Monday, December 01, 2008

Twilight Vs. Let the Right One In

A side-by-side comparison of this year's most talked about (for different reasons) vampire movies:

THE VAMPIRE

TWILIGHT

LET THE

RIGHT ONE IN

Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson)

Eli (Lina Leandersson)

Bella: “How old are you?”

Edward: “Seventeen.”

Bella: “How long have you been seventeen?”

Edward: “A while.”

Eli: “I’ve been twelve for a while…”

Undead

Uncertain; Eli says that she is “not dead,” but this likely refers to the unnatural state of undeath

Aloof, detached, cold, cautious, but humane and capable of strong love

Aloof, detached, careless, capable of at least strong affection

Super-strength, super-speed, telepathy (exclusive to Edward and a few other vampires), climbing trees (in film)

Heightened agility, scaling walls, enhanced strength and speed hinted at in final sequence of the film

-Apparently no weakness against traditional anti-vampire measures such as crosses, garlic, sunlight, having to seek permission to enter a home, etc.

-Strong urge to feed

-Can be incinerated by sunlight, must acquire permission to enter a home or be severely hurt, effect of other measures uncertain

-Strong urge to feed

Low scare factor. He can be vicious, but he glitters in sunlight and can be consumed by romance.

Moderate scare factor. She is vicious and makes horrifying sounds while feeding, but she is young for a vampire.


THE MORTAL

TWILIGHT

LET THE

RIGHT ONE IN

Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart)

Oskar (Kåre Hedebrant)

Seventeen

Twelve

New student, daughter of police chief, generally well liked, has a circle of friends in school, attracts a lot of boys

Bullied by classmates, generally ostracized, has no friends in school

First reaction to vampire revelation: Shock and confusion that immediately dissolve in love

First reaction to vampire revelation: Shock, confusion, misplaced anger

Absurdly high loyalty to vampire lover. Will do anything and give up everything for Edward without reservation

High loyalty to vampire lover. Will probably do anything and give up a lot for Eli but with reservation


THE MOVIE

TWILIGHT

LET THE

RIGHT ONE IN

Dir: Catherine Hardwicke

Dir: Tomas Alfredson

Source material: Novel by Stephenie Meyer

Source material: Novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist

English

Swedish

Teen romance/drama, with a dash of action and comedy

Coming-of-age drama/romance, with a dash of horror

US box office: $119,687,620

US box office: $266,886

Rotten Tomatoes rate: 43%

Rotten Tomatoes rate: 98%

Strengths: Contemporary soundtrack, commendable lead performances, high entertainment value, new twist to vampire mythos, generally loyal to source material

Strengths: Minimalist score, commendable lead and supporting performances, strong script and direction, non-reliance on visual effects, elements of horror, loyalty to standard vampire mythos

Weaknesses: Low-quality visual effects and makeup design, weak supporting performances, weak direction and script, new twist to vampire mythos, generally loyal to source material

Weakness: No new twist on the vampire mythos

Final Verdict: Sappy and uneven but ultimately entertaining, C+

Haunting, affecting, thought-provoking, lingering; A


1 comment:

hendryyyy said...

I love LTROI! they should release it world wide instead of remaking it by some fancy, boring hollywood.