Let the Right One In/Låt den Rätte Komma In (2008) - Chilling atmosphere and originality at play in Alfredson's child-centered horror

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+ Best Swedish Movie of the Year + Best Vampire Movie of the Year

A cry for help seems to be trapped in the ice on this chillingly created poster for Tomas Alfredson's Let the Right One In

A prepubescent boy is bullied consistently and is submitted to a life of fear in feminism-dominated Sweden. But then he discovers a friend in the girl Eli, who, however, has an unfortunate habit: She drains people of their blood.

Let the Right One In is written by John Ajvide Lindqvist (Border/Gräns (2018)), based on his same-titled 2004 novel, and directed by Tomas Alfredson (Bert: The Last Virgin/Bert - Den Siste Oskulden (1995)).
This rare Swedish vampire romance horror drama has a handsome, coolly observant photographic concept (cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytema (Call Girl (2012))) and an original premise in its focus on the bullied boy. It is a good-looking and entertaining film, although I find it overrated.
The vampire element remains a gimmick that seems placed in this story without any real cause, furthermore, the film upon scrutiny really doesn't say anything. In periods it feels like a children's movie that's simply inappropriate for children to watch.
There is a cool public swimming pool scene at the end, and the mostly practical effects are very good. I don't buy into the slighting of male sexuality in Eli's first relationship, and I wonder if the 1970s setting is another gimmick in an already (to me) somewhat gimmicky film.
Let the Right One In is a damned cold but admirable piece of work.

Related post:

Tomas Alfredson: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) - Alfredson's heavily plotted, dreary spy hunt

2008 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III] 

2008 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II] 
2008 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I] 

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 29 mil. SKK, approximately 4.5 mil. $
Box office: 11.2 mil. $
= Minor flop (returned 2.48 times the cost)
[Let the Right One In premiered 26 January (Göteborg International Film Festival, Sweden) and runs 114 minutes. Casting of the leads reportedly took a year. Shooting took place near Stockholm in Sweden. The film opened #47 to a 49k $ first weekend in 4 theaters in North America, where it peaked at #28 and in 53 theaters (different weeks), grossing 2.1 mil. $ (18.8 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were the UK with 1.8 mil. $ (16.1 %) and Sweden with 1.6 mil. $ (14.3 %). Roger Ebert gave the film a 3.5/4 star review, translating to two notches better than this review. The film was nominated for a BAFTA, 3 European Film awards, won 5/7 Guldbagge awards (Sweden's Oscar), a National Board of Review award and many other honors. Alfredson returned by shooting standup-show Sissela Kyle - Dina Dagar Är Räknade (2011, video) and theatrically with Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011). Kåre Hedebrant (Real Humans/Äkta Människor (2012-14)) returned in Cubid's Balls/Amors Baller (2011); Lina Leandersson (Broken Hill Blues/Ömheten (2013)) in The Arbiter (2013). Let the Right One In is certified fresh at 98 % with an 8.3/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Let the Right One In?

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) - Alfredson's heavily plotted, dreary spy hunt

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Gary Oldman straightens his glasses as the lead spy on the poster for Tomas Alfredson's Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

QUICK REVIEW:

Once in the Cold War, Mr. Smiley is frozen out of the intelligence Circus in London, only to be recruited again to find and root out the Soviet mole that plagues the very same institution.

Good performances by Gary Oldman (Lawless (2012)), Mark Strong (John Carter (2012)) and David Dencik (The Homesman (2014)) improve but do not save this unnecessarily knobbly told intelligence thriller, the second adaptation, following the same-titled 1979 BBC mini-series, of John Le Carré's (The Russia House (1989)) 1974 novel. Adapted by Bridget O'Connor (Mrs. Ratcliffe's Revolution (2007)), who sadly passed away during production, and her husband Peter Straughan (Frank (2014)).
Aesthetically this version, by Swedish director Tomas Alfredson (Let the Right One In/Låt den Rätte Komma In (2008)) in his English-language debut, gorges on the period's ugliest, most color-deprived misery, just like the BBC series did. Only this new Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy has a little more blood and higher pace than the dragging show had. I was also frustrated that there is no clear indices of the year that the plot takes place in.
Ultimately, I think Alfredson's film is another rather dull cinematic round based on Carré material; this one is excessively esoteric as well as severely unattractive due to its asceticism.

Watch the great trailer for the film here, which makes it look exceedingly exciting

Cost: 21 mil. $
Box office: 80.6 mil. $
= Big hit
[Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy was tremendously successful in its native UK, (though it is, in fact, a UK-German-French co-production), where it made 14 mil. £ and stayed #1 for three consecutive weeks. It also made a handsome 24.1 mil. $ (30 % of the total gross) in North America. The film was also nominated for three Oscars, for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Score (Alberto Iglesias (The Constant Gardner (2005))) and Best Actor (Oldman), winning none.]

What do you think of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy?