In Contention

Tag: Let the Right One In

  • REVIEW: “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy” (***1/2)

    Venice Film Festival

    An uncharacteristically dark Venetian downpour greeted this morning’s premiere screening of “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy,” and if some flashbulbs of lightning last night hadn’t already previewed the turn in weather, I’d suspect the pervasively, necessarily drab atmospherics of Tomas Alfredson’s artful John le Carré adaptation of bleeding out from the screen and into the beyond.

    Looking for all the world as if the print has been stewed in black tea before being left to gather a few months’ worth of dust in the projection room — and that’s a good thing, I hasten to add — the film proves a happy marriage between two very different brands of understated precision: the British scholarliness of le Carré’s dense espionage lore and the icier Scandinavian calm that Alfredson brought to his breakout vampire drama, “Let the Right One In.”

    In many ways, Alfredson directs le Carré’s self-described “little gray men” of Britain’s MI6 intelligence service as they are themselves vampires of the Cold War: lurking in irremovable half-light, striking efficiently and selectively, and only notionally acquainted with the concept of sunlight, these thickly-tweeded spies appear to bear the burden of their profession as a lifelong alibi for the avoidance of intimacy, social functionality and even standard-issue conversation.

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  • ‘White Ribbon,’ Bertolucci win BBC World Cinema Awards

    Fear not, you haven’t entered a very somber Tardis and woken up in December 2009. The BBC World Cinema Award is a small but creditable gong dished out annually to honor the best in foreign-language film — but due to a significant change in the show’s calendar, this year’s award effectively spanned the last two years of UK releases.

    Hence the rather stale-sounding list of nominees, but congratulations anyway to Michael Haneke’s 2009 Cannes champ “The White Ribbon,” which triumphed over “I Am Love,” “A Prophet,” “Let the Right One In” and “Waltz With Bashir.” (Note the absence of a certain pair of recent Oscar winners for Best Foreign Language Film.) Previous winners of the award include “4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days,” “Pan’s Labyrinth” and “Downfall.”

    The award was determined by a jury headed by Oscar-winning screenwriter and playwright Christopher Hampton, and presented in London last week. At the same time, Bernardo Bertolucci was honored with a lifetime achievement award. Anyway, nothing to stop the presses for, but thought you’d like to know.

    [Photo: Sony Pictures Classics]

  • ‘Moon’ redrawn: own a future classic

    I know there are a lot of “Moon” fans and collector types among you, so I thought this worth mention. The great British design studio All City, who dreamed up the justly famous poster for Duncan Jones’s sci-fi debut, have launched a new series of limited edition Redrawn poster concepts for some of their most famous titles of recent years — all of them available to purchase.

    The striking sketch-based prints are all eminently frameable: this rejigged take on the “Moon” poster appears to be the most popular, but I’m just as keen on what they’ve done with the likes of “Control,” “Let the Right One In” and “Spirited Away.” At around $120 to $240 a pop, they’re not quite bargainous, but should age pretty nicely. Check ’em out here; some of my favorites after the cut.

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  • TIFF: ‘Hereafter’ underwhelms, ‘Let Me In’ bests original?

    I’ve been hearing for a couple of months now that Matt Reeves’s “Let Me In” is as good if not better than Tomas Alfredson’s original film (and a top 10 effort in my book), “Let the Right One In.” I won’t see it for another week or so, but early word out of Toronto dovetails with what I’ve been hearing.

    Jeffrey Wells says the film is “at least as good” as the original and that it is “carefully copied with a meticulous, unhurried, highly absorbing style.”  In fact, he eventually admits he liked it better this time around, largely because he was more impressed with Chloe Moretz than with Lina Leandersson.  MTV’s Josh Horowitz, meanwhile, Tweets, “It’s breathtaking and yes I think it’s better than the original.”  Variety’s Peter Debruge concurs, offering that the film “commands respect for not dumbing things down, offering classy, ‘Sixth Sense’-style crossover potential as it lures both genre suckers and fresh blood.”  And by the way, I’ve also been hearing that Michael Giacchino’s score could be something to watch for this season.

    Elsewhere, Clint Eastwood’s “Hereafter” had a press screening at the festival this afternoon in what I imagine was a claustrophobic 139-seat setting.  Official reviews are embargoed until tomorrow’s public screening, but I’ve got some disheartening reactions after the jump.

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  • ‘Right One’ Toronto After Dark poster

    There’s not much going on this weekend, so, apologies for the glut.  We’ll turn the corner over the next week and coverage starts in earnest 8/30 (preceded by a new Oscar Talk on 8/27), so, patience.  For now, I’m really digging this “Let the Right One In” specialty poster from the fifth anniversary of the Toronto After Dark Film Festival (the film screened there in 2008).  Check it out after the jump.

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  • COMIC-CON: ‘Let Me In’ isn’t just the rally cry of Hall H lines

    As far as Matt Reeves’s “Let Me In” is concerned, I’ll freely admit a sense of hesitation. Based on one of the best films of 2008, it has had an air of arbitrary remake-itis around it. But much of that started to disappear as marketing materials were unveiled throughout the last few weeks, and following a panel for the film today, I’m feeling even better about things.

    Reeves was on hand, along with stars Kodi Smit-McPhee, Chloe Moretz and Richard Jenkins. He had a pair of clips with him and they went a long way toward dispelling all of that ambivalence.

    First and foremost, I was rather struck by how patient the filmmaking is here. That was a key element of “Let the Right One In,” this kind of lingering camerawork and moody elegance that was largely responsible for helping the film hit the sweet spot when it could have easily been another dip in the typical vampire well.

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  • ‘Let Me In’ trailer

    2008’s “Let the Right One In” was on plenty top 10 lists, including my own.  So the thought of an American remake with “Cloverfield” director Matt Reeves at the helm has been, well, less than appealing.  Sight unseen, of course.  Judging by the new trailer, though (unfortunately debuting as an exclusive at Deadline with a YouTube embed and no HD option), there seems to be a proper reverence to the material.  But who trusts trailers these days anyway?  We’ll see.  Check out the international trailer for “Let Me In” by clicking the image below or watch the embed after the jump.

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  • S&S slams awards “xenophobia”

    Niels Arestrup in A ProphetBeing a fairly highbrow cineastes’ mag, Sight & Sound tends to keep a safe distance from awards season — which is probably just as well, if Nick James’s grim-faced editorial on the subject is anything to go by.

    Like many British journalists, James’s analysis of the Oscar race is a little wobbly: he states that “Avatar” is a certainty to win Best Picture based on its Golden Globe success, but makes no mention of the Guild awards. More vexing, however, is his airy dismissal of this year’s cinematic crop: claiming that 2009 was “the weakest year for American cinema since the 1980s,” and that “in terms of quality US films last year, “The Hurt Locker,” “Up in the Air,” “Precious,” “Inglourious Basterds” and “Up” are literally all there is.” (He then goes on to pick holes of most of those films anyway.)

    And I thought I was negative about this year’s race. Sure, I have problems with at least half this year’s Best Picture nominees, but neither am I claiming that the category contains all the standout American films of 2009.

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  • BAFTA announces Best Foreign Film nominees

    Audrey Tautou in Coco Before ChanelFor reasons I’ve never been able to determine, BAFTA chooses to reveal its nominees for Best Foreign Language Film two weeks before revealing their full nomination list. Way to make a ghetto category seem even more so, but … anyway. The nominees are:

    “Broken Embraces”
    “Coco Before Chanel”
    “Let the Right One In”
    “A Prophet”
    “The White Ribbon”

    The last three are both inevitable and deserving contenders, but the first two reek of autopilot voting. I bow to no one in my love for the man’s work, but most would agree that “Broken Embraces” is mid-range Almodóvar at best.

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  • Sight & Sound names ‘A Prophet’ best of 2009

    (left to right) Adel Bencherif and Tahar Rahim in A ProphetNo annual Top 10 list carries more weight with me than that compiled by Sight & Sound, the UK’s premier film magazine. One of the most thorough and prestigious collectives out there, it’s collated from the individual lists of over 60 international critics, including the likes of Kenneth Turan, Mark Kermode, Amy Taubin, Armond White and IC friend Tim Robey.

    The S&S list usually chimes in quite neatly with my own personal taste: last year’s edition (topped by Steve McQueen’s “Hunger”) featured six titles that ultimately landed on my own end-of-year rundown. This year’s is no different: regular readers will recognize a number of titles that I’ve been banging on about all year, including a most gratifying double-dip for the great Claire Denis. (Where was all this support for “White Material” when I needed it in Venice?)

    All in all, it’s a pretty impeccable selection of films, one that gives the lie to those saying 2009 is a weak year. I’d like to see the Academy even try to put together a Top Ten as strong as this…

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  • ‘A Prophet’ dominates European Film Award nominations

    Tahar Rahim in A ProphetIs “A Prophet” gradually stealing awards-season momentum from “The White Ribbon?” (It’s the superior film, if you ask me.) Too soon to say, of course, but it certainly came out on top in this morning’s European Film Award nominations.

    Jacques Audiard’s searing chronicle of French prison gangs leads the field with six nominations, to four for Michael Haneke’s German Palme d’Or winner. The two films, seen by many pundits as the chief contenders for the foreign-language Oscar, also appear to be the frontrunners here, continuing a rivalry that started way back in May at Cannes.

    Also beating “Ribbon”‘s total, with five nods (six, if you include the People’s Choice Award), is “Slumdog Millionaire,” which didn’t make last year’s cut-off date. The film’s popularity clearly still lingers (to the point that it even eked out a Best Actor nod for Dev Patel, ahead of, say, Michael Fassbender), though I sense its moment has passed.

    (More discussion, and a full list of nominees, after the cut.)

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  • Smit-McPhee and Jenkins in ‘Let the Right One In’ remake

    Kodi Smith-McPheeWord just in from Overture Films that Kodi Smit-McPhee (“The Road”), Richard Jenkins (Oscar-nominated this year for “The Visitor”) and Chloe Moretz (I profess ignorance) are to headline “Let Me In,” the forthcoming and unwelcome (in these parts, anyway) U.S. remake of last year’s arthouse sensation “Let the Right One In.”

    The presence of Jenkins adds a sheen of respectability, I suppose. (After the sterling work Overture did in securing him that unlikely Oscar nod, perhaps he owes them one.) As for McPhee, the jury’s still out: I was thoroughly unmoved by his work in “The Road,” but perhaps he has something.

    The press release, in part, after the cut.

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  • Scream Awards laud ‘Star Trek,’ ‘Up,’ ‘Let the Right One In’

    Let the Right One InI don’t follow the world of genre-specific awards ceremonies very closely, so I must admit I’d never heard of the Scream Awards before their recent slate of nominations was brought to my attention.

    No prizes for guessing from the name that it’s a horror-focused affair — with separate divisions for fantasy and sci-fi as well. Fan-voted and cheerfully silly, it looks at first glance to follow in the noble tradition of the MTV Movie Awards knockoff, with such prestigious categories as “Most Memorable Mutilation” and “Holy Shit! Scene of the Year.” (Meanwhile, one of the more serious categories is saddled with the moniker “Best Scream-Play.” That’s good stuff.)

    But get past such tongue-in-cheek frivolities — and the predictable spate of nominations for the likes of “Twilight” and “Transformers 2” — and there are some pretty cool selections scattered here and there. It’s heartening to see such a healthy showing for “Let the Right One In” in a people’s-choice institution like this — though not as surprising as the inclusion of Norwegian Nazi-zombie-comedy (there’s a mouthful) “Dead Snow.”

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  • 7/17 Web Round-up

    Joseph Gordon-Levitt• Judd Apatow’s risky departure from formula with “Funny People.” [Wall Street Journal]

    • Denise Martin talks to “(500) Days of Summer” star Joseph Gordon-Levitt. [Los Angeles Times]

    • PODCAST: Yours truly talks the Oscar’s move to 10, the “Let the Right One In” remake and more with John Campea et al. [The Movie Blog]

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  • Butterflies

    Neither here nor there, I guess, but this morning’s random bit of anxiety concerns the forthcoming remake of “Let the Right One In,” Matt Reeves’s “Let Me In.”  These concept posters at /Film got the ole’ stomach churning again this morning.  I’m scared to death of this project, and not in a good way.

  • ‘Let the Right One In’ director Alfredson goes British

    Tomas AlfredsonIs a John Le Carré adaptation now some kind of rite of passage for lauded foreign directors crossing over to English-speaking audiences?

    Okay, I’m stretching. Still, it’s interesting that a few years after Fernando Meirelles made the switch with his take on Le Carré’s “The Constant Gardener,” we now have “Let the Right One In” helmer Tomas Alfredson taking on the British author’s defining work “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.”

    ScreenDaily reports that UK stalwart Working Title is shepherding the first big-screen version of Le Carré’s classic espionage novel — which was very successfully adapted for TV in the 1970s, with Alec Guinness famously taking on the role of George Smiley, an elderly spy brought out of retirement to hunt an MI6 mole in the Cold War era.

    No cast has yet been announced for the film, which begins shooting next year. In something of a “Frost/Nixon” reunion, the film is being produced by Working Title heads Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner, while Peter Morgan (also an executive producer) is on script duty.

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  • No reason

    A reader sent me this pic, it amused me, so I’m posting. Simple as that:

    (from left) posters for Let the Right One In, Rachel Getting Married and I've Loved You So Long

  • A pleasure deferred

    As I walked past my local cinema (that would be my beloved Dalston Rio, if there are any other fans out there) en route to the supermarket this morning, I was rather struck by this new poster for Charlie Kaufman’s masterpiece “Synecdoche, New York.”

    Synecdoche, New York

    After spending a moment admiring the one-sheet and wondering why I had never seen it before, it only then occurred to me that the film has yet to be released in the UK. Yes, you Yanks read that right: the film only hits Limey screens in a fortnight’s time. (Of course, to make up for it, we get a lot of European titles ahead of the States — with the curious exception of “Let the Right One In,” which only bowed last month.)

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