i *heart* let the right one in: V1N3

magnet releasing

it may seem morbid, but my favorite movie of all time is night of the living dead, which i've been fascinated with since i was 8 years old. my love of 'night' transposed into the british gothic horror films of the 60s and 70s, and the slasher movies of the 1980s. i was enthralled with the vampire chronicles until it got ridiculous (even for fiction) with 'queen of the dead'. i put it to rest after book III. but i will always love a yummy vampire story.

last year a friend in sweden sent me a link to a film preview for 'let the right one in'. she said she loved the book (by John Ajvide Lindqvist) the film is based on, directed by Tomas Alfredson. the clip fascinated me, but it was only screening in san francisco at the lumiere, an independent theater, some months later.

forward to january and i finally watched 'let the right one in' and it blew my mind. it's an odd pre-teen, living-dead love story set against the backdrop of blackeberg, near stockholm. it's winter and oksar, a lonely, geeky kid is tormented at school and antagonistic towards his divorced parents. then one night outside of his apartment building, he meets eli, a girl the same age as he, but....is she?

this is the freaks and geeks version of twilight, which much more heart.

from the production design, costumes, and music, it looks as though the story takes place in the 1908s, which is aesthetically interesting. (i like the garage band 45s oskar listens to). many shots are beautifully composed and every visual detail is considered; the composition of the buildings, neon signs, cups of tea, the rosy cheeks of his sadistic schoolmates, the blue of a parked volvo bounces off oksar's blue gym shorts (a heart wrenching scene). it's speaks to anyone who ever felt the misfit as a kid and longed for that special, secret friend.

the film has a subtle, quiet pace; with moments that make you gasp. if you blink you could miss something that will leave an indelible impression on your psyche. did i just see that?

several times during the film you'll be on edge. i'm not going to give away the ending, which completely tripped me out. it is of the most cool and gruesome visual narratives i've seen in a horror movie in a long time. classic!

in swedish with english subtitles

Let the Right One In