Let Me In

If you’ve already seen Tomas Alfredson’s excellent Norwegian vampire film Let the Right One In, then there’s no compelling reason to watch Cloverfield director Matt Reeves’ American remake. It’s the same story and tone, but the few alterations are all dispiriting and unnecessary concessions to our presumed low standards (more gore, more digital effects, pop songs—everything you’d fear and expect). However, if you’re one of those people who absolutely hates foreigners or refuses to “read movies,” then Let Me In does a solid job of transposing the essentials of John Avjide Lindqvist’s story to northern New Mexico in the early 1980s. Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Road) is good as the bullied adolescent protagonist (even if you never quite believe that he’s capable of evil), and as his bloodthirsty new girlfriend, Chloe Moretz, proves that her performance in the otherwise wretched Kick-Ass was no fluke.