Let the Right One In

Let the Right One In (Swedish: Låt den rätte komma in) is a Swedish romantic horror film based on the same of the same name by John Ajvide Lindqvist who also wrote the screenplay. It is directed by Tomas Alfredson and stars 11-year old and first-time actors Kåre Hedebrant and Lina Leandersson.

Plot. The movie tells the story of a 12-year-old boy who develops an extraordinary friendship with a vampire girl. It is set in Blackeberg, a suburb in western Stockholm, in 1982.

Oskar is a shy boy living with his single mother in a cheap apartment. He is frequently bullied by his classmates in school. One night, he meets Eli, a new neighbor who appears to be a pale girl of his age. Eli has recently moved into the next-door apartment with an old man named Hakan. Initially, Eli warns Oskar not to befriend her, but after he lends her his Rubik’s Cube, they become closer and eventually become good friends.

Unknown to Oskar, Eli is secretly a vampire. She has already killed a local resident for blood. However, it is the old man Hakan who regularly kills people to obtain blood for Eli. One night, when he attempts to trap a student in a changing room after school, he is discovered by the authorities. Before they could catch him, he splashes concentrated hydrochloric acid onto his face so that they could not identify him and trace Eli. He is taken to the hospital and placed in a restricted room. That night, Eli visits him. Hakan then offers his neck to Eli for feeding, and after Eli has drained his blood, Hakan falls out the windows and dies. After which, Eli goes to Oskar’s apartment and the two agree to “go steady.” Click here to read full review of "Let the Right One In".