Before the weekend started, early predictions were that THE SOCIAL NETWORK would debut on top with approximately $27 million. That seemed a little low for me. Everyone I knew wanted to see this movie but apparently couldn't pull themselves away from Facebook to see the film opening weekend. It still debuted on top but came in on the lower end of expectations with $23 million. Still, the response to the film has been phenomenal from both audiences and critics alike so the David Fincher film should have strong legs in the weeks ahead. Last week's champ, WALL STREET: MONEY NEVER SLEEPS suffered a sizable 46% drop with this new kid in town.
Other debuts this week might as well not have bothered. Considering it was being dumped anyway, the Renee Zellwegger dud, CASE 39, shouldn't mind coming in 7th place. That said, coming in below that is pretty embarrassing for Matt Reeves' LET ME IN. I would say that purists refused to see the remake but it wasn't made for them anyway.
Below the Top 10, CATFISH (+34%), WAITING FOR SUPERMAN (+192%) and YOU WILL MEET A TALL DARK STRANGER (+45%) saw solid increases follow their modest expansions. BURIED and NEVER LET ME GO slowed somewhat. Both pictures are still expected to go wider next week, much wider.
NEXT WEEK: What a dreadful week to go to the movies next week. Catch something you missed because I see no reason to get excited about the Katherine Heigl comedy, LIFE AS WE KNOW IT (3100 screens) or the Diane Lane horse movie, SECRETARIAT (2500 screens). Of course you could catch MY SOUL TO TAKE in 3D. Who doesn't love horror flying off the screen at you? Even the art house crowd gets shafted with the big disappointment, IT'S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY. Better luck the week after I guess.
Written and Directed by Matt Reeves Starring Kodi Smit-McPhee, Chloe Grace Moretz, Elias Koteas and Richard Jenkins
Abby: Just so you know, I can’t be your friend.
I have a reasonable amount of sympathy for Matt Reeves, the director of LET ME IN. He made a perfectly adequate and genuinely authentic remake of Swedish filmmaker, Tomas Alfredson’s LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, but there was no way for him to come away from the experience as a winner. Fans of the original, of which there are many, and of which I count myself among more or less, see no reason to mess with success. And so, to appease these fans, Reeves remains as true to the original vision as possible. As well intentioned as this is, it renders LET ME IN even more pointless as a result.
It begins with a children’s choir singing ominously over a humming that is eerily chilling. It continues with the same slow, quiet pace that allowed the supernatural elements of the original to appear fully natural. Owen and Abby (Kodi Smit-McPhee and Chloe Grace Moretz), the American counterparts to Oscar and Eli (Kare Hedebrant and Lena Leandersson), meet on what looks like the same jungle gym, in the same courtyard, behind the same low income housing where Oscar and Eli met. He is the same loner kid who gets picked on regularly at school and she is the same little girl, hiding her vampirism from those around her. Both are ostracized and both find understanding in each other. Their relationship, in great part thanks to these two fantastic, young actors, is just as tender and terrifying as Oscar and Eli’s was. Is there any point in retelling the exact same story the exact same way though?
I’m all for remakes; at their best, they can take already brilliant screenplays and reimagine them visually in all new manners, with sometimes all new meanings. At their worst, they are embarrassments that can be so big, they even tarnish the reputation of the original. LET ME IN falls directly in the middle of this spectrum. As dark and delicious as it can be at times, it never manages to give any reason for its existence other than to make it more accessible for audiences uninterested in subtitles. If you’re going to make a remake, you should have a good reason to do so, perhaps a new take on the subject that makes remaking it relevant. Pandering is not one of these reasons.
I decided that I had to cut back on my day today. I am feeling much better this morning than yesterday but that does not mean I need to keep making life harder for myself. I have decided to scale back from three movies to two. I figured maybe I would get some writing in, maybe do some laundry. It is TIFF Day 5 and I am running out of clean socks!
Tonight's big galas and special presentations are pretty impressive. Get a ticket to BLACK SWAN if you can. It is the best thing I've seen at the festival thus far. Natalie Portman, Vincent Cassel, Mila Kunis and director, Darren Aronofsky, are expected to attend. I've not seen the other three but they are definitely hot tickets. You've got RABBIT HOLE, directed by John Cameron Mitchell and starring Nicole Kidman. French director, Francoi Ozon's POTICHE, starring Catherine Deneuve is at Roy Thompson Hall tonight. And then that leaves Mike Leigh's ANOTHER YEAR at the Elgin.
I will be leaving shortly to see Xavier Dolan's HEARTBEATS and then I have an interview with Julian Schnabel. I am finishing my screening day with Tom Tykwer's THREE so it should be an interesting day all around. What about your day, you say ...
EVERYTHING MUST GO Winter Garden Theatre - 4:30 Whenever a comedian plays something serious, it is always a big deal. Will Ferrell chose this film because he just really liked the script, not because he was trying to do something intentionally dramatic for street cred, or so he said when I met with him the other day. Here he plays a guy who loses his job because he is an alcoholic only to come home to find all his junk strewn across his lawn. His wife has left and the doors have been locked. It is a great tale of redemption and Ferrell's performance is solid.
MIRAL Ryerson Theatre - 6:00 Julian Schnabel is a hybrid of a conceptual artist and a film director. Every frame always looks like a painting and here he decides to take a creative look at the Israel/Palestine conflict. It is a decidedly political film but it also has a reassuring sensitivity to it, likely due to the nature of the story. It follows a few strong Palestinian women who have been affected by the conflict in ways that they never imagined. It does at times feel more about the cause than the characters but it is still an engaging and delicate experience.
LET ME IN Ryerson Theatre - 9:00 Matt Reeves, the director of CLOVERFIELD, could not possible come away from directing this film as a winner. Adapted from the Swedish film, LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, this American remake is so loyal to the original, it is eerie but that won't matter. Fans of the first film are loyal so it doesn't matter whether Reeves is successful or not, it shouldn't have been done. I enjoyed his take but that being said, his take is the same as the first one, only now In English so North American audiences don't have to read the movie. He did a good job but will that matter?
ALSO PLAYING AND RECOMMENDED
127 HOURS Danny Boyle Ryerson Theatre - 3:00
COOL IT Ondi Timoner AMC - 2:15
Also, don't miss my brand new TIFF review for BURIED, starring Ryan Reynolds. I cannot wait to be sitting across a table from him. I will try to stay seated calmly but I cannot guarantee this.
Some new posters have been released for director Matt Reeves' remake of the Swedish horror film Låt den rätte komma in (Let the Right One In), and comparison among the four appears to prove the popularly held belief that foreign posters for U.S. films are much better than those created for domestic use.
The first poster is extremely simple, featuring the film's title, slightly bloody against an icy white background:
The second U.S. poster is, in my opinion, the most impressive of the domestic posters released for Let Me In to date. This poster features actress Chloe Moretz curled up in the fetal position in a pool of what appears to be blood:
The third domestic poster for Let Me In is also extremely simple. Personally, I think that having yet another snowy background, this time with a snow angel centered in the middle of the poster, is boring--but what do I know about poster design?
The final Let Me In poster is my favorite of the four and is, of course, the one poster designed for foreign release. A close-up of Chloe Moretz's face fills the poster, and the greyscale color scheme used draws viewers' attention to one of the only splashes of color in the image: a bright red drop of blood oozing out of Moretz's mouth and dribbling down her lip. Deliciously creepy.
One other film poster created for Let Me In was released earlier this year, using stand-ins due to the fact that the roles had not yet been cast.
For more information on Matt Reeves' Let Me In, currently scheduled for release next month, head over to the film's official Facebook page or IMDb page.
It's a thrill this week to be joined by the one and only BC of Horror-Movie-a-Day and Bloody-Disgusting, one of my true blogging inspirations. He had an opportunity to attend Comic Con last weekend, and now that the geek explosion has come and gone, I figured I'd have him on to talk about all the stuff that went down in San Diego. While I had his attention, we also went off on random tangents about M. Night Shyamalan's downward spiral, and our cautious expectations for Matt Reeves' Let Me In.
So take a listen to the embedded player below if you dare, or head on over to the new Vaultcast home page, where you can download this installment directly...
Let's get this out of the way right off the bat, because I've been sitting on this and mulling it over for quite a while. As many of you know, and have probably seen elsewhere, the first official trailer for Let Me In, Matt Reeves adaptation of John Ajvide Lindqvist's Swedish novel Let the Right One In, was unveiled earlier this month. For those who haven't seen it yet, here it is:
To merely refer to it as an adaptation of the novel is to be a bit coy however, as we all know that the book was, only two years ago, adapted into a superb Swedish film by Tomas Alfredson. It was a film which many called the greatest vampire movie of all time, and I would personally rank among the best films I've seen in recent years, perhaps second only to There Will Be Blood as the best film of the '00s. It was powerful, it was moving, it was expertly acted and directed, with an unforgettable score and a timeless quality few contemporary films maintain.
And so, to a certain extent, we must admit that Reeves' Let Me In is just another in a long line of English-language horror remakes put together in the wake of a successful foreign film, much as we saw with Quarantine ([REC]), The Ring (Ringu) and many others. Yes, Reeves claims to be going back to the original source material, but you and I both know that this movie would not have been made were it not for Alfredson's film. So what do we make of it?
Granted, my knee-jerk reaction is to lament the inanity of the American movie machine, which seems to have lost all faith in American audiences consuming anything that isn't completely spoon-fed to them. I mean, why not simply dub these successful foreign films into English if you're so worried about Americans not wanting to read subtitles? Did they remake The Good, The Bad and the Ugly in 1968 with all American actors? I guess the closest thing I can think of to this modern phenomenon is the way the original Gojira was ruined with new footage to appeal to American audiences in 1956. Is that really the model to be emulating?
But on the other hand, everything I've seen regarding this American version has been impressive. Chloe Moretz of Kick-Ass seems pitch-perfect as Eli (or Abby if they insist) and this Kodi Smit-McPhee kid they got to play Oskar (Owen...sigh, what's wrong with Oskar??) also seems up to the task. Checking out the trailer also gives me even more hope that this will be a good movie--the look is right, it seems to be faithful to the material, and the relationship between the two leads feels right. Also, love that Morse code ending. This does not seem (too much) like a watered-down Americanization. Some of the calm beauty of the Swedish film seems to be replaced with the typically dire, potboiler tone most Americans are more used to, but that could very well be the way the trailer is edited. And of course, Eli has been unequivocally confirmed as a girl, which was to be expected.
Still, one has to ask, why bother? If the reason is to truly go back to the book and do something different, they don't seem to going about it that way at all. Watching that trailer felt very much like watching Alfredson's film, down to specific moments and shots being mimicked (much like Quarantine did.) Sure, they're apparently exploring some stuff from the novel that wasn't in the other movie, such as the ultra-bizarre Hakan subplot, but quite frankly, from what I've seen, that doesn't seem to be playing much of a major part. Rather, it seems mainly to be aping Alfredson's work. And if that's the case, no matter how great it is, I'm still going to be walking away scratching my head wondering why it was even attempted. Or more accurately, I'll be shaking my head, knowing precisely the only reason it was attempted: another easy payday.
I'm so on the fence about this project, it's not even funny. Let the Right One In is a movie that's very close to my heart, and sure, I know the old saying, no matter what they do with it, the original still exists for me to enjoy. I just can't decide whether I'm happy about this new version or not. It does seem intriguing and well-made, I just hope that Reeves and company live up to their promise and give us something fresh and new--the novel is fertile enough ground to allow that--rather than just another spoon-fed American remake.
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REMINDER: For those who feel they missed out on the greatness that was Kevin Geeks Out!, I encourage you to get down to 92YTribeca in Manhattan this Friday night for the encore presentation of Mr. Maher's most acclaimed shlockfest of them all: Kevin Geeks Out About Sharks! I attended the initial presentation, and I can tell you it's a night you will carry with you till you sleep in Davey Jones' locker. Shark cupcakes will be provided for all, plus the first 10 people to arrive get a copy of the sold-out comic book Grizzly Shark and Sea Bear!
Kevin Geeks Out! returns for one night only, so don't miss out, dweebs! Get the ticket info and stuff at Kevin's blog.
The first image of Chloe Moretz in Matt Reeves’ Let Me In appeared online Friday courtesy of Entertainment Weekly (although the image quality isn’t great because it was only available in print and therefore had to be scanned for the internet). Moretz is best-known for her recent breakout role as the controversial foul-mouthed, gun-toting superhero Hit Girl in Matthew Vaughn’s Kick-Ass. When not decked out in a black mask and purple wig, Moretz looks like any other 13-year-old girl; vulnerable and innocent, perfect for her role as the unassuming yet inherently creepy young girl named Abby in Let Me In.
The image doesn’t give us much information about Reeves’ film, a remake of Swedish vampire movie Let the Right One In (based on the book by John Ajvide Lindgvist), unless you’re already familiar with the original. The blood dripping down Moretz’ chin in the still, however, does indicate that the actress gets to do some vampy stuff; and given her credentials, we’re hoping it’s more along the lines of Kick-Ass than Twilight. Regardless, the image confirms that Moretz really is involved with Let Me In (Let Me In is slated for release this October, and it was hard for me to believe I’d get another dose of the young actress in the same year as Kick-Ass), which has me much more excited about Reeves’ remake than I otherwise might be.
Despite the fact that I was bored by Let the Right One In (I know, I know, it’s an amazing movie and I’m going to re-watch because everyone tells me that it’s so good), I’m expecting quite a bit from Let Me In given the immense talent of Chloe Moretz, who reminds me of a young Natalie Portman in The Professional. I’m particularly curious to see Moretz’ portrayal of Abby, a mysterious girl who befriends the film’s protagonist, a 12-year-old outcast named Owen (Kodi Smit-McPhee). Let Me In will follow Owen, a lonely boy who spends his days plotting revenge on the children that bully him and his nights spying on the other inhabitants of his apartment complex. Owen meets and befriends Abby, a girl around his age who only comes out at night and always with bare feet, seemingly impervious to the effects of the elements.
Peter Hall of Cinematical.com had the opportunity to speak with Matt Reeves at SXSW, and at that time the director made comparisons between Chloe and Linda Blair in The Exorcist:
"When I was working on Chloe I kept saying, it's not about playing a vampire, it's about taking her and making her real and to deal with those darker sides of ourselves, the primal nature. When you think of the Exorcist you think of Linda Blair and pea soup and all this madness, but really if you look at the first half of that film, the stuff between her and Ellen Burstyn is so naturalistic and so real. She's incredible in it! People think 'Oh, it's the Exorcist and she's just doing crazy,' but she's so terrific in it and so believable as this young, 13-year old girl. That was really what I meant in the approach of trying to get into that tone. To take this story as if it were utterly real, and if it's real, that would be horrifying."
For more information on Reeves' film, visit the IMDb page for Let Me In.
Normally, I use this space as a platform from which to launch my vitriol at this or that outrage going on in the world of horror. But this week, it was suggested to my by BJ-C of Day of the Woman that I use the Hump-Day Harangue as a force for good. And so help me, I shall. Because I'm daring to hope here, and I'm bucking the trend of negativity on one particular hot-button issue going on right now in the online horror community.
I'm daring to hope that the imminent American remake of Let the Right One In... will actually be good.
Granted, there is much working against me in this foolish hope. The very notion, for example, that the title has been changed to the dumbed-down "Let Me In"--a variant translation that loses the nuance and the Morrissey reference--is repellent to me. But I'm trying my best to look past that. I'm trying to keep an open mind here.
This was exactly the opposite of what I did when Quarantine was vomited forth in the wake of the international adulation surrounding [REC]. I adore [REC] and to this day, I have not even seen Quarantine. That one was a bitter pill to swallow.
Similarly, last year, I absolutely fell in love with Let the Right One In, and have championed it ever since. I felt it was robbed at the Oscars, and that it deserved a full-scale American release. So you can imagine my initial depression upon learning that it, too, would be getting the instand-English-language-remake treatment.
But folks, one can only be outraged for so long. Instead, i'm trying to channel my energies toward hoping that Matt Reeves and company do the novel proud. I'll say this: I enjoyed Cloverfield, Reeves most high-profile effort to date. I know there was a bit of a backlash against it, but I found it to be an enjoyable popcorn flick, though admittedly haven't been driven to watch it again since seeing it in the theater.
I guess that's reason to be concerned, since the original Let the Right One In is a film of far greater richness and depth than Cloverfield. It is not a popcorn flick, nor should it be directed as such. Hopefully, Reeves has it in him to wow us with something more evocative and though-provoking than his previous work.
I'll admit, what first got me wondering if this remake could potentially be worthwhile were the amazing posters and one-sheets that were released (leaked?) to the web earlier this week. While some Vault Dwellers have expressed to me their displeasure with them, I found them to be pretty impressive, as did BJ-C, another died-in-the-wool LTROI worshipper and remake-basher. They seemed to capture some of the "soul" of the Swedish original, if that can be said of a poster.
I know, that's a pretyy flimsy reason to hold out hope for a movie. But what is my other option? To let the bile build back up again as I lament the dumbing down of the American movie industry, and the lazy moviegoing audiences that allow it to get away with travesty after travesty? My doctor's been telling me to watch my stress levels, thank you very much.
All I'm hoping for is something that even approaches the original. The movie is going to happen, so at least I can hope for the best. I'll go on record as saying that I actually enjoy the American remake of The Ring better than the original Japanese--so who knows?
In the latest issue of Newsweek, one of America's most-read weekly news magazines, noted critic David Ansen lists his ten favorite flicks of the year. And the number one movie on that list is none other than the Swedish vampire film Let the Right One In. (I've seen it to, and it's remarkable--VoH review to come.)
Here's what Ansen has to say:
"Stunning from first shot to last, Tomas Alfredson's mesmerizing Swedish coming of age/love story/horror film redefined the vampire genre."
That's major praise, from a mainstream American movie critic. And the movie is deserving of that praise. I wouldn't be surprised if Let the Right One In even gets an Oscar nom for Best Foreign Language Picture.
If there's one thing I've tried to do around here, it's champion the cause of foreign language horror flicks that I think deserve a look-see from English-speaking moviegoers. And one that I've mentioned before is the Swedish vampire film Låt den Rätte Komma In, or Let the Right One In. You can check out the impressive trailer and my previous comments here.
Earlier today, Robert DeNiro's Tribeca Film Festival announced its complete "Midnight" (read: genre) movie lineup, and I was very pleased to see Let the Right One In listed. As I did recently for Diary of the Dead, I just might make the journey down to NYC to check that one out--and if I do, you can naturally expect a full write-up.
I've got a couple of great trailers to share with you shameless horror hounds today, both of which can be found on the excellent movie trailer blog, Gnolad. First off is Let Me In (a.k.a. Låt den Rätte Komma In), a Swedish (yes, Swedish) film about a little boy who befriends a little girl who turns out to be a little vampire. Of course, there'll be no chance of this getting a U.S. theatrical release, but it comes out in Sweden in April, so get your plane tickets now! I guess the best we can hope for is DVD. First [REC], then Descendents, now this. Is it just me, or does it seem lately that with all the shlock being passed off as horror movies in the American market these days, filmmakers in other countries are taking advantage and co-opting the genre? Hey, fine with me--whatever leads to quality output.
And the other trailer is for a documentary by the superbly named Rusty Nails (any relation to Dusty Rhodes?), all about our favorite ghoul auteur, Mr. George A. Romero. The film is Dead On: The Cinema of George A. Romero (I probably would've gone with "Director of the Dead"), and is currently in the final stages of production, with no release date set. Nails includes comments from the likes of Quentin Tarantino (who, as an unknown, used to claim on his resume that he was the sidecar biker in Dawn of the Dead), Ed Harris, Robert Rodriguez, Stephen King, Rob Zombie, Danny Boyle, John Carpenter, John Waters, Roger Ebert (who hopefully will explain why he bemoaned NOTLD for ruining America's youth in 1968, then lauded praise upon DOTD ten years later), Dario Argento, John Landis, Tom Savini, Glenn Danzig, plus cast members from many of Romero's films. Looking forward to this one.
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Speaking of Romero, just wanted to give kudos to that loveable pussbag Bub for winning the "Favorite Zombie" poll. I should've known there really was no other choice, although Tarman made a respectable showing. Check back tomorrow for a new poll.
