Let Me In
(2010/Hammer/Anchor Bay Blu-ray)
Picture:
B- Sound: B- Extras: C+ Film: B-
Judged
unfairly by some, Let Me In is a
remake of the 2008 Swedish film, Let the
Right One In, based upon the novel from 2004 of the same name.
The story
concerns an eternally youthful vampire, Abby, who moves into town with her
father. Also living in her apartment
building is a young boy named Owen who is constantly bullied at school. They become friends, and as their relationship
further develops, Owen will discover her secrets and what he will have to do to
remain with her.
While
premature detractors of the remake have felt that the original should not have
been tampered with, this kind of thing is inevitable these days. Strangely,
when movies such as Ringu and Ju-On were respectively adapted as The Ring and The Grudge, few stood up to complain. In this case, however, audiences have been
given an Americanized version that remains respectful to the material that has
come before it, with even the author of the original novel stating his love of
both films.
Changes
have been made, such as Oskar and Eli now being known as Owen and Abby and
relocating the story from Stockholm to New Mexico. It's also interesting to see what narrative
strengths have been played up for American audiences, and how it still works so
well in spite of tonal differences from the earlier film. Some might argue that it is now lacking in
subtlety, but this is not the case – the subtleties have merely been shifted
elsewhere, while other parts of the story have been made more blunt and
forceful as they are brought to the foreground.
Extras
are present, and include an audio commentary and a trailer gallery. There is a behind the scenes featurette and
progressive special effects comparisons, but while nice to have, still come off
as being a little bit half-hearted. For
the moment, this edition also includes a bonus comic book prequel to the film,
which is a nice bonus.
The
picture is solid, and is presented in 1080p digital high definition with an
aspect ratio of 2.40:1. Sound is in
Dolby TrueHD, with a 5.1 mix with nice use of surrounds. Those who missed out on seeing Let Me In theatrically owe it to
themselves to get this, as it is a more than adequate Blu-ray. The 2008 original, Let the Right One In, is also available in the U.S. From MagNet/Magnolia on
Blu-ray and DVD, but that edition is missing the commentary track that is found
on the U.K.
edition from Momentum Pictures as well as other items you can read more about
at this link:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/8432/Let+The+Right+One+In+(2008/MagNe
My
suggestion is to add them both to your library – they each represent high water
marks for the vampire film, and stand side by side as great achievements in the
horror genre overall.
- David Milchick
