Let the Right One in: Review By Dan

So it's been recommended to me to watch the original Swedish version of this story before seeing Matt Reeves' version.

I didn't really know what to expect, I wasn't familiar with the story. But I do know I enjoyed the hell out of this movie when it was said and done.

For starters, smart move on keeping a consistent tone. This is a dark movie, natural light is seen as obscene, literally and figuratively as the story progresses. I believe a lot of film makers forget that with the right lighting, you can really set the mood and suck your audience in.

In terms of acting, you couldn't ask for better performances. Everyone seems very natural with each other, and you can read a thousand different things by studying the main character's (Oskar) face. You can see it in his face that he's at first upset about Eli's vampire nature, but oddly drawn to it and calm at the same time. I don't know what was more unsettling, the vampiric violence, or that Oskar is eerily calm while it's going on.

Certainly the most controversial aspect of the movie was of Eli telling Oskar that she is in fact not a she, and this is actually proven by a quick shot of her crotch region after taking a shower, where there is a scar over where a penis used to be. Even knowing that, Oskar is still intrigued and likes Eli, which kind of gives the movie a homo-erotic undertone, but didn't diminish it's quality in any way. I'm curious if Matt Reeves will take the risk and include this part of the story in his adaption, and how well that would go over with American audiences.

While it's certainly a horror movie with it's particularly nasty, but conservative, violence, it's also an almost innocent romance that blossoms between that, with a sweet pay off in the end that I actually really liked.

The movie pays respect to the vampire mythos, and recognizing that, my hat is off to it.