LFF Screening - Let Me In

Let Me In
Starring: Chloe Moretz, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Richard Jenkins
Director: Matt Reeves
Rating: 3 (out of 5)

Summary: In a remake of the flawless Swedish original "Let The Right One In", "Let Me In" tells the story of Owen (Smit-McPhee), bullied at school and friendless whose life takes a turn for the better when Abby (Moretz) moves in next door. Their friendship builds into something more when Owen gradually discovers the terrifying and bloody truth...

Let The Right One In was such a beautifully shot and haunting movie that an American remake does come with a certain critical baggage; European snobbishness citing the fact that those imbecilic American's should learn how to read subtitles before getting their Hollywood sanitiser factories to repackage films.

This time around the setting is 1980's America meaning it all seems so familiar even if you weren't living in Genericville, USA at the time. Reeves plays upon this pop culture familiarity by drawing on themes that Spielberg would have been pushing back in the days of Boy George: the break up of the family,the resulting disenfranchised youth, the father like figure of Reagan on the flickering 20 inch colour TV and even a homage to Close Encounters during Richard Jenkins first kill at a rail crossing. At times this can bring some humorous, nostalgic moments but as is the problem with the increased focus on horror convention, it doesn't quite fit with the central theme of friendship and loyalty.

The decision to not stray too far from the original structure can sometimes fill you with a sense of deja vu and both young leads work amicably with what they are given – The Road's Smit-McPhee in particular building on his burgeoning reputation – but they rarely move beyond imitations of the previous, young cast. As remakes go, cinematographer Greig Fraser and director Matt Reeves seem to have taken the Gus Van Sant “if it ain't broke” Psycho route. Pacing and mise en scene taking their cue from the first with much of the frame lit with the same orange hues of street lamps, saturated white of the snow and vibrant red of blood as it's Swedish counterpart.

In fact the vibrant blood red is something which Reeves seems to be particularly enamoured with as he shows severed necks, gaping open wounds and acid coated faces with bloody glee. This preoccupation with making the subtle horror of the original the main focus this time around works on occasion – fleshing out Abbie's (Moretz) “Father” (Jenkins) character for example with a remorseful, slasher-lite back story – but most of the time creates problems with the dynamic between the two young leads, eventually overawing their slow burning journey from timid friends to life companions with blood and sweat but a severe lack of tears.

Despite the many millions no doubt ploughed into this remake, it struggles to keep the childlike charm of the original but does add more in the way of horror and humour. Some will find that appealing but when the original was almost pitch perfect, this is a clash of movie culture in which no one wins.