'Let Me In' Red Band Trailer

I've been bitching about this remake (that no one asked for or needed) since I first heard about it. It's stupid and this trailer doesn't convince me otherwise.

'Let Me In' is a remake of the Swedish film/book Låt den rätte komma in. A book and film, that while different in some places, are perfect as they are. It got some attention as being great and some shithead thought, "Let's buy the rights and remake it!" So they did.

The rough story is that Oskar is a loner who constantly gets picked on at school. Then a little girl/boy (it's really difficult to tell in the original whether the little girl playing Eli is a girl or boy) named Eli moves in next door and they become friends. Unfortunately, people have been going missing or show up murdered and the attention of the authorities is getting closer and closer to the apartment building where Oskar and Eli live. It's tense, dark, scary. Everything that the remake appears to lack. Much like Den Osynlige, which changed the ending to a much happier ending.

Chloe Moretz, while awesome as Hit Girl and everything, does not in any way, shape or form look androgynous. She looks like a little girl. Lina Leandersson looked androgynous and I really spent most of the movie, before looking her up on imdb, wondering if it was a girl or boy playing Eli. She also looked like she smelled as bad as Oskar described her as smelling. Moretz looks like a girl, sounds like a girl, and based on what I've seen of the remake, looks like she smells like roses and cookies not death and blood. As far as Oskar/Owen go, I think Kodi Smit-Mcphee has that "loner, loser, weak-kid" look that Oskar had, so that might work.

They even changed the location to New Mexico. Why? Why change it from a cold, desolate town? You could have placed it in Maine, or North Dakota or freakin' Canada! But, New Mexico? Their names have been changed as well. Now they are Owen and Abby. Yeah...Abby. There's a real question as to the gender there.

Since I still have not seen a remake of a foreign movie that was as good, or better, than the original and I don't think this is going to be the one to do that either. Let us look at the "gem" that is the remake and the GEM that is the original:







There are several clips on Traileraddict.com and you can also watch the movie on Netflix. It's slow and not like American horror movies, but it's great.

'El Orfanato' (The Orphanage) being remade??

Reports are that the fantastic Spanish film is going to be remade (of course) for us Americans who are unable to read English subtitles while still being able to watch the action onscreen. At least I assume this is the reason, why else would you need to remake a movie from 2007? And a nearly perfect, suspenseful movie at that!

But...this might not be all that bad, oh no. You see, Guillermo del Toro himself has chosen Larry Fessenden to write and direct and we all love del Toro, so it might not be ALL bad. But really, is it needed? No. It's not needed as much as a remake of 'Låt den rätte komma in' isn't needed, which is not at all.*

*I know, I know. The remake of 'Let the Right One In' (now called 'Let Me In') isn't a remake, it's supposed to be more like the book. But it seems to be leaning towards making Eli look less androgynous and more obviously female/cutesy. Lina Leandersson nailed the role in the original and was able to meld those two sides of the character brilliantly and the last photos of the three girls possibly to play Eli in the remake fit that "cutesy girl" look. I hope I am wrong. Plus, it's a giant slap in the face to Swedish cinema to make a movie they already made brilliantly a year ago, over again with a new name. Just watch the original!


[I Watch Stuff]