bound to repeat itself. Like Hakan, Oskar will be doomed to a life of servitude to Eli, whether he knows it or not.
It's terrifying because Oskar will never have a girlfriend in his life and Eli is the closest thing he'll ever get to a fuck buddy. And s(he)'s stuck at that young age of 13. Shit, when you really think about it, this is only a cycle of sexual frustration that promotes pedophilia. We can assume that Oskar has a similar fate to Hakan. Shit, this poor boy's going to grow up, murdering people with the pretense that he MIGHT jump into Eli's trousers if he should be so lucky.
He'll be a sexually repressed man in his fifties who's never fucked anyone and is emotionally stunted by this girl Eli. The only pussy he'll ever have a chance of getting will be Eli, and it's not even a sure thing that Eli is a girl. Poor son of a bitch.
On a side note, if he stuck around school, he could be the Warren Buffet of the playground. He would've had a bright future as an asshole. Using his skills of murder as a way of paying off Eli as his hired muscle. He'll command the respect of his peers, people would bow before him and he'll make a lot of friends (fake friends but it's the same scenario in real life with wealth). Though arguably, if he's going to spend the next 40 years killing people for Eli to feed, you can say he's already made it as an asshole.
8/10
