Let Me In

Overture Films

4.5 out of 5 stars

You can blame it on Edward Cullen. You can blame it on Bill Compton. But one thing is clear: vampires have attacked the pop culture. Everywhere you look, there is a new TV show or movie featuring vampires. It’s getting to the point where vampires (pardon the pun) have sucked the genre dry.

The new vampire phenomenon has caused a dramatic change in the popular perception of what a vampire is. Today’s vampire is most likely an immortal man who somehow has to look like he came out of a Ralph Lauren ad who protects their one true love, even from themselves. This might be fine for pre-teen girls, but for those who remember, vampires were once one of the most frightening monsters in film. Thank goodness for Let Me In.

Let Me Inis a remake of the 2008 Swedish thriller Let the Right One In, but if you haven’t seen the Swedish film, don’t worry. This film adapts the original very faithfully, while still being able to add its own elements to the story.

The movie is set in Los Alamos, New Mexico in the year 1983. We meet Owen, played by Kodi Smit-McPhee, a 12-year old with a very unhappy life. His parents neglect him and he is constantly harassed at school by a group of bullies. One day, a girl and what appears to be her father move in to the apartment next door. The girl is Abby, played by Chloe Moretz of Hit-Girl (in Kick-Ass) fame.

The two form a friendship, even though Abby is very reluctant, telling Owen they can’t be friends without a reason. Eventually the two become very close friends. Abby convinces Owen to stand up to the bullies and even offers to help, claiming “she’s stronger than she looks.” That becomes very clear, as Owen learns that his new friend is a vampire. Meanwhile, Abby’s “father”/protector hunts for blood to feed her.

Coming off of his directing work with the monster film Cloverfield, Matt Reeves is developing an art style of his own that shines in this film. The scenes are beautifully shot, and the music throughout the movie adds to the tone as everything begins to fall apart. But most important to the film’s success are the performances by Kodi Smit-McPhee and Chloe Moretz.

Smit-McPhee brings a maturity to Owen as a kid who, growing up with abuse and neglect, finds happiness from a new friend, only to have that friendship lead him down a path that he doesn’t deserve. Not to mention the beginning of the film, when Smit-McPhee becomes quite possibly the creepiest kid since Haley Joel Osment in “The Sixth Sense.”

Moretz proves that her brilliant performance in Kick-Ass wasn’t a fluke as the vampire Abby. Underneath her sweet exterior, Moretz unleashes a feral, raging monster which at times actually scared me.

All in all, Let Me In is both a suspenseful thriller and a brilliant film, maintained by two very talented child actors. If you want a vampire film that has more blood than angst, go see Let Me In.