When I hear that Hollywood is re-making a movie, I usually cringe and expect the worst. And usually the product is just what I expected, a poorly planned hatchet job of the original film. But it has happened, on a few RARE occasions, that a re-make can be just as good, heck sometimes even better than its predecessor. Case in point, the 2010 release of “Let Me In”, the American adaption of the critically acclaimed Swedish film “Let The Right One In”. I had heard recommendations about “Let The Right One In” about a year ago on various horror blogs, so I marked it down on my list of horror movies to watch. And then after hearing a radio interview where Robert Englund (aka Freddy Krueger) was praising the book and story as one of his favorites, I was determined to check it out for myself.
So the movie is basically about a young boy, Owen who is having problems getting bullied at school. He is smart, but has some morbid hobbies, probably his only release from all the bullying. He makes friends with the new girl who moved in next door, Abby, who he only sees at night in the playground. Owen notices some strange behaviors about his new friend and eventually learns she is a vampire. He is afraid at first, but their relationship grows strong enough that he overlooks the danger in associating with her. Abby is a savage hunter, and when bodies start turning up, the police begin searching for a killer. Little do they know they are looking for a little girl. I’ll spare you the rest of the plot and juicy details…let’s just say it gets really interesting from here!
The original, “Let The Right One In” was great…maybe because I was experiencing the story for the first time. Granted, the pacing was very slow. But the story kept me seated. I saw the American version “Let Me In” about a month ago on Netflix streaming and honestly was pleasantly surprised! The pacing of the movie was much faster than the original. The casting and performances of the two child actors was absolutely believable. (Abby’s character is played wonderfully by Chloe Moretz who you may remember as Hit-Girl from the movie Kick-Ass.) And there was a bit more grit in the set design and the attack scenes that gave the film a much darker edge than the original. It’s a great film and story, and I highly recommend it. Definitely a thumbs up from those of us at The Ghoulie Guide!
