Let Me In; 4.5 stars

Let Me In is a masterpiece among horror films. Of course, no horror film can ever match up to the class of Alfred Hitchcock, except maybe the Hannibal Lector movies but that is beside the point. Let Me In is a true classic. I have not seen the original film, Let the Right One In, so I guess I can’t make a point on its adaptation, but I can speak for its filmmaking qualities and it is top notch.


I won’t go into any details about the plot. I think one of the reasons I loved it so much is because I did not know what to expect. All I knew was that it about a bullied kid who falls in love with a girl who turns out to be a vampire. No, this is not a twist on Twilight people. (Although Bella wasn’t bullied, she should have been). This is a pure, beautiful vampire flick as they should be, not these sick, idiotic teen vampires who have sex with everything that moves. This doesn’t have sex, it has power behind the performances that you don’t normally see today in these kinds of films.

Chloe Grace Moretz, of Kick-Ass fame, is amazing as the vampire girl. She isn’t your typical vampire. There is much more going behind the scenes that we don’t really know about and that is part of the fun. And her counterpart, the weakling Kodi Smit-McPhee, of The Road, is very good in his role. Of course almost any kid actor can make us feel bad when we see them get beaten around, but Kodi really lets us into his mind. We don’t just feel bad for him: we understand him and can truly get inside of him.

However, where every horror film needs to excel is not really the acting (although it is always a plus to have good actors). Where it needs to excel and surpass all other aspects is the music. Jaws wouldn’t be Jaws without Williams’ theme. Sign wouldn’t be Sign with Howard’s haunting strings and brass. Let Me In surpassed all of my exceptions and I would call it a near perfect film, I can’t be me without finding a flaw. I did not care for Michael Giacchino’s music. It was generic, clique, and predictable. There was nothing special and nothing that stood out to me.

That being said, I found the ending enjoyable and perfect. I loved the whole story, the acting, the horrific images, and the pure excitement of what was going to come. I think most people would enjoy this and I think it should be a standard to modern day horrors from now on.

Tomorrow: Unknown, Never Let Me Go, and Winter’s Bone