A Short Synopsis of Film

“Hi, my name is Eli. I’m 12, more or less, but I’ve been 12 for a very long time. I can’t remember where I was born or what happened to my parents. Everyone thinks I’m a girl, but I’m really not. I enjoy solving puzzles. I also like to stay up all night and sleep all day. Eating candy (or food any kind) makes me sick and have to throw up. If I don’t drink human blood, then I get sick and start to smell funny. I can’t come into your home unless you invite me.”

In 2004, a Swedish writer by the name of John Ajvide Lindqvist published a novel entitled ‘Låt den rätte komma in’. The book was about a vampire girl named Eli and her friendship with a 12-year old boy named Oskar. A few years later, Lindqvist adapted his novel to a screenplay for the movie ‘Let the right one in’. Of all the films I saw that year, this was my favorite. I should preface my adoration for the film by saying that I’m not a big fan of vampire tales. However, either by choice or against my will, I’ve managed to sit through a fair number of that genre over the years. (By the way, Wikipedia maintains a long list of vampire fodder in case you’re not sure what you’ve missed.)

In 2010, Matt Reeves wrote and directed an English remake entitled ‘Let Me In’. I assume this was an attempt to tap the bloodthirsty (and over-saturated) American market, and not designed to improve upon or reinterpret the story. Both the original and the remake have almost identical plots. With the exception of some bad quick-motion special effects and added gore in the remake, I wouldn’t recommend one film over the other.

The story’s relationship between the two children is both innocent and symbiotic. Eli is a centuries-old vampire trapped in the body of a 12-year old girl. However, don’t let appearances fool you because she’s stronger than she looks (especially when she’s ripping someone’s head off). Oskar’s a bit more timid, but after the purchase of his first pocket knife, you can tell he’s well on his way to becoming a serial killer. Despite a backdrop of horror, Eli and Oskar spend most of their time together like regular 12-year olds, just hanging out and talking or listening to music.

It’s been a while since I watched the original, but none of the secondary characters in the remake are very sympathetic. The boy’s mother is a religious fanatic, his neighbors are exhibitionists, and some of his schoolmates have intentions to mortally wound him. The parade of teenage victims, as well as the police detective investigating their murders, are nobody we’ll miss…and they will go missing. With the exception of a couple sad scenes, the story is upbeat and has a happy ending 🙂

Let the Right One In (2008/Sweden)

Venue: Seattle International Film Festival, 2008
Language: Swedish
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Romance, Horror

IMDB

Let Me In (2010/UK/USA)

Venue: Netflix streaming
Language: English
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Romance, Horror

IMDB

The film takes place right before Japan’s Meiji Restoration, circa 1868. The need for Samurai is quickly disappearing, and imperial rule is about to be restored to Japan. This is not an epic movie with elaborate costumes and choreographed fighting. Set in a small village, the story follows a group of low-level samurai in charge of food stores. Instead of wielding swords, they spend their days updating accounting ledgers and inventorying warehouses.

The film’s protagonist, Iguchi Seibei, is a humble servant of the Tokugawa Shogunate. His retainer is small, his clothes stink, his wife has died from tuberculosis, and his two young daughters are motherless. After a long day of looking after the stores, Iguchi doesn’t have the time (or energy) to go out drinking with his samurai co-workers. Instead, he must hurry home before twilight to care for his family and work odd jobs to support his household.

But Iguchi’s dismal life begins to change for the better after the return home of a childhood friend, Tomoe. Tomoe is sister to one of Iguchi’s closest friends and has just been granted a divorce from an abusive drunk. After winning the 2003 Japanese Academy Award for best film and recommendations from several critics and friends, I figured it was time to see it.

Venue: Netflix streaming
Language: Japanese
Genre: Drama

IMDB
Wikipedia

A middle-aged doctor dies, leaving behind his wife and children. He awakes to find himself in purgatory. Though he’s not a bad person, apparently certain forms of debauchery are synonymous with suicide. After serving penance by roaming this hellish landscape for some undefined amount of time, Dr. André Luiz is rescued by people wearing white sheets and granted entrance to a futuristic city referred to only as “Our Home”.

Our Home is more like a way station than it is Shangri-La. If you’ve ever seen the 1991 romantic comedy Defending Your Life starring Albert Brooks and Meryl Streep, the purpose and layout of the cities in both films is similar–each is a holding area where people’s souls either wait to be reincarnated or move on to a higher plane of existence.

This is Brazil’s biggest budget film in history, 20 million Brazillian reals (12.4 million US dollars). For frame of reference, that’s roughly how much it cost to make Terry Gilliam’s 1981 film Time Bandits. The reason for making a comparison is to point out that 20 million probably doesn’t buy you a lot in terms of special effects these days. Despite all of their good intentions and hard work, much of this movie looked 20 years behind what I suspect American audiences have come to expect from space and fantasy films.

There are some interesting twists to writer Wagner de Assis’s retelling of life after death though. (1) Housing seems scarce, so inhabitants of Our Home must “rent” rooms in shared residences. (2) Family bonds transcend corporeal existence, so you get to keep the same parents and children if you’re reincarnated (woo-hoo!). And by far the strangest matter-of-fact, (3) some of mankind’s greatest achievements in technology (e.g. computers, paddle boats, Viagra) were invented in Our Home and carried back to earth by reborn souls.

Venue: Seattle International Film Festival, 2011
Language: Portuguese
Genre: Sci-fi, Drama

IMDB

During the 2011 festival, we attended the Gala screening of this film and a special Tribute to Ewan McGregor afterward. If you’ve ever had reason to question who Mr. McGregor’s fan base really is, I submit that by standing in the front doorway at one of these events, you will leave with the marks of several hundred shoes imprinted on your forehead from a demographic of mostly 25-45 year old women.

Beginners is the weaving together of two stories, the first of which is about Hal (Christopher Plummer). After 45 years of marriage and the recent death of his wife, he is finally starting to come out of the closet. Other than being a little puzzled as to why a gay man would spend 45 years in a heterosexual relationship, the news doesn’t seem to phase his son Oliver much. We follow Hal in his excitement as he races to replace his entire wardrobe, experiments a little with clubbing, and makes the purchase of almost every book ever written on the subject of being gay (see photo above).

The second story, which takes place shortly after Hal’s death, is about the first month of a relationship between Oliver and Anna (Ewan McGregor and Mélanie Laurent). Distraught over the death of his father, Oliver dresses up as Sigmund Freud one night and goes to a Halloween party where he meets (and psychoanalyzes) a mute, silent-film actress named Anna.

For beginners, the talking dog schtick works. After Plummer’s death, McGregor inherits his father’s dog Cosmo and for the remainder of the film plays soft-spoken straight-man opposite a Jack Russel Terrier. In the [one-sided] conversations between Oliver and Cosmo, Ewan’s character shares with the audience his inner monologue.

When you’re a beginner, everything is new and exciting. The hard part comes once the beginning is over. For Hal, his uncloseted beginning needs no follow through because he simply gets old and dies. For Oliver and Anna, there will be no casualties (except perhaps their relationship) to provide a means of escape.

Venue: Seattle International Film Festival, 2011
Language: English
Genre: Romance, Comedy

IMDB

Since many [good] films are timeless, I’ve decided to begin picking my way through some of the favorites of past film festivals. ‘Mother of Mine’ played at SIFF 2006. Set over the course of World War II, most of the story takes place on a small farm in the Swedish countryside. During wartime, parents often send their children away to safe havens far removed from the fighting. In the face of WWII, Finland sent roughly 70-80 thousand of their boys and girls west to hide out in Sweden as Russian troops began invading from the east.

After his father’s death, 10 year old Eero Lahti is packed onto a ship and sent away to live with Hjalmar Jönsson and his wife Signe (complete strangers, but better than the alternative of a children’s home). “Mother Signe” rejects Eero from the moment she lays eyes on him–Signe was hoping instead for a little girl. Meanwhile, back in Finland, the boy’s natural mother is busy dating a German officer and contemplating whether she even wants her son returned at the end of the war.

Some of the story’s events were a little disorienting until I “refreshed” my knowledge of WWII alliances:

1. Winter War (30 November 1939 — 12 March 1940) Russia attacks Finland.
2. Interim Peace (13 March 1940 — 24 June 1941) Russia signs peace treaty with Finland. Finland and Germany form defense agreement.
3. Continuation War (25 June 1941 — 19 September 1944) Russia attacks Finland (and their German allies).
4. Moscow Armistice (19 September 1944) Russia signs peace treaty with Finland (again).
5. Lapland War (1 October 1944 — 25 April 1945) Finland tries to give Germany the boot and all hell breaks loose.

Eero’s foster father (played by Michael Nyqvist) might look familiar to some people. I recognized him from his portrayal of journalist Mikael Blomkvist in ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’ trilogy. The characters, acting, directing, musical score, and especially the cinematography in this film are superb. It’s a slow-paced, introspective piece with just a little bit of mystery. This would have been a great movie to see on the big screen.

Venue: Netflix streaming
Language: Finnish, Swedish
Genre: Drama

IMDB
Netflix