Let the Right One In

Yes, more vampires. Let the Right One In opens with a gentle sweep of snow cascading across the right half of the screen, while the credits scroll silently on the left.  It’s a captivating start to a film that is far more wistful and far less bloody than I was expecting.

Late one night, Eli (Lina Leandersson) moves into the apartment next door to Oskar’s (Kare Hedebrant).  Oskar, engrossed in enacting vengeful fantasies on the boys that bully him at school doesn’t notice, but a few days later they meet in the courtyard.  After observing that Eli smells funny (she’s hungry and in desperate need of blood), Oskar lends her his Rubicks cube.  Finding commonality in their loneliness, the two become friends.  This courtyard, surrounded by apartments on all sides is reminiscent of the housing complex in Kieslowski’s Decalogue, but here the buildings are clean and well maintained.  The snow is constantly fresh and the interiors are furnished in polished birch and coloured plastics.  People stay indoors.  There’s a close, small town feel about the place, but with the vast stretches of snow and sky, it’s also strangely airy.

 

The story is more about friendship, connecting, and dealing with bullies than vampires, but both elements are wedded together nicely – the final scene is both chilling and fantastic.  Oskar is an outsider because he is quiet and effeminate, while Eli is on the outside because she is a vampire, but both share the frustration of being disconnected. Despite her necessary murderous tendencies, Eli is a sweet vampire – it’s the group of boys who bully Oskar at school who are threatening.  While Eli acts on her need for food, the bullies plan and carry out their violence purely for the pleasure of seeing Oskar in pain, and their schemes to trap and hurt him are exacting in their orchestration.  The boys go about their cruelty with an unsettling naivety – here, it’s innocence that is dangerous.

 

I would’ve liked to see more of Eli’s relationship with her ‘father’ Hakan (Per Ragner), a man who lives with her and acts as a blood collector until he is caught in a bungled blood run.  Apparently, Hakan is developed in far more creepy and interesting ways in the original book, so it looks like I’ve got some nighttime reading to look forward to.  Also only touched on in the film is Oskar’s relationship with his father.  I thought the friend who Oskar seems to distrust might have been his father’s lover, but the interwebs inform me I’m mistaken.  Oskar’s father it seems, is an alcoholic who quickly forgets about Oskar when his friend arrives for a drink.

Let the Right One In is a beautiful looking film – in addition to all the snow, cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytemer uses the rule of thirds to compose most of his shots, creating still, balanced frames that are a joy to watch.  I loved the way the beginning and the end are linked by a shot of Oskar putting his hand against the window, leaving a warm print.  It’s just how the film presses gently into your eyes, leaving a faint but undeniable mark.