the blog of nathan loding

This is the second part of a three part look at the Swedish film “Let The Right One In” and it’s American remake “Let Me In.”  Part one is a review of “Let The Right One In,” and part three looks at both together.  I plan to do my best to keep the two film reviews independent of each other, but do forgive me if I fail.  I would also like to acknowledge that I have not read the original novel, though I plan to in the future.  This commentary is based solely on the films and some trivia found online.

Let Me In (2010)
Starring: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Chloe Moretz, Richard Jenkins
Directed by: Matt Reeves
Written by: Matt Reeves, based on the novel and screenplay by John Ajvide Lindqvist
Rated: R

Rating:

We open on a snowy landscape outside Los Alamos, NM, with the blue and red flashes of sirens silently moving down a road.  An ambulance is delivering a man with severe burns on his face to the nearest hospital.  Once stabilized, he is grilled by a detective about his possible involvement with a Satanic cult.  When the detective leaves, the man scribbles “I’m sorry Abby” on a sheet of paper and hurls himself out the window to his death.

Rewind a few days.  In a low-rent apartment complex, the young Owen (Smit-McPhee) is struggling with his day-to-day life.  Bullies at school regularly taunt him, sometimes to the point of embarrassing side effects.  The lead bully, Kenny, calls Owen a “little girl” and take every possible opportunity to humiliate him.

One evening, Owen is watching his neighbors through his bedroom windows when he sees a young girl arrive with an older man.  They quietly and inconspicuously make their way to the apartment next to Owen’s.  The next night Owen meets the young girl, Abby.  She is strange: she doesn’t wear shoes and no coat, yet the cold doesn’t bother her.  He lets her borrow his Rubik’s cube, which she quickly solves.

As Owen and Abby’s bond grows, people end up murdered in the town.  The older man that moved in with Abby is out collecting blood – because Abby is a vampire.  Unfortunately the man has become sloppy in his work, ending with one of the most amazing car wrecks I’ve witnessed on the screen.

The bullying at school gets worse, as well.  Owen’s confidence in himself grows the closer he gets with Abby, and he ends up confronting the bullies one fateful afternoon, nearly tearing Kenny’s ear of in the process.

As with the review of Let The Right One In, I don’t want to spoil too much.  The performances from the child actors are amazing, and it is their innocence that saves this film.  I had already seen both of them in other roles where I was equally amazed at their performances (Moretz in Kick-Ass and Smit-McPhee in The Road).  My only complaint here is that Moretz is sometimes too downtrodden, rather than just disconnected.

The visuals in the movie are striking, and the cinematography is well done.  It’s not at all what I expected from the director of Cloverfield.  The move is subtle and even, which are two words that don’t often describe American movies these days.

Unfortunately, mixed in with the truly great – such as the car wreck scene, which I feel a need to mention again as it was gut-wrenching and perfect – are moments of the “Aw, really?” variety.  In one scene, Abby runs in distress and climbs a tree, except she’s clearly CGI and the effect really ruins the emotion of the moment.

The original Swedish version is clearly the winner between both, but the American version has a different perspective on the tale, and brings in several unique items that the Swedish version didn’t offer.  In all, you actually can’t compare the two apples to apples.  It’s a worthy stand-alone film that deserves its own place on the horror movie collectors shelf, even if it is right beside the original.

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Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtgXnxiEM3o

Deleted scene and interview with Matt Reeves: Exclusive Deleted Scene: Let Me In; Matt Reeves Explains Why the Intense Sequence Was Cut

This is the first part of a three part look at the Swedish film “Let The Right One In” and it’s American remake “Let Me In.”  Part two is a review of “Let Me In,” and part three looks at both together.  I plan to do my best to keep the two film reviews independent of each other, but do forgive me if I fail.  I would also like to acknowledge that I have not read the original novel, though I plan to in the future.  This commentary is based solely on the films and some trivia found online.

Låt den rätte komma in (2008)
Starring: Kåre Hedebrant, Lina Leandersson, Per Ragnar
Directed by: Thomas Alfredson
Written by: John Ajvide Lindqvist, based on his novel
Rated: R

Rating:

Let The Right One In is one of those rare films that comes along every few years.  It’s been described as “transcending genres” and it truly does.  At it’s heart, it’s a coming-of-age story for a 12 year-old boy outside Stockholm in 1982.  It’s about the girl who gives him the confidence to make that lead towards manhood, and their incredibly unique relationship.  It’s also about that girl, and her unique situation – she’s a vampire.

To get it out of the way right now – yes, the story does have gore and violence.  What is unique about it is the portrayal of the violence.  It’s not a central aspect to the story – the fact that the violence occurs is extremely important, but the violence itself isn’t.  So few filmmakers actually understand that difference anymore.  When violence happens on-screen, it’s hidden in shadows and behind object.  It’s just as violent, but not as graphic.

Oskar (Hedebrant) is a 12 year-old boy living outside Stockholm in 1982.  His parents are separated and Oskar’s relationship with both is strained.  His father is an alcoholic and his mother is barely there for him.  He spends his days alone and getting bullied at school by Conny and his two cronies.  At night, still alone, Oskar pretends to exact revenge on Conny with a small knife and a tree.  He stabs the tree violently, telling it to “Squeal like a pig,” just as Conny does to him.

Into this solitary existence comes Eli (Leandersson), a mysterious girl who moves in next door with an old man, Håkan.  Eli and Oskar meet one night on the jungle gym in the courtyard.  The meeting is quiet, uneventful, but a strong attraction is immediately formed.

The next night Oskar shares his Rubik’s cube with Eli and it, essentially, becomes their first date.  As Oskar and Eli grow their friendship, Håkan is attempting to collect blood to feed Eli – being a vampire and all – but he is old, and getting sloppy.  His first attempt fails when he is almost discovered by a pair of hikers.  Eli is furious and murders one of the neighbors.

Håkan’s mishaps continue, increasing tension amongst the neighbors and setting in motion a series of events that could end up destroying Eli.  Oskar runs into more severe bullying at school, and at Eli’s urging hits back at Conny, nearly tearing Connys ear off when he does so.  Eli works to stay alive while building her relationship with Oskar.  Then Oskar discovers that Eli is a vampire.

I don’t want to spoil too much of the movie, because it is very unpredictable.  Though “unpredictable” isn’t quite the right word – it’s something to experience.  It’s a unique film-going experience to live part of the relationship between a 12 year-old boy struggling to become a man and a vampire struggling to stay human.

The performances of two young actors are amazing.  They are more subtle than most performances these days, and the fact that both actors were 12 or 13 when it was filmed makes it even more amazing.  Hedebrant is especially good at portraying the conflicted Oskar.  The inner struggle with loneliness and trying to be noticed by the right people is there in his stance, his facial expressions, the way he talks.

The direction is what makes the movie a real gem.  The pace is even, which builds just the right amount of tensions at the right moments as you wait for the event to unfold.  Alfredson takes some amazing risks with his camera angles and perspective, often leaving the vast majority of the frame out of focus, or moving the camera to a position where the action is outside the frame.

In the end, the film is one of the few that actually live up to the title of “transcending genres.”  It is a coming-of-age tale.  It is a vampire tale.  And it’s surprisingly touching.

(As a side note, to those who are looking to purchase a copy of the film, make sure you read the article below regarding the subtitles and pay attention to what release you are purchasing.  There is a drastic and unfortunate difference in the UK/European and American releases.)

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Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICp4g9p_rgo

The subtitle controversy: http://iconsoffright.com/news/2009/03/let_the_wrong_subtitles_in_to.html

Clash of the Titans (2010)
Starring: Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes
Directed by: Louis Letterier
Written by: Travis Beacham, Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi
Rated: PG-13

Rating:

I grew up on the original Clash of the Titans (1981).  It’s corny by some of today’s standard, but the movie still holds up overall.  The story sticks remarkably close to it’s mythical roots, though it does take it’s own creative embellishments along the way.  Ray Harryhausen’s effects work is still amazing to me.

I can watch the original over and over.  I will never watch the remake again.

Perseus (Worthington) is discovered in a coffin at float in the sea by a meager fisherman.  The fisherman raises the young boy as his own.  Many years later, Perseus and his adoptive father are fishing when they witness a giant statue of Zeus be toppled into the sea by an army of men.  Hades (Fiennes) appears and destroys everyone around except for Perseus – after all, he is a demigod.

The few remaining soldiers drag Perseus to Argos, where he meets King Cepheus and Queen Cassiopeia.  It is here he learns that Cepheus and his Queen mean to end the time of the Gods and bring about a new Era of Man – his subjects have ceased praying to the Gods, which is causing them to weaken.  Cepheus is planning an overthrow of Mount Olympus.

Zeus (Neeson), angered by the loss of love from man, gives Hades approval to scare mankind back into a loving submission.  Hades appears at Cepheus’ court, demanding that the princess Andromeda be sacrificed a the eclipse to the Kraken, or Argos would be destroyed.

Hating the Gods, specifically Hades, for killing his adoptive family, Perseus sets out with some warriors from Argos to find a way to destroy the Kraken, save Argos and Andromeda, and beat the Gods.

I won’t touch on the utter destruction of Greek myth (Acrisius is Calibos?  The Kraken defeated Zeus?  Cepheus wants to destroy Zeus?) but it’s quite bad.  The 1981 film took some liberties, but overall it’s storyline was commendably close to the original myths.  The 2010 version takes too many unnecessary liberties that harm the story more than help.

The one drastic deviance I’ll note here is one I just don’t understand.  The filmmakers included the Djinn, an Arabic myth featured prominently in Islam.  The djinn are, depending your source material, one of the three creations of God (along with angels and humans).  They were forged from smokeless fire just as man was made from clay.  In Clash of the Titans, the djinn are warriors in the desert who have replaced their limbs with charred wood to live forever.  What?

The other notable failure of the film is, surprisingly, the special effects.  There are times that the animation sequences are no better than what Harryhausen created by hand with clay.  I was sadly disappointed in the giant scorpion sequence.  Medusa herself was a bit of a let down too.

I can’t really express how disappointed in this movie I was.  I was so excited when the original trailer came out, with it’s awesome looking action and heavy rock soundtrack.  It’s too bad the actual film didn’t turn out like the trailer.  Why they are making a sequel is beyond me, and it’s a frightening prospect.

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Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6CJenNMsb4

For the record, I still think this trailer is bad-ass.

The Wolfman (2010)
Starring: Benicio Del Toro, Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt, Hugo Weaving
Directed by: Joe Johnston
Written by: Andrew Kevin Walker and David Self
Rated: R

Rating:

What I wanted when I sat down to watch The Wolfman was quite simple: some gore, a good (no, great) effect when transitioning, and some gothic imagery.  What I got was exactly that – and nothing more.

Lawrence Talbot (Del Toro) is a well-known actor in London, currently playing Hamlet to sold out crowds.  Lawrence has been estranged from his father for some time; his mother committed suicide and the family didn’t hold up well in the aftermath.  After a performance, a beautiful young woman, Gwen (Blunt), interrupts his cast party with terrible news.  Lawrence’s brother has been found brutally murdered.

Gwen is apparently attractive enough to lure Lawrence back to Talbot Hall where he makes little attempt at reconnecting with his father, John (Hopkins).  Lawrence is bent on finding his brother’s killer and begins making rounds through the town.  Rumors of an awful creature, a fell beast, are whispered.  The gypsies have made a stop in town and with them comes curses and monsters.

Lawrence (on a night with a full moon of course) heads to the gypsy camp to investigate and gets mauled by the beast as it attacks the camp.  Though the wound should have been fatal, Lawrence is back on his feet in a surprisingly short amount of time.  As Lawrence’s fated transformation into a wolf progresses, Scotland Yard sends along Inspector Abberline (Weaving), fresh off the Ripper case, to calm the town’s fears and catch the killer.

The rest is details.  There is a particularly interesting scene in a mental institution in London, and some chases in between.  There is a twist – one I didn’t see coming until the last minute – but not a great twist.  There’s a lot of fog and dark images in the forests and empty manse’s.  There’s some gore, some arterial spray.  Details.

Del Toro was an interesting choice to play the lead role, but he does so with obvious admiration for the material.  Hopkins relishes the role and is the best part of the movie, with his interesting stares.  On the other hand, Blunt and Weaving seem to drift through the script.  I cannot say whether it was lack of substance or effort, but neither part is particularly interesting even though they should have been.

The movies best moments are, naturally, the grotesque transformation scenes.  An American Werewolf In London was instantly famous for it’s cutting edge special effects.  Since then, not many werewolf transformations could top it.  I believe that Rick Baker and his team have done it, though – the bone crunching VFX are well-done and make you twinge a little in pain.

I also asked for gothic imagery and got my fair share of it.  The cinematography is well done – not award winning, and it makes a great overuse of post-production effects, but still manages to evoke the right emotions.  That is high praise for the cinematographer, who’s last big-screen effort was The House Bunny.

I must admit that I enjoyed myself throughout.  Yes, it’s mindless, and brought nothing new to the story.  But it was fun, violent, and dark.  If you like the story of the the Wolfman, then check it out – I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

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Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqT19ERntas