Hope for the vampire genre

Vampire movies have become somewhat of a joke in recent years.

With movies like “Twilight” chipping away at the fabric of classic vampire folklore, it felt almost safe to say that the genre was dead. Fortunately, a reprieve comes in Matt Reeves’ “Let Me In,” a remake of the 2009 Swedish book adaptation “Let the Right One In.” “Let Me In”

Starring: Kodi Smit-McPhee and Chloe Moretz

Directed by: Matt Reeves

Film Company: Hammer Film Productions

Grade: A

Vampire movies have become somewhat of a joke in recent years.

With movies like “Twilight” chipping away at the fabric of classic vampire folklore, it felt almost safe to say that the genre was dead. Fortunately, a reprieve comes in Matt Reeves’ “Let Me In,” a remake of the 2009 Swedish book adaptation “Let the Right One In.”

“Let Me In” tells the story of Owen, a 12-year-old boy who is tormented by his classmates and whose parents are in the middle of a nasty divorce. Owen’s life changes when he meets Abby, a mysterious girl who moves in next-door with an even more mysterious elderly man. The elderly man is revealed to be a murderer responsible for a string of cult-like killings in the area. All of his victims are drained of their blood almost ceremoniously as they are hung upside down.

As the film progresses, we learn that the man’s killings are actually orchestrated by Abby in order for her to survive on the victim’s blood. The plot thickens when the man botches one of the murders and is caught by the police.

Owen and Abby meet in the courtyard of their apartment complex and quickly become friends despite Abby’s warning that she can’t have anything to do with him. The dynamic of their friendship epitomizes the childlike innocence so prevalent in the source material. After a string of horrific events, Abby is revealed to be a vampire — the real kind.

Matt Reeves, who also directed “Cloverfield,” employs many of that film’s techniques in order to create the suspenseful mood carried throughout the film. Kodi Smit-McPhee (Owen) and Chloe Moretz (Abby) give amazing performances and their on-screen charisma capture the childlike wonder of the book and Swedish film well.

One of the movie’s main strengths is that classic vampire folklore is upheld. Unlike today’s teenage heartthrob versions, Abby is limited in every way that you’d expect from a vampire. The film’s title is derived from the element in vampire folklore that states that a vampire cannot enter someone’s home unless invited in, and all of her and Owen’s interactions are at night.

“Let Me In” successfully re-imagines the 2009 original. Instead of making a boring shot-for-shot remake, Matt Reeves eloquently tells a story of childhood innocence while being true to the source material.