Horror films get a bad rap these days and deservedly so. With so-called "Torture Porn" flooding the cinemas it is disenchanting to see how twisted the idea of what constitutes horror has become.
Like sci-fi, horror is best when it is allegorical; it is in illuminating the horrors of everyday life that provides the greatest terror. Some great examples from the past are; David Cronenberg's The Fly, The Exorcist, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, John Carpenter's The Thing, and Frankenstein. Films such as the Saw franchise simply cannot compete with their overly-contrived traps and excessive gore.
Lately, good horror films seem to be made, primarily, by foreign film-makers (The Orphanage, Pans Labyrinth, The Others). With their preference to story and character over gimmicks and gore, they create a palpable atmosphere, with haunting images that resonate with audiences for days, not just a titillating moment.
Let The Right One In is just such a film. Focusing on the story of 12 year-old Oskar, a lonely boy, living in Stockholm in the early '80's, the subject matter is surprisingly adult. Young Oskar has developed an obsession with murder and dreams of killing the school bullies that torment him. So, it is unnerving when a young vampire, Eli, moves in next door. As they strike up a friendship, moral lines begin to blur as Eli's predatory nature empowers Oskar.
The cast are excellent with the young leads being particularly effective. With his gaunt body and hollow eyes it is not hard to believe that young Oskar is capable of murder; it is this unease that preys on the mind of the audience as events unfold.
The vampire elements are all present in the film but, in a testament to restraint, they are never brought to the forefront of the tale; always allowing the human element of the story to take precedence. It is this mixture of the fantastic and mundane that makes the film so alluring.
I imagine that most debate about the film will come from the final scenes. In films that weave the fantastic into the reality of normal life it can become difficult to tie all of the threads together. Often films go too far into either direction; either amping up into a caricature of a fantasy film, or crashing back down to earth and disowning its mythical elements in a cruel trick on the audience (see The Village; or rather, don't!). Let The Right One In does perhaps go a little too "Grand Guignol" than it needs to in its final frames but it is still an effective end to an already excellent film.
This is the one of the best films that I have seen in the past year. If subtitles do not scare you then seek this film out; it is bound to have you checking your closet and looking under your bed!
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