LET THE RIGHT ONE IN

Every once in a while, you’re late to the party. So late that the bottles are empty, the food is gone, and people are already reaching for their coats. That’s how I feel with LET THE RIGHT ONE IN. It’s brilliant – one of the best movies I’ve seen in a long time actually, and I feel like a right git for not having seen it already. So much so, that I wonder what I can write about it that hasn’t already been said.

It’s been described as the “Anti-TWILIGHT” (she makes great potato salad by the way…my Auntie Twilight…sorry, I couldn’t resist). It’s yet another example of what’s wrong with the Best Foreign Film category at the Oscars since it wasn’t nominated. And its elegantly simple photography makes the whole movie an absolute joy to watch. But again, much of this has been said before.

I’m still in awe of the touching performances by the two young actors who play the leads in the film. Both of them play their parts with a fragility that young North American actors often lack. All the more mind-blowing, it was the feature film debut for both actors. You gotta respect talent like that, likewise for director Tomas Alfredson for guiding them to such brilliance.

An old friend recently asked me if I ever felt like I’d hit a ceiling when it comes to movie-watching. She referred to the point when films start to feel stale, to the point where it feels like everything is a rehash of something you’ve already seen. She may be on to something, but to her I say rent this movie. It’s proof that you can take a film genre that’s literally as old as the medium itself, and still tell a tale in a way that feels truly original.