Let the Right One Alone

Without a doubt Let the Right One In was one of the films of last year, and the remake (entitled Let Me In (Låt den rätte komma in) was inevitable. Unfortunately. Looking first at the director and screenplay writer, Matt Reeves directed Cloverfield, which I enjoyed and found well done, but from an original idea with nothing to really work from. The relationships were paper thin and really only there as a minor sub plot.

It is a completely different scenario for Let the Right One In, where relationships are central, delicate and humane, and obviously there is an entire film to work from and remould. From the trailer, it already seems as though the feel of the original has been lost. Moving from the ideal setting of an isolated Swedish town to a slightly busier New Mexico town makes it look as though the locations are busier, even down to the more varied and threatening landscape as opposed to the quaint plains of Sweden.

The casting of Let Me In is impressive, with two child stars who have potentially huge futures ahead of them playing the lead roles- Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Road) and Chloe Moretz (Kick Ass). Hopefully they can at the very least replicate the brilliant performances of the two original actors, although there is a fear that over production for the viewing pleasure of a mainstream audience could detract from the simplistic manner in which the friendship was developed and maintained. Already from a two minute trailer Abby (Moretz) talks too much, and Moretz herself has a confident appearance on screen and this looks as though it will shine through. That would be fine if her character was not meant to be of the silent subdued type, but time will tell and show her versatility.

If Asian remakes are anything to go by, Let Me In could be awful, and miss the point of the original completely. And with a remake planned for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and its sequels, the worry would be that Scandinavia’s finest works are potentially about to be butchered. More worryingly though is that it points to a complete lack of ingenuity in Hollywood, with the focus on making money as opposed to producing fresh ideas. Where is the creativity gone?