Let Me In: My Take

[zephonate]

So, I'm going to officially label myself the black sheep of this forum by announcing that I absolutely loved Let Me In. Just got back from my second viewing, and now that I've had ample time to digest, process, and review the film and its nuances, I'm here to give my two cents.

I didn't think Reeves could do it. I didn't think anyone could. I was livid when they announced Let Me In was happening. The original was perfect in my eyes and still remains my favorite movie of all time. It even led me to the book, now residing as one of the greatest stories I've ever read. I convinced myself from the trailers, leaked script, and marketing that this version would tone down or remove the love story completely (what I connected to most about the original). This remake had no business being made and I was ready to go into that theater, claw the stuffing out of my seat, and curse the name of Matt Reeves loudly and unabashedly at the screen upon the credit roll.

However.

I'm a writer and aspiring filmmaker. Therefore my curiosity and general interest in seeing the same or similar stories through someone else's filter got the best of me. Maybe it was my extremely lowered expectations (a possible defense mechanism to keep me from raging too hard?) or maybe my preference towards liking something as opposed to hating it got the better of me. All I know is what started as bitter displeasure quickly changed to mild acceptance, followed by general surprise, finally ending with unabashed shock and relief.

I loved the movie. Matt Reeves and his tiny mouth did what I thought he (or anyone for that matter) could not. He made a film based on Let the Right One In that moved me as much as the original.

Let's get the things I could've done without or wasn't too enamored with out of the way first:

1. Despite hating the samples I was pointed to prior to the film's release, I've grown to like the score. That said, parts of it definitely were exaggerated beyond what they needed to be, such as the scenes involving the bullies, the cop busting into the bathroom, and the Harry Potter-esque happy scenes (though I'll admit the pieces during the latter were better used than I thought they'd be). Giacchino would've benefited from taking a note (haha, pun) from Soderqvist and toning down his score just a tad, maybe utilizing more of a main theme/leitmotif. Even though I knew 95% of what was coming and when, the music occasionally would give away some of the surprise in a scene. A person going in cold/fresh would know bad things were about to happen at the pool just by the music, and that should not be the case.

2. The Rubik's cube scene went by a little quick for my liking. I believe this to be more of a directing issue than anything else. I think Matt should've allowed the kids time to breathe between lines, deliver them a little more deliberately instead of briskly.

3. Having seen the latest interview posted by Reeves wherein he explains his motives for giving Abby messed up teeth and skin during her vamp-outs, I can totally understand and respect what he was trying to do there (making the vampirism a subtle metaphor for the changes brought on by puberty). Despite this, I still found the acne and hillbilly teeth off-putting.

4. This was an R-rated movie with ramped up gore. I don't have a problem with this in itself, but if they're already appealing to that audience, why didn't we get to see The Father/Thomas/American Håkan hit the ground after falling from the hospital window? I know there was no awning for him to strike in this version, but seeing some sort of impact is part of what gave the scene such gravitas in the original.

5. For all the praise I heard regarding Richard Jenkins' performance...he really wasn't in the movie all that much. Yes, the man conveyed fathoms with his eyes and physical mannerisms. Nonetheless I found his performance to be slightly over-hyped. Not bad in any way shape or form, just barely there. I know this doesn't stray too far from the original, yet the sentiment remains.

6. I would've liked to see Abby's face at the end of the pool scene. A traded smile would've been nice.

7. The fact they cut the "Be Me a Little", flashback, and waking up scenes, though here's hoping they'll make it into an unrated or director's cut on the DVD/blu ray.

There's really not much else I can think of that I didn't like, so I'll go on into specifics about what I did.

1. The cinematography. I didn't think it was possible for this movie –even at my most optimistic- to come anywhere close to the beauty on display through Hoyte Van Hoytema's lens in the original. But Greig Fraser did wonderful things with his cameras and lights. The colors were striking, though mostly a different palate than the original (didn't mind the oranges and golds though). Standout shots were of course the much praised car crash sequence, as well as the fight from the back seat leading up to it and the muted view of it from within the convenience store, however this could be more attributed to a creative editor. I adored the shots of the kids silhouetted in the veiled sunlight in Abby's apartment before her departure. I also happen to like the shots of Abby on her back during the bed scene, even though I know most people feel it detracted from the intimacy.

2. The kids. To me, Kodi and Chloë knocked it out of the park. I never conceived of it, but I think I just may have connected with Owen even more so than I did Oskar. Maybe it was those huge tortured eyes of his, how utterly small he looked in his big winter clothes, or perhaps the occasions which he shed tears. Kodi pulled me in and made me sympathize with his character deeply enough to bring me to tears. He also had a little bit of an attitude which was refreshing, such as calling Abby an idiot under his breath after meeting, his curtness after his brief rejection in bed, etc. And Chloë's portrayal of Abby did wonders for me. She and Eli truly are two completely different characters, and I almost like this better than if they tried to play the roles more closely.

3. Gotta love Elias Koteas, no matter how little he's featured or what he's doing.

4. There were some definite standout pieces to the score. Parting Sorrows and Trained and Steady (Film Version) off the score album are great and capture the sadness and hope of the story perfectly. In fact, I'd go out on a limb and say everything in the movie that wasn't John Williams-y or typical horror movie fare worked quite excellently.

5. This is a point that's probably going to be unique to me and maybe a select few others, but I was really struck by the alcoholism being transferred to Owen's mother, due to the simple reason that it hits extremely close to home for me, allowing me to empathize with the boy even further.

6. The bullies. Meaner, nastier, ruder, everything I was hoping they'd be. The way they tortured Owen was beyond cruel, serving to ground me in the story and characters. And to anyone who considers their bullying over the top or too sadistic to be believable...take it from a victim of childhood bullying. It's far more accurate than anyone would like to believe it is.

7. The little things. Small touches from the novel that were included, continuing to prove this movie was anything but a shot-for-shot remake. Owen's love of candy, the big reference to Tommy, his tendency to steal, the lifted lines of dialogue ("I'm...nothing", "Maybe I want to get caught"), the inclusion/expansion of the police officer and his interrogation of The Father, etc. They might all seem paltry in the grand scheme of things, though I felt they lent the film more credibility.

8. Perhaps it wasn't in the book, but I thought the explanation for Kenny's bullying was a really nice touch.

9. The pool scene. Dear God, the pool scene. I know this will place me in an even farther removed minority, but I absolutely adored what they did with the pool scene. The glass shards hitting the water? The fact they turned off the lights, leaving only the one from inside the pool water? How absolutely NUTS Abby went on the bullies, sparing no one and leaving vivid and horrifying things to your imagination as Owen climbed out of the pool? The diving board utterly covered in HUMAN PULP? I don't think much else needs to be said. The bullies were harsher in this film, thus I believe the harsher death was completely warranted.

10. Abby kissing Owen on the cheek after he detailed his mangling of Kenny's ear. Don't get me wrong, I love "Hoorah" as much as the next LTROI fan, but I'm not too proud to admit I involuntarily went DAWWW when that happened.

11 (and last for now). The final shot. After Owen tapped his reply to Abby's trunk, he looked out the train's window, began to sing...and the sun hit him. It's a stunning shot, a beautiful ending, and in my opinion a crucial piece of symbolism that lets us know he wasn't just a tool to be manipulated and that the little girl locked in the box a foot away truly does love him. The sun rises. There is hope. It's another day. He's still in the light.

I'll chime in with more of my thoughts and opinions based on how heavily I get flamed, haha. The end all be all is I loved the movie. It defied all my expectations in the best ways possible, and I'm as stunned as anyone to say it might even rival the original for me, however I would likely not feel as strongly about it if the original did not exist. =)

[Zhoutai21]

Hmmm, well one thing's for sure. You won't get any flaming from me. As long as you give your reasoning for it and not some one liner about how this is better or that is better... Then it should be all good.

You guys are more than welcomed to flame me though. My points are really not that well thought out. haha

I disliked the movie, myself, but I can respect that other people may love it.

I'm still not too fond of the music. They weren't really all that memorable. I remember liking the themes that played during the happier moments between Owen and Abby but I honestly can't recall how they sounded now.

I think one thing that was off for me was that every scene seemed to go at a very fast pace. Like you pointed out, the cube scene was quick. Then again, I came back from the restroom after it started, so I don't really have much of a say on that scene.

I've no problem with the gore in most movies. Hell, I expected a lot more gore in this but I still found myself going, "Damn..." at some of the brutality. For example, when the police officer was getting thrashed. I was like

Is it just me, or did The Father look like he splattered into mush from the fall? It was sort of odd seeing them put an intact body into a body bag after the splatter. heh

Yeah, I expected Reeves to show Abby's face after the slaughter at the end. Shame...

Yeah, the bullies being meaner and nastier definitely was something I expected. I thought it worked pretty well and made me sympathize a bit at the end when they were dragging him to the pool. I've been bullied myself but not to that extreme. And I can definitely see that it is something that does happen.

Btw, what was Kenny's reason for being such a bully? I missed it.

Maybe I was too harsh on the movie because I love LtROI so much. I couldn't get the original out of my head as I was watching LMI. I'll have to see it again just to make sure.

Come to think of it, I've been disappointed in a lot of movies this year. So.. *shrugs* We'll see.

[zephonate]

Btw, what was Kenny's reason for being such a bully? I missed it.

When Owen's walking around the school and catches the bullies hanging out, Jimmy (Kenny's older brother) comes up behind him, puts him in a choke hold like he did in the original. Then he asks for the keys to go home, repeats it more angrily/sternly. When he gets the keys, he walks past Kenny, messing with his hair or something and says "See ya' later, little girl," whilst the other bullies laugh.

The same phrase Kenny tortures Owen with.

[theguy1991]

I don't think you're a black sheep zephonate, I liked it as well. More people like to come online and post hatred rather than love .
And the Rottentomatoes score is still at 87%. It's not a terrible movie, quite the opposite.

[Jiang_Shi]

So, I'm going to officially label myself the black sheep of this forum by announcing that I absolutely loved Let Me In. Just got back from my second viewing, and now that I've had ample time to digest, process, and review the film and its nuances, I'm here to give my two cents.

Very cool Thanks for the review Zephonate! I agree that Let Me In was quite enjoyable! I'd go watch it again myself



Tossing my two-cents into the box... the pacing of the film bothered me a little, not that the faster pace is bad but several scenes just felt rushed to get to another point. Most of the scenes where Owen was in the courtyard seemed to have very quick transitions from another scene. I never really saw him leave the apartment to go out into the courtyard, he is just in the courtyard or somewhere else.

On the topic of scenes though, I found myself really liking the parts Matt Reeves added in more than the parts based on the original movie. Most of the lines based on the original script sounded very automated and brief to me, like it wasn't a point of focus. I found the car scene with Jenkins was just amazing, the ambulance at the beginning, and the addition to the ending were both very awesome. The bullying was also done really well, different and more violent but successfully gave me sympathy for Owen. My only complaint is that Jimmy wasn't given much development, he wasn't shown as protective of his younger brother or even given a real reason to antagonize Owen. Other than that I loved the little references to the book.

I do feel that there wasn't much chemistry in Owen and Abby's relationship, but that may have been intentional. Also, most of the lines that felt like they should be intimate or intense sounded more dark humor to me. Jenkins cursing and kicking the snow at having to hide a body had me snickering a bit. Might be because the original was shot like a silent movie and in taking from that into a movie that has more dialogue than silent expression makes lines feel brisk and short.

Acting-wise I felt Kodi was really wonderful, his character was very believable. Also I really liked Elias Koteas' acting too, I almost wanted to see more scenes with him doing the investigation. Chloe seemed less interesting, she seemed at peace with her vampirism so there is nothing to develop character-wise. The feral child take was neat and creepy but not really new.

Other little tidbits.. Color pallet is wonderful! Very beautiful color schemes. The music was all over the place to me, the love theme was very good but the rest fit into the generic horror movie score to enhance suspense or just seemed too perky. The gore was at a good level! Didn't distract from the story.

All in all, I didn't really find it powerful and moving as LTROI, but it was more suspenseful and gritty. Really liked that it took a more horror movie approach. Same story with a different inflection in tone. To me, I would have liked it more if the movie didn't go word-for-word from the original's screenplay. If it had been rewritten completely to fit this movie's context I think it would be much stronger.

[Zhoutai21]

Btw, what was Kenny's reason for being such a bully? I missed it.

When Owen's walking around the school and catches the bullies hanging out, Jimmy (Kenny's older brother) comes up behind him, puts him in a choke hold like he did in the original. Then he asks for the keys to go home, repeats it more angrily/sternly. When he gets the keys, he walks past Kenny, messing with his hair or something and says "See ya' later, little girl," whilst the other bullies laugh.

The same phrase Kenny tortures Owen with.

Oh okay. Thanks a lot. I must have zoned out or something because I saw that scene but didn't hear the dialogue.

[Gryphon]

Hi I'm new and I don't talk much, but I'd like to say that I too loved "Let Me In." I actually saw it first, and it enchanted me enough to look it up online, find "Let the Right One In" on IMDB, and that led me here I've now watched LtROI, and must say I like them both for different reasons, sort of like two brands of chocolate cake.... the same sort of taste, but subtle differences in taste that make them both worth eating

OKay, back to lurking...

[thestich]

Lurk away.

And welcome Gryphon.

You may not be fully infected yet. We will see what we can do about that.

Check out the Tale told by hands for LTROI when you get a chance:
http://let-the-right-one-in.com/woofy/4 ... -by-hands/

Also check out the fan fiction (all based on LTROI and the book). Very good stuff there.

[N.R. Gasan]

Hi I'm new and I don't talk much...

Hi back, Gryphon. Welcome to our corner of cyberspace. You are free to talk as much (or as little) as you wish. As you probably already know, this is a very friendly and open-minded company. As far as liking LMI, you and zephonate are certainly entitled to your opinions. If anyone "flames" you because of your opinions, well shame on them. But I doubt that will happen here. So far at "We, The Infected," folks are continuing the tradition of agreeing-to-disagree, despite a wide range of opinions as to the quality of LMI; may this civility continue.

[TΛPETRVE]

Welcome, Gryphon. May the fangs be with you!