by Ryan Stewart
“Their relationship is tender, and also drenched in blood.” – ”
– Matt Reeves
Tomas Alfredson’s brilliant Let the Right One In, which made SuicideGirls’ distinguished Top Ten Films of 2008 list, is no less brilliant for having been remade as Let Me In, the Americanized version in theaters this week. In fact, the exquisite direction of the remake by Matt Reeves (Cloverfield) has earned it surprisingly good reviews from critics still enamored with the original, and sparked a debate in some quarters about which version is the definitive one. Whichever you prefer, the very fact of this dark story now having been positively received twice in two years is proof of its poignancy and emotional heft. With the action moved from an apartment block in Sweden to the creepy suburb of Los Alamos, New Mexico, Let Me In retells the story of Oskar (now called Owen), a shy, possibly disturbed young boy who is seeking a respite from severe school bullying when a savior appears: a quiet, severe-looking girl named Eli (now called Abby), who teaches him to stand up for himself in exchange for nothing more than his companionship, at first.
Starring Kodi Smit-McPhee as Owen and young acting phenom of the moment
Chloe Moretz as his mercurial guardian, Let Me In deftly examines a bond of friendship between two damaged children, one being driven by abuse into a possible future as a psychopath, and the other an aged vampire in a child’s body who has more or less come to terms with the kill-or-be-killed nature of existence, though echoes of humanity still reverberate in her eyes. Although certain elements of John Lindqvist’s source book have been soft-soaped for American audiences, such as Eli recruiting a middle-aged pedophile as her personal Renfield, keeping him enslaved while perpetually denying him that which he most desires, the book’s sensationally realized characters and bold storytelling are still there in abundance, guided by the sure hand of Reeves, a director steadily moving up the ranks of talent to watch. Matt Reeves recently called up SuicideGirls during a lunch break while out promoting the film.
Read our exclusive interview with Matt Reeves on SuicideGirls.com.
