Lonely Owen is a 12-year-old boy who’s depressed and upset by his parents divorce. On top of that, he doesn’t have any friends and he’s continually bullied by the kids at school. But things seem to take a turn for Owen when Thomas and his daughter, Abby, move in next door. Abby befriends Owen and encourages him to stand up for himself. But when people around town start disappearing and winding up dead, Owen realizes that Abby is much more than what she seems.

Let Me In is a 2010 remake of the Swedish horror outing Let the Right One In from 2008. Although, the films are so similar that calling it a ‘remake’ may be remiss, as the films are so similar that it might be more apt to just call it an Americanization instead. It’s so close that it’s almost the exact same movie. I’m not kidding. There were large parts where I swear the script was taken verbatim from the original. Very little was changed and for the most part, what was changed was very minute: Names, locations, etc.

One of the more noticeable changes I picked up on was the amount of blood. Let the Right One certainly has it fair share of blood and gooey bits, but it’s not quite as bloody as Let Me In. The violence level in the American version seems to have been kicked up a few notches from the original. That’s not so much a complaint, merely an observation.

Another thing I noticed was that Abby’s movements when going all blood thirsty were a lot more…janky than the original. Eli’s movements from the original were a bit smoother and not quite so spastic the first time around. It reminds me of those damned twitchy ghosts that Japan likes to portray. This is a vampire movie, not a ghost movie. I’m sure this is an effect from the less-than-stellar CGI the ‘remake’ used, but Abby should be able to be creepily strong and agile without looking like she’s having horrible muscle spasms.

All in all, it’s a very decent adaptation. The movie is creepy and touching and while very little of the script was changed, emphasis was changed from certain scenes, giving this movie a different feel than the original.

All in all, it’s a good adaptation, but I think I still prefer Let The Right One In. It has a bit more subtly than Let Me In and I usually appreciate those small, subtle touches more. But they’re both excellent companion movies.

Let Me In and Let the Right One In are available on several streaming services, including free on Tubi TV.