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page H.
DRAMA HORROR
LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (LAT DEN RATTE KOMMA IN)
(15) 114mm oooo
Let the Right One In is a chilling Swedish coming-of- age story that breathes new life into a tired vampire genre marred by American high school teenagers and Christian lobbyist novelists (Stephanie Meyer, Anne Rice).
It’s the early 805 in the Stockholm suburb of Blackeburg and 12-year-old Oskar (Kare Hedebrant) is having a rubbish time. Bullied at school and lonely at home, Oskar spends his free time planning revenge in the snow-checked yards outside the tower block apartment he shares with his mother. Then he meets newcomer to the area Eli (Lina Leandersson) who appears to be a pale androgynous girl. So begins a friendship that will change both their lives.
Adapted from his debut novel by Morrissey-loving Swedish horror writer John Ajvide Lindqvist (the book’s title comes from Mozzer solo tune ‘Let the Right One Slip In’) and directed by comedian and Swedish TV big cheese Tomas Alfredson, Let the Right One In has pedigree to spare. Sparse, slow and occasionally bewitching, Let the Right One In emerges from a tradition of the sort of slow-build, low-budget horror (held together by vampire lore
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balderdash) that’s best exemplified by George A Romero’s seminal 1977 bloodletter Martin. Like Romero, Alfredson treats the idea of longing and unfulfilled desire between the corrupted and the pure with a seriousness and resolve that gives this warped tale of childhood friendship a touching dimension.
By formalising the film’s look by keeping the camera fixed and allowing his clearly gifted crew to do what they do best (feted Swedish cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema’s captures electric light better than anyone since Vilmos Zsigmund, and Per Sundstrom's soundscape work is a marvel), Alfredson concentrates on performance (the two young leads are remarkable) and pace to create a work of nuance, sophistication and calmness - the blood-soaked poetry of which is not easy to forget.
Alfredson’s excellent film arrives in Scotland riding the crest of a wave of film festival euphoria and zeitgeist-style acclaim; whether it plays so well with a regular audience more attuned to the ‘shock and show’ techniques of modern horror will be interesting to see. If subtitles, subtlety and blood-sweet violence don’t appeal, there’s no need to worry - an American remake is already in production (and they can always be trusted to suck the life out of anything). (Paul Dale) I GF—T. 6:139:12; Cameo. Edinburgh and selected release from Fri ‘3 Apr.
Name Pablo Larrain
Born 19 August 1976. Santiago. Chile
Background Pablo Larrain studied film at the UNIACC university in Chile. After working as an assistant director on several films. he started to direct commercials. His debut film Fuga. about a frustrated composer, was released in South America in March 2006 and won several domestic awards. He founded a company. Fabula. and produced Sebastian Silva's film La Vida Me Mata (Life Kills Me) in 2007. What's he up to now? Larrain was in the shop of the Reina Sofia museum in Madrid. Spain when he picked up a book called Drink. It contained a series of black and white photography of a guy in his 505 in various guises. such as sitting on a chair in his underwear with his gun in one hand and a cigarette in another. He felt like the guy had similarities to actor Alfredo Castro and when he showed the actor the book they decided to make a film inspired by the photos. Castro thought he looked like a killer and a dancer. It was then that Lorrain came up with the idea of linking this man with Saturday Night Fever. and the film Tony Manero was born. On Saturday Night Favor ‘I can't remember the first time I watched it. I was only two when it came out in Chile so it must have been on TV in the 803. Saturday Night Fever is a good film. but it's definitely not one of my favourite films. Of course. when I started on making Tony Manero I had to watch the film many. many times to see what part of the character I wanted to depict.‘
On Hollywood movies ‘American films, well almost all of them, there are a few exceptions. but most have characters who. if they are evil at the start. they’ll end up good by the end. That is not like life at all. In my film I wanted to have a protagonist that does not change.’
Interesting fact John Travolta liked the film so much he only asked to be paid the actor's guild minimum for use of his image in the movie. (Kaleem Aftab)
I Tony Manero, Fi/mhouse, Edinburgh and selected release from Fri 10 Apr. See review, page 47.
2-16 Apr 2009 THE LIST 45