LET ME IN

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.

More Posters for Matt Reeves' Let Me In

By Paige MacGregor

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.

Hump-Day Harangue: The "Let Me In" Trailer--OK It Won't Suck, But Is It Necessary?

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.

* * * * * * * * * *

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.

Hump-Day Harangue: Might the American Let the Right One In Actually Be... Good??

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?

The Tuesday Top 10: Most Well-Made Horror Films

I know I may catch some flak for this one, and maybe be labeled a "film snob". So be it. Maybe I am one, a little. Let me explain what the concept behind this week's list is...

There is a big difference between a favorite movie and a great film. Just as when you're asked, "what's your favorite movie ever?", it's a very different question from, "what do you think is the best movie ever made?"

With that in mind, I'm putting together a list of the ten most well-made horror films ever. These are films that I would put up against any straight drama nominated for a Best Picture Oscar in its respective year--and, in fact, in some cases these films were actually nominated, or won. More than just great horror flicks, these are excellent films, period.

Let me explain the difference. As much as I love George Romero, and Dawn of the Dead is my favorite horror movie of all time, I can admit that I love it because it's a cool horror movie. It has flaws--the acting is often stiff, the editing sometimes sloppy, the soundtrack delightfully cheesy. That's all irrelevant to why I love it. As much as I adore it, if we look at the films nominated for Best Picture that year, we find movies like The Deer Hunter and Midnight Express. You can hurl tomatoes at me if you want, but I'm not going to put DOTD in a category with those movies.

On the other hand, if we look at a movie like The Exorcist, in my opinion, we're looking at a film that is superbly made from every aspect--apart from being a great horror movie, it is just a great film, plain and simple. And it was nominated right alongside films like American Graffiti and The Sting--and deserved to be. That's the difference I'm talking about. Film snob? So be it.

Got it? OK, let's proceed...

10. 28 Days Later (2002)
Before he became a mainstream darling with Slumdog Millionaire, Danny Boyle gave us this frenetically paced and brilliantly photographed picture. I remember seeing it at the time and thinking it was made with more quality than any horror films that had come along in a while, and I still stand by that opinion.

9. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Although I hesitate to call it a horror movie, it is generally considered as such, and thus it didn't seem right to leave it off. Jonathan Demme's masterwork became the first horror film to win Best Picture, and also took home statuettes for director, actor, actress and screenplay. This was truly horror's greatest moment in the sun.

8. The Haunting (1963)
Powerhouse director Robert Wise, who made his bones under Val Lewton in the 1940s, delivered this, the finest ghost movie ever made. Without ever showing us a thing, Wise creates an atmosphere of sheer terror. The editing is crisp, the camerawork restrained and effective. This is an awe-inspiring fright flick.

7. The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
While I enjoy the first Frankenstein more (and ranked it higher on my '30s movies list), I have to agree with most critics that this is a film of slightly higher quality. Working from a clever, satirical script, James Whale imbued his sequel with rich symbolism and wit. The sets are gorgeous. And that cabin scene with the blind man is one of the finest scenes in any movie--ever.

6. Jaws (1975)
Another flick I never quite considered horror, but I am decidedly in the minority, apparently. This is Speilberg at the height of his powers, and it earned him a Best Picture nom. Some of the finest performances you'll ever find in the horror genre, courtesy of Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss and the great Robert Shaw.

5. Alien (1979)
Ridley Scott turned what could've been your by-the-numbers alien critter-in-space B-flick into a superb piece of filmmaking. With a knockout cast, flawless effects, captivating set design and beautiful cinematography, it is a true pleasure to watch. And I stand by the opinion that James Cameron's sequel, while perhaps a more action-packed popcorn flick, is in every way inferior.

4. Let the Right One In (2008)
Folks have called this the finest vampire film ever made, and I'd say that's accurate. But beyond that, this is a work of heart-breaking beauty that literally transcends the genre. Without the vampirism, it would still be outstanding. In a few more years, with a little more perspective, it is entirely possible that I would put it into the number-one position (as BJ-C suggested).

3. The Exorcist (1973)
The 1970s was perhaps the greatest decade for film, and this was horror's greatest contribution to the new movement. William Friedkin's finest moment, it's characterized by an excellent script from novelist William Peter Blatty and incredible performances from Ellen Burstyn, Linda Blair and Jason Miller. Nominated for the big one, and deservedly so. Never gets old.

2. Psycho (1960)
Alfred Hitchcock's proto-slasher has become a film school standby, and one of the most revered films ever made. And it's not even Hitchcock's best. A true master of the medium, Hitch dazzles effortlessly with gorgeous composition and a pacing rhythm that gives you no choice but to watch. Anthony Perkins is a revelation, and the landmark Bernard Herrmann score needs no hype.

1. The Shining (1980)
This whole shebang is a matter of opinion, and in my opinion The Shining is the finest horror film ever made. Stanley Kubrick's cinematic jewel is a work of absolute genius from top to bottom. This is a film so rich in texture and flawless in execution that I find it a rewarding experience to watch every single time. More than a horror movie, this film is a work of art.

Hump-Day Harangue: It's Official, the Saturns Are Bullshit

Forgive the salty language in my title tonight, Vault Dwellers, but your host for all things horror is biting mad. Why, you ask? Well, it might have something to do with the newly announced winners of the 2009 Saturn Awards, handed out mere hours ago. And the fact that the winner for Best Horror Film was.... Hellboy II: The Golden Army.

Hellboy II: The Golden Army. It's official, people. The Saturns no longer have any credibility when it comes to horror! I'm calling it--June 25, 2009, 3:01 A.M.

Don't get me wrong, I loves me some Hellboy. Guillermo del Toro is a mad genius, and his latest Hellboy sequel brilliantly transitioned the series from Lovecraft to Tolkien. Enjoyed every second of it, as did my pint-sized protege/son. An underrated movie that deserved more box office love than it got.

But Hellboy II is barely horror-related, being more of a fantasy action flick than anything else. Sure there are monsters and whatnot, but horror? I'm all for stretching the definition of horror. But not this year. Not when there were so many unbelievable true horror films put out there.

Have we forgotten so soon? The year 2008 gave us The Midnight Meat Train. Eden Lake. Martyrs. The Strangers. Repo! The Genetic Opera. The Ruins. And what was for my money the finest film of the entire year hands down, horror or otherwise, Let the Right One In. And you're going to tell me that the movie that wins out is a fantasy/action/comedy with some vague horror-ish elements thrown in? This is buffoonery of the highest order.

The Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films has really dropped the ball here. I mean, there have been Saturns bestowed that have made me scratch my head, and wonder if it was even necessary to give them out to anyone at all, but this one is beyond head-scratching. This one is just negligent.

The film that should've won, Let the Right One In, was instead given the patronizing Best International Film award. But I say, why couldn't it have won both? Hell, I would've been satisfied had ANY of the flicks mentioned two paragraphs up walked away with the prize. But it's almost as if the Academy went out of its way to reward a movie that was furthest from horror out of anything nominated.

Past winners have hinted to me that this organization is out of touch, but this is the clincher. These people wouldn't know good horror if it jumped up from behind and ate their brains out.

And that means only one thing, as far as I'm concerned. That's right, it means that the Cyber-Horror Awards now have more credibility than the Saturns when it comes to our genre of choice! And to that I say, huzzah! I had a blast doing them the first time, and I'm already looking forward to next year's awards. And now that I know that the Saturns are worthless, the pressure is really on...

The Tuesday Top 10: Favorite Horror Movie Characters

I was recently tagged by D.J. Heinlein (if that isn't your real name, it should be) over at Matte Havoc as part of his "Ten Favorite Movie Characters" blog meme. So I figured I'd tweak it just a bit for The Vault, and use it as an excuse to unveil my new weekly feature, the Tuesday Top 10 (sorry, BJ-C, not trying to steal your Tuesday thunder--it's all about the alliteration, kid.)

And so, without further ado, I give you my Top 10 Favorite Horror Movie Characters:

10. Capt. Spaulding
"Why don't you just take your momma home some chicken, and then I won't have to stuff my boot all up in your ass!"
Nearly as entertaining as the Groucho Marx character from which he takes his name, Sid Haig's character in Rob Zombie's House of 1,000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects is a joy to behold. You can keep Freddy Krueger, Hannibal Lecter and Patrick Bateman--for my money, the good captain is horror's most charismatic psychopath.

9. Dr. Pretorius
"To a new world of gods and monsters!"
It takes a special kind of man to out-crazy Dr. Frankenstein. And by gum, Pretorius is that man. His bizarre experiments with tiny "homunculi", and unholy desire to continue Frankenstein's work on the reanimation of dead tissue even have ol' Henry himself calling for a time-out. And you have to love any guy who can sit down to a chicken dinner inside of a crypt.

8. Delbert Grady
"Perhaps they need a good talking-to, if you don't mind my saying so. Perhaps a bit more."
Is he a figment of Jack Torrance's warped imagination, or an honest-to-goodness phantasm? It's tough to know for sure--although the infamous food locker scene leans me toward the latter--but whatever he may be, ol' Grady is one hell of a riveting co-creation of King and Kubrick. And if you don't agree with that, I might just have to... correct you.

7. The Hitchhiker
"My family's always been in meat."
This backwoods wackjob did for roadside hitchers what Jaws did for sharks and Fatal Attraction did for side poon. Leatherface may hog all the glory when it comes to the TCM family, but I'll take this hand-slicing, weird facial birthmark-having, photo-burning fruitcake any day of the week. Too bad he was the only family member who didn't survive to make it to the sequel.

6. Eli
"Please Oskar... be me, for a little while."
Just for the record, if I was a 12-year-old boy and she moved next door to me, I would happily run off with her and become her pint-sized Renfield. Without looking back. Sorry, Mom and Dad... Thanks to an enigmatic and chill-inducing performance by remarkable child actress Lina Leandersson, Eli is the most fascinating movie vampire since Bela walked down those castle steps.

5. Tarman
"More brainsss!!"
By now, my unconditional love for all things Return of the Living Dead is a well-known fact (expect a big announcement pertaining to this soon). And hands down, the coolest thing in the whole movie (aside from Trash's graveyard dance) is this walking-and-talking gelatinous cadaver. The only thing that pissed me off is how easily Bert disposes of the big guy. Batter up!

4. Renfield (as played by Dwight Frye)
"I'm loyal to you Master, I'm your slave, I didn't betray you! Oh no, don't! Don't kill me! Let me live, please! Punish me, torture me, but let me live!"
One of the most criminally underrated character actors of the 1930s, Dwight Frye turns a minor character in Stoker's novel into arguably the character who steals the whole damn movie. You can live for a hundred years, but if you've seen Tod Browning's Dracula, you will never forget the image of Frye grinning from the below the deck of the Demeter, emitting that iconic laugh...

3. Bub
"Hello, Aunt Alicia."
Speaking as a connoisseur of all things Romero, I can say with confidence that this was the maestro's finest zombie creation. Ditto goes for makeup wizard Tom Savini. Day of the Dead has its problems as a movie, and may not quite be in the class of its two predecessors, but Howard Sherman's character makes it a must-watch, it's as simple as that.

2. Ashley J. Williams
"Gimme some sugar, baby."
Alright, so it's always cool to namedrop Ash for horror street cred, but you know what? There's a reason for that. The guy is legitimately the single greatest bad-ass in the history of fright flicks. I love him and his boom stick in Army of Darkness. I love him fighting his own hand in Dead By Dawn. Hell, I'll even take the more timid, boyish Ash of the first Evil Dead. That's how much I love him.

1. Count Orlock
"Blood! Your precious blood!"
It's been said before, but it may still very well be that F.W. Murnau's 1922 classic is the finest Dracula adaptation of them all. Yet, Max Schreck's Orlock is an entity all on his own, with a distinct persona and look that virtually transcends horror cinema, if not cinema as a whole. The rising out of the casket, the unforgettable shadow-walk up those stairs. This, readers, is the stuff of cinematic horror immortality. It gets no better.

Johan Soderqvist's Let the Right One In: A Score as Transcendent as the Movie For Which It Was Written

I'm one of those movie fanatics who has also been deeply obsessed with quality film scores. Collected them all my life, from vinyl, to cassette, to CD, to download. Every now and then I have the pleasure of discovering one that really blows me away, and I have to shout to the rooftops about how great it is. The latest one to rock my world in this way is Johan Soderqvist's sublime motion picture soundtrack for Tomas Alfredson's sublime motion picture Let the Right One In. It's certainly no accident that it won the 2008 Cyber Horror Award for Best Score.

Anyone who's watched and loved the movie is bound to have already been struck by the beauty of its score, but its only when you listen to it on its own, and focus on the music itself, that you really appreciate how excellent it is. This is movie music of the highest order--not only listenable on its own merits, but matched perfectly to the specific events of the movie it was written for, the very quality that helped catapult John Williams to film score superstardom.

The score is dominated by two main themes, which are essentially linked to the movie's two central characters, Oskar and Eli. In fact, the main theme of Let the Right One In is specifically entitled "Eli's Theme", and man does this Nino Rota-esque melody pack a powerful emotional punch. Initially iterated using a full string section, it pops up later on in tracks like "The Father" in the form of solo guitar. And finally, in the title track that accompanies the closing credits, it begins in guitar form, and then the strings take it over, "sweetening it into a phrase of such delight," as Salieri described Mozart's "Gran Partita" Serenade in Amadeus.

In short, this utterly beguiling theme epitomizes the ethereal combination of sadness and otherwordly beauty embodied by Eli, the ageless vampire trapped in the body of a little girl.

The film's other major theme is more closely associated with Eli's devoted human friend, Oskar. First presented in the track "Oskar in Love", it takes the form of a simple, understated piano melody that captures not only the enigmatic character of Oskar, but also the quiet, almost stark beauty of the Swedish landscape in which the movie's action takes place.

One of the most remarkable things Soderqvist does with this particular theme occurs in the track
"Death of Hakan", which accompanies the scene in which Oskar witnesses Eli murdering the revenge-minded local who comes to her apartment. As Oskar takes in this decidedly sinister side of the girl he loves for the very first time, the already established Oskar theme goes from a hopeful major key to a much more foreboding minor one. This is thoughtful movie scoring.

And speaking of sinister, don't think the whole score is composed entirely of touchy-feely sweet stuff. This is a horror movie after all, and there's plenty of suitably atonal, ambient fare to be found, particularly in tracks such as "The Slaughter", "Hiding the Body", and "Lacke Dies". Prodigious use of rolling kettle drums and clanking metal sound effects provide the needed air of dread, and remind the listener of the duality of this picture.

In fact, it's rare that you'll find such a schizophrenic score that pulls it off so well, switching from poignant to dark and malevolent from one track to the next. And in the track "Eli Bleeds", Soderqvist even manages to transition between the two, going from horrifying, as Eli stands in Oskar's threshold oozing dark plasma from her pores, to the bright love theme once Oskar gives her permission to enter and the bleeding stops.

But for my money, the Let the Right One In score is much more about Soderqvist's touching and mesmerizing major themes than the more run-of-the-mill, slightly repetitive stuff that represents the "horror end" of things. The melodies that Soderqvist has crafted here deserve major attention, and one can only hope that this piece will lead to a more mainstream (read: American) audience soon discovering his work. This is movie music at its finest. Pick it up now.

Oh No! The American DVD of Let the Right One In is F***ed!!

Y'all know by now how much of a supporter I am of Tomas Alfredson's brilliant vampire film Let the Right One In. Last year's finest horror movie for my money, the Swedish picture was finally released here in the U.S. of A. on DVD just a few days ago. Kick-ass, right? Wrong!

The irrepressible Justin Bishop of Send More Cops tipped me off yesterday to the unfortunate fact that the new DVD has apparently been thoroughly lobotomized as a result of one of the worst subtitling jobs of all time. Unlike the excellent English subtitling done for early screeners of the film that leaked on to the web prior to its official international release, this new version appears to have been translated by Sloth from The Goonies.

Have a gander. First the screener we've all grown to love...


And now the American DVD...


Original...


American DVD...


And finally--screener...


Brain-dead version...


For more examples, check out the original story over at Icons of Fright. Apparently, the person who subtitled the screener so well, one Ingrid Eng, got stiffed by Magnolia, the company distributing LTROI on DVD. It would appear that rather than pay her again for the use of her subtitles, they went a much cheaper route, and got some seriously lazy, slipshod subtitles as a result.

This is a travesty. Extremely disappointing. Having grown to love this film, I can't in good conscience recommend the new American DVD to those who haven't seen it yet. So much of the nuance, subtle humor and delicate character moments seem to be gone in this version. Hopefully, if enough of an uproar is raised on sites like Icons of Fright and this one, something can be done about this. Otherwise, I would advise you to find another way to see this flick the way it was meant to be seen.

FYI: Magnolia's website.

The Vault of Horror Presents the First-Ever Cyber Horror Awards!

After weeks of debate and downloading, the balloting for the 2008 Cyber Horror Awards, the very first horror film accolades bestowed by online horror bloggers/writers, is complete. I'd like to thank the wide spectrum of talented and discerning participants who took part in voting on the nominees.

The results are in, and as many foresaw, the story of these awards' first year is the story of an unlikely foreign film that took the online genre community by storm in 2008. Let the Right One In captured seven of 12 CHAs, including every category in which it was nominated.

For a more detailed look at the winners, head over to the official page of the CHAs, but if you want to cut right to the chase here at the good ol' Vault, here you go:

Ray Harryhausen Award for Best Visual Effects
The Ruins

Albert S. D'Agostino Award for Best Production Design
David Hackl, Repo! The Genetic Opera

Tom Savini Award for Best Makeup
Greg Nicotero, Diary of the Dead and Mirrors

Bernard Herrmann Award for Best Score
Johan Soderqvist, Let the Right One In

Karl Freund Award for Best Cinematography
Hoyte Van Hoytema, Let the Right One In

Curt Siodmak Award for Best Screenplay
John Ajvide Lindqvist, Let the Right One In

Linnea Quigley Award for Best Supporting Actress
Lizzy Caplan, Cloverfield

Dwight Frye Award for Best Supporting Actor
Vinnie Jones, The Midnight Meat Train

Vincent Price Award for Best Actor
Kare Hedebrant, Let the Right One In

Jamie Lee Curtis Award for Best Actress
Lina Leandersson, Let the Right One In

David Cronenberg Award for Best Director
Tomas Alfredson, Let the Right One in

Val Lewton Award fort Best Film
Let the Right One In, EFTI

There you have it, dear readers, the horror blogosphere's take on the very best of 2008. I'd like to specifically thank the excellent writers who joined me in this exciting experiment:

• Iloc Zoc of Zombos' Closet of Horror, 2008 Rondo nominee for Best Horror Blog
• Wes Fierce of Horror Film Magazine
• Vince Liaguno of Slasher Speak, horror novelist
• Max Cheney of The Drunken Severed Head, 2008 Rondo nominee for Best Horror Blog
• Casey Criswell of Cinema Fromage and Bloody Good Horror
• John W. Morehead of Theofantastique
• The Lightning Bug of The Lightning Bug's Lair
• Jeff Allard of Dinner with Max Jenke and Shock Till You Drop
• Justin of Send More Cops
• Gary D. Macabre of Blogue Macabre and The Many Faces of the Frankenstein Monster, 2008 Rondo nominee for Best Website
• BC of Horror-Movie-a-Day
• Peter Hall of Horror's Not Dead
• Unkle Lancifer of Kindertrauma
• John Kenneth Muir, horror critic (Booklist Editor's Choice)
• Pax Romano of Billy Loves Stu
• Scott Weinberg of FEARnet, Cinematical, Horror.com and Rotten Tomatoes
• Brian Matus of FangoriaOnline
• Corey of Evil on Two Legs

If you're a horror blogger, or an online horror critic of any other variety, and you want to be considered for participation in next year's go-around of the Cyber Horror Awards, give me a holler.

Snubbed at Oscars, Let the Right One In Racks Up Another Prize

The Dublin Film Critics Circle has selected Tomas Alfredson's Let the Right One In as Best Film at the Dublin International Film Festival. It's become a familiar refrain:

Best Foreign Language Film:

• Boston Society of Film Critics
• Broadcast Film Critics Association
• Calgary International Film Festival
• Chicago Film Critics Association
• Florida Film Critics Circle
• Kansas City Film Critics Circle
• Online Film Critics Society
• Phoenix Film Critics Circle
• San Diego Film Critics Society
• San Francisco Film Critics Circle
• Satellite Awards
• Southeastern Film Critics Association
• Toronto Film Critics Association
• Washington DC Area Film Critics Association

And yet, you will not see Let the Right One In mentioned tonight at the Oscars in the Best Foreign Language Film category. No, it hasn't even been nominated. That's because of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' bizarre rules when it comes to foreign flicks. Apparently, the Academy cannot evaluate any movie it chooses when it comes to deciding nominees. Rather, they can only consider the films each nation has deemed worthy of being submitted for consideration. This has caused many worthy films to be excluded over the years, whether it be for political reasons, or because said nation doesn't feel that it wants to be represented by what it deems to be a "lowly genre film".

And so, alas, Sweden did not submit Let the Right One In for consideration, leaving a movie good enough for a Best Picture nomination to be left out in the cold completely. Shame, really.