Let the Right One In (Tomas Alfredson, 2008)

[domino harvey]

That depends on how much you love Snoopy

[Yojimbo]

For long periods of this film I was admiring the blend by reference to favourite films: 'Martin' meets 'Near Dark', by way of 'The Curse Of The Cat People', which is no bad thing in my eyes: quite the contrary, in fact.
But I'm not so much a fan of 'The Karate Kid', which was far too 'sub-Rocky' for my liking, even if the original 'Rocky' is still a fun movie to watch, especially if you can manage to shut out what followed.
So, that 'Karate Kid'-esque climactic 'payback' scene ultimately undid some of the favourable impression the film had been giving.

Too bad, it 'coulda been a contender', but I just needed more subtlety for the 'kiss-off'.

File it under 'memorable failure'

[jbeall]

The subtitles may be appalling, but like I said, they're not nearly as bad as the English dub, which is horrible.

[knives]

That depends on how much you love Snoopy

Please elaborate. I've been considering buying La Haine, but if it's a bad dub...

[LQ]

Elaboration

[Jean-Luc Garbo]

Well don't worry people, this film has been bought and is being remade for American audiences. Maybe they will get it right THIS TIME.

Well, that's a surprise. Expect more gore and nudity, and the children will be played by 25 year old models. Oh, and the vampire will be 'cured', and they will live happily ever after. Many cgi will lose their lives for the remake.

Sad but true. Especially the models in their mid-twenties.

[domino harvey]

We've been made aware that there are several fans that don't like the version of the subtitles on the DVD/BR. We had an alternate translation that we went with. Obviously a lot of fans thought we should have stuck with the original theatrical version. We are listening to the fans feedback, and going forward we will be manufacturing the discs with the subtitles from the theatrical version.

There are no exchanges. We are going to make an alternate version available however. For those that wish to purchase a version with the theatrical subtitles, it will be called out in the tech specs box at the back/bottom of the package where it will list SUBTITLES: ENGLISH (Theatrical), SPANISH.

[kaujot]

Well, that's something, I guess.

[domino harvey]

Me like.

[kaujot]

I'm disappointed that there's not an exchange, but I understand that it would be too costly, etc.

I suppose I could have just said "Me like." I'll keep brevity in mind next time.

[swo17]

So for those of us who only know how to buy things on the internet, how are we supposed to know that we'll get the right version?

[LQ]

Apparently the Canadian dvd release has the theatrical subtitles. This I'm taking from comments on the site domino linked to...I might just buy the Canadian version.

[exte]

Apparently the Canadian dvd release has the theatrical subtitles. This I'm taking from comments on the site domino linked to...I might just buy the Canadian version.

Beware (also from the same site):

I'm not sure what version that other Canadian guy has but my copy (from Best Buy) has the bad subtitles. The case doesn't have any kind of Canadian (provincial, actually) classification on it so I'm pretty sure it's the exact same as the American version.

[LQ]

Well shoot. Stuff it, then. I'll stick with my screener copy for now. I appreciate your endurance in comment reading; it obviously exceeds mine

[jbeall]

Theatrical subtitles back in, with a caveat.

[Matt]

Here's a nice post from Consumerist that links to a e-mail response from Magnolia complaining about bloggers.

[Antoine Doinel]

Alfredson discusses his influences and methods with Time Out London.

[filmnoir1]

There is a great article about the film in the May issue of Sight and Sound. It also mentions that there is to be an American re-make (of course) set in Colorado. It is a shame that American audiences will not watch excellent films because of subtitles and instead will settle for second-rate imitations.

[jbeall]

There is a great article about the film in the May issue of Sight and Sound. It also mentions that there is to be an American re-make (of course) set in Colorado. It is a shame that American audiences will not watch excellent films because of subtitles and instead will settle for second-rate imitations.

I'm usually skeptical about American remakes (although I liked The Ring a great deal more than Ringu, so I guess there's always an exception), but I think your anger is misplaced. American audiences will sometimes watch foreign films--Pan's Labyrinth, Crouching Tiger..., and Life is Beautiful come to mind--and I think they'd do it more frequently if there was an effort to show these films on more screens. Instead, blame Hollywood for being so bereft of new ideas that they just remake foreign films and/or wring countless lame, unimaginative sequels out of surprisingly lucrative films. Or remakes of 70s films (Wicker Man, Poseidon, etc.). [I probably have too much faith in "the people," but frankly, I don't think movie distributors have ever given American audiences the benefit of the doubt.]

That said, I fully expect any remake of Let the Right One In to suck. The original is set in the suburbs of Stockholm, and there are those impressive shots of the older architecture. The silly "cat-attack" scene excepted, there's a lot less CGI than an American remake is likely to have, and I don't see any American kids (or director) having the same austerity you find in the original. Finally, even in the middle of winter, Colorado nights aren't that long, esp. in comparison to Sweden's. One of the reasons Eli and Oskar's friendship is able to flourish is because it gets dark so early in the winter.

[Cde.]

I have to agree with what Domino said on the previous page. I think the half-baked subplot dragged the film down and took away from the main plotline and the central characters. I actually didn't think the central relationship between the kids was developed well enough either, to tell the truth.
The ambiguity of the film is it's greatest strength. If Eli is indeed baiting Oskar, she is not the typical coldly manipulative character we are used to being shown in this situation. She is ultimately selfish, yet this is conflicted by the compassion she feels for those who come to be her servants.

[swo17]

So it has been a couple months now since the whole subtitle debacle. Has anyone had any luck finding a copy of the DVD or Blu-ray with the theatrical subtitles? I've been checking my local B&Ms fairly regularly and have never seen anything other than the original pressing.

[carax09]

Yeah, me too. Sonsofbitches. The frustrating part is that I don't see any other way of knowing what I'm getting, other than getting lucky in a store.

[jbeall]

I've also been looking, in the hopes that I can get a copy with the theatrical subs during the dvdp/ddd sale. So far, no dice.

[TedW]

Instead, blame Hollywood for being so bereft of new ideas that they just remake foreign films and/or wring countless lame, unimaginative sequels out of surprisingly lucrative films. Or remakes of 70s films (Wicker Man, Poseidon, etc.). [I probably have too much faith in "the people," but frankly, I don't think movie distributors have ever given American audiences the benefit of the doubt.]

Hollywood is not bereft of ideas. Financiers are bereft of the taste for serious gambling. Especially these days. Too much money has been lost on so-called "serious" pictures. There's a reason why most major releases are either sequels or based on existing properties.

That said, I fully expect any remake of Let the Right One In to suck. The original is set in the suburbs of Stockholm, and there are those impressive shots of the older architecture. The silly "cat-attack" scene excepted, there's a lot less CGI than an American remake is likely to have, and I don't see any American kids (or director) having the same austerity you find in the original. Finally, even in the middle of winter, Colorado nights aren't that long, esp. in comparison to Sweden's. One of the reasons Eli and Oskar's friendship is able to flourish is because it gets dark so early in the winter.

You might be surprised, if you're inclined to hold your opinion until the movie actually gets made.

[jbeall]

<sigh> Yes, dad. I forgot that American remakes are usually as good as the original. I also forgot that studios and producers are more interested in putting out a good product than in making a buck.