On the Horror Codes of Let the Right One In

What does Let the Right One In tell us about vampire films? Many of the expected conventions of vampire films are present in this minimal, Swedish horror film, but director Tomas Alfredson presents them in such a way that Let the Right One In is an extremely original vampire films.

Fangs, crucifixes and garlic are all absent, but drinking blood, heightened strength and fear of daylight are all present. So why is Let the Right One In so special? Firstly it reverses our expectations of good and evil by defying our expectations of who is good and who is evil. Eli, the vampire, is a 12 year old girl who does not think twice about brutally attacking someone for their blood or sending out her daylight protector to cut the throat of an unsuspecting by passer. Yet when Eli meets Oskar an unexpected relationship emerges as the main story thread of the film. After the death of her daylight protector, Eli befriends Oskar to the point where she can admit her true identity to him without losing his friendship.

Oskar, also 12, is from a broken home and is bullied and violently abused by older students at school. Eli not only gives him the confidence to fight back, but also the protection he needs when he needs it. Oskar treats Eli like a girlfriend and a confidant after she is left alone. That their romance becomes so appealing and endearing is a feature that confuses any categorisation of Let the Right One In, but at the same time, makes it such a beautiful and touching film.

Despite its lack of ‘jumpy’ horror moments and its abundance of stylish cinematography and deftness in direction, Let the Right One In is horrific. A young boy hung from a tree and bled; a bite victim combusting; the distorted face of a self mutilated acid victim. Yet, the most horrific scene is left till the end. What we thought was a genuine relationship between two lost souls suddenly takes a sinister turn as Oskar runs away from home and becomes Eli’s new daytime protector. There is now the suggestion that Eli is grooming Oskar to take the role of the man she lost. As she is much older than she appears, it is perfectly reasonable that she met her last protector at a young age and befriended him until he was attached to her, just like Oskar is now. When we remember that Eli drank the blood of her last protector after the police caught him (no one can be a serial killer for ever), we suddenly see Oskar’s future as being in jeopardy and this beautiful film ends with a genuine moment of darkness, during the daylight.

Let the Right One In knows its place is amongst the horror genre and presents enough of the conventions to earn its classification. But the film’s unwillingness to be placed alongside every other vampire film has meant the bar has been raised for creating new and interesting ways to represent the vampire in film.