Let The Right One In

[Kabukiman]

It would take a lot of assuming but isn't terribly hard to figure out if you just listen to Eli constantly saying "I'm not a girl" and then seeing the clothes changing scene. They could have used more backstory, but I'm not 100% convinced that the director didn't intentionally take creative license with Hakan and Eli's characters.

Like you said, it would take a lot of assuming. I thought "I'm not a girl" meant that she was a vampire.

 

[BadMoon]

Like you said, it would take a lot of assuming. I thought "I'm not a girl" meant that she was a vampire.

I thought that too. Then it clicked when I saw the missing member. I even hit the good old rewind button to make sure what I saw just happened.

 

[Studio49]

I just got the BluRay/DVD combo pack in today from Sweden. I wasn't about to pay for crappy subtitles on the American release. I popped it in two hours ago for my first viewing.

Easily a 10/10 for me, and one of my all time favorite horror movies. I love how simple it is, while still following vampire lore and tradition, and at the same time it's so inventive. The pool scene belongs in a top ten list of best horror scenes ever filmed.

The American version of this, soon to be filmed, can only screw it up. It was more expensive to import the Swedish edition, and the DVD disc is Region 2, but it was worth it to have the proper theatrical experience.

 

[Kabukiman]

I just got the BluRay/DVD combo pack in today from Sweden.

Does that have english subs?

 

[Studio49]

Does that have english subs?

It does, and they are the proper theatrical version. I bought the Blu-Ray/DVD combo pack. I don't know much about Blu-Ray, so I can't tell you if it's region free. The DVD that came in the set was Region 2, so you will need a player that can support multiple regions. I purchased it here...

https://english.megastore.se/template/next,Product.vm?itemid=2088982

The site says "Not in stock," but it is available for purchase. It just takes a couple extra days to ship.

 

[siren3-4]

Just watched this movie . . I loved it . .

I wish I didn't know it was a vampire movie and it really shouldn't have been billed as one on the cover like that . . . I think it sets up wrong expectations . . .

I am lending this out to friends now and making them watch it without telling them anything about it or letting them read the cover . . .

9/10

I didn't mind the dub at all and I have the Magnolia release with the altered subtitles so it was better that way . . . I have to pick up a future release with the fixes as I would like to hear it in the original language . .

 

[BadMoon]

I made my girlfriend watch this movie. This was my third or fourth time watching it. I now find it rather boring. Not a good horror flick at all.

 

[Bannister]

I made my girlfriend watch this movie. This was my third or fourth time watching it. I now find it rather boring. Not a good horror flick at all.

It only took once for me to be bored.

 

[BadMoon]

It only took once for me to be bored.

I thought it was a cool story don't get me wrong. But repeated viewings IMO don't do it justice.

 

[Kabukiman]

I thought it was a cool story don't get me wrong. But repeated viewings IMO don't do it justice.

I know it's cliche to say, but... read the book. It's so much better than the movie. I'm not done yet, but I've loved every page so far.

 

[wofford29]

I made my girlfriend watch this movie. This was my third or fourth time watching it. I now find it rather boring. Not a good horror flick at all.

I guess anyone would find it boring if they think it's a horror film.

 

[The ill Jedi]

I know it's cliche to say, but... read the book. It's so much better than the movie. I'm not done yet, but I've loved every page so far.

I guess the books are always better 'cause you see it differently in your mind as you're reading it. That and they can't always fit everything that's in the book into the movie.

I guess anyone would find it boring if they think it's a horror film.

Exactly.

 

[BadMoon]

I guess anyone would find it boring if they think it's a horror film.

I guess it doesn't matter what genre of film it is. For me repeated viewings of this movie are boring.

 

[silversurfer]

It only took once for me to be bored.

Me too

 

[barbelith]

I guess the books are always better 'cause you see it differently in your mind as you're reading it. That and they can't always fit everything that's in the book into the movie.

I don't think this is always the case. It's often true, because what makes a book great and what makes a movie great are very different things. It's probably impossible to make a decent film of Watchmen or The Great Gatsby, because the plots and settings are not the point. Good luck finding a great film adaptation of Woolf or Joyce.

On the other hand there have been films that are better than the book; I'm going to risk a minor war and suggest the Lord of the Rings, The English Patient and Trainspotting are much better films than they are novels.

It depends on the source material, the author and the filmmakers, really.

The problem with Let the Right One In isn't the adaptation, because it's a brilliant film and everything you need is right there. Rather it's an issue of expectation (the people who think it's a horror film) and conditioning (the people who think movies should be watched with the brain switched off).

 

[DinoDB1975]

I finally got around to finishing this movie this weekend. I bought it on Blu-Ray a few months ago, started watching it late at night, and stopped because I got tired. I finally got to finish the second half this weekend.

I felt the movie was well-done, and quite faithful to vampire lore, but I have to admit I bought into the hype about it being the “best vampire movie ever”.

The problem I think is that we (and I am referring to U.S. audiences) have such a cookie cutter idea of what a horror movie is…usually shocking and explicit violence, and scenes that attempt to scare the audience. I felt that the end involving the kids at the pool was very shocking and horrific in itself

Spoiler

(as an aside, it’ll be interesting to see how the U.S. version adapts this…there’s no WAY I can see the MPAA stand for grade/middle school kids getting ripped apart, at least on screen).

I admit, the question of Eli’s true nature went over my head. When I saw the scene when Eli was changing, I thought “WTF was that?”

Spoiler

(Sorry, I’ve never seen or imagined what a castration looks like).

It’s clear from the posts here from those that read the books that there are more layers to this film than I thought. I know watching it in two parts didn’t help either.


What I am interested in is what others think about the nature of Eli’s and Oskar’s relationship. It is quite obvious (or at least alluded to) that Oskar will take over and fulfill Hakan’s role. The question is, do you feel that it was a genuine and reciprocated relationship, or a more manipulative one from Eli? The film (as well as the synopsis on the back)mostly alluded to the fact that the relationship was a reciprocated one based upon the marginalization of both characters; Eli as a vampire and Oskar as a loner who is bullied. I watched the extras on the Blu-Ray and the director said that the end was open to interpretation, and he felt that it was a happy ending. However (and this is the cynical side of me), part of me thinks it was a lot of manipulation of Eli’s part. Eli is a predator, and I don’t mean that in the obvious sense that she feeds on blood. Although she looks like a child in their early teens, we know that Eli has been around for longer than that, and her mind is beyond that of a child; Eli knows that she/he needs help to survive. Hakan is fairly old, and Eli may have been preparing for his eventual successor. Obviously Eli would choose someone who was fairly weak willed, or someone with vulnerabilities that could be exploited; Hakan with his predilection for children and Oskar with his loneliness and isolation. If I remember correctly, there was a scene where Eli was loudly admonishing Hakan (after he committed the first murder in the movie and forgot the blood). Essentially, do you think that Eli came back to help Oskar because Eli felt a connection with him, or because Eli saw in Oskar a successor to Hakan?

 

[BadMoon]

The problem with Let the Right One In isn't the adaptation, because it's a brilliant film and everything you need is right there. Rather it's an issue of expectation (the people who think it's a horror film) and conditioning (the people who think movies should be watched with the brain switched off).

Not me. I loved the movie the first time through. Just saying that for me this is not the type of movie that I can re-watch. I got the point the first time and enjoyed it. Nothing much to see afterwards. Granted I just watched it for my 4th time.

 

[barbelith]

The question is, do you feel that it was a genuine and reciprocated relationship, or a more manipulative one from Eli?

This is a fascinating question, and one I hadn't considered before. I think how we answer this depends on what we make of the castration and what it represents.

 

[Bannister]

The problem with Let the Right One In isn't the adaptation, because it's a brilliant film and everything you need is right there. Rather it's an issue of expectation (the people who think it's a horror film) and conditioning (the people who think movies should be watched with the brain switched off).

For me it was the hype, plain and simple.