Review of Let Me In (2010) by Dave J — 15 Nov 2013

Monday, January 16, 2012.

(2010) Let Me In.

HORROR.

The eventual bond and trust between two outcasts between a young 12 year old girl Abby (Chloë Grace Moretz) whose really a vampire, and an often bullied 12 year old boy, Owen(Kodi Smit-McPhee) which says on the movie credits that it's adaption came from the book, but in fact looks instead like a remake of the 2008 version "Let The Right One In" with the only difference was the setting is on American soil, or was that Mexico.

If people have not seen the original then this film may make a strong impact, but for others such as myself, it's more convoluted than the previous version. The only thing this version addressed clearly as opposed to the original are the purpose of the unknown stand-in and role of the supposed father of the vampire whose not really Abby's father which may have not been explained properly on the translation of the first version. But as a result of this one being made, they're far more things that's not addressed well in this version which is usually the downside upon watching remakes. (To those who have seen it please stop reading right now since it's going to contain plot spoilers) Before I go on a rant, the first thing I want to address is that the US, Canada and Mexico is not like Sweden, saying that whatever customs and traditions that happened there is not the same as the customs that occur in countries in North America. But just the same what this film doesn't do well as opposed to the original is that it doesn't address the rent situtation, viewers assume that money they were getting were coming from people the vampire and his assumed father have killed. At the beginning, footprints was acknowledged by the little boy, but for some reason they don't appear to be addressed by the police which means that it's another film that portrays incompetent policemen or unexisting police presence, such as convenient police ambandonment of patients at a hospital for instance. Near the end of the film, a murder happens nearby where the suite the vampire lives and not a single police officer is questioning anyone nearby for any answers/ clues from any of the tenants living in the building complexes for any leads or suspected perpatrators that might've done the attack- this also includes the little boy who manages to go right on back to his suite. I mean whenever their was a even a break in nearby where I lived, an officer would come to my door to ask me whether or not I had seen anything- that's just proper police protocol. And not a single law officer has been asked to question him despite footprints leading to the suite as opposed to the original when all the deaths that is linked to the vampire all happen at a distance away where they cannot be traced or suspected. And if capabilites of the vampire are irrevelent, why are viewers subjected to her climbing abilities as opposed to showing anything else she can do- I mean can this vampire fly or does she just runs and jumps very fast, viewers are never explained about this. And finally, at the end of the film, the boy blatantly leaves his mother with the vampire, but viewers don't know where the heck he's going since he has no money giving viewers the assumption that he's going end up killing civilians for a living just like Abby's fake father. Does Owen ever warned his mother that he's just left when in the original, he informs her that he's going to go see his father. He just kind of takes off without saying anything to the mother like she never existed anymore. I mean, if that's the case, the mother would have got the police involved perhaps get a search party. Now, that I've seen both versions, yes in my opinion, this is a less credible version of the 2008 original.

2 out of 4.