HOME TRAILERS RELEASE DATES PODCAST REVIEWS POSTERS INTERVIEWS MOVIE NEWS ABOUT US APPS FSnetwork

LATEST NEWS

Chloe Moretz on 'Let Me In' and Its 'Unglamorous' Vampires

by Ethan Anderton
March 10, 2010
Source: Movieline, Cinematical

Following in the footsteps of other child actors attacking mature subject matter, 13 year-old Chloe Moretz is awaiting the release of her turn as Hit Girl in the comic book adaptation Kick-Ass, and then next she'll be seen in Matt Reeves' Let Me In, the remake of the highly praised Swedish vampire film Let the Right One In. As we've already seen her as Joseph Gordon-Levitt's wise-beyond-her-years younger sister in 500 Days of Summer, we know she's got a knack for adult-oriented material, and recently she sat down with Movieline to discuss her challenging career and how Let Me In approaches vampires. You've gotta hear what she said.

In what's probably the best move she could've made, Moretz still hasn't watched Let the Right One In. She discusses how her and Matt Reeves' approach to vampires is different than all the other movies out there:

I didn't watch 'Let the Right One In' before I went in for the role. When I booked the movie, I watched parts of it — just little snippets — but no, I still haven't watched the whole thing. I don't know — I kind of did my own thing with it, you know?... Usually a lot of movies glamorize being a vampire. It's pretty, it's cool, you look awesome! The way we did it was that it;s not cool to be a vampire. It's a burden that she has to carry with her, not this fun, cool, interesting thing. It's scary, deep, and dark, this devil inside of her. The vampire is different than Abby. It's like her alternate personality, and when it takes her over, she has no control.

To read the rest of the interview and a more revealing look into just how mature Moretz is for her age, head on over to Movieline. She's definitely got her head on her shoulders and such an intellectual mentality and approach to acting and she's only 13 years-old. It's insane! I can't wait to see the kind of actress she turns into as she grows up. As for this Let Me In movie, the more I hear, the less concerned I am about this. I love that quote because it sounds like they definitely know what they're doing with this remake. Even though it's one of the most highly opposed remakes, I think it's one that could potentially turn out pretty damn good.

In addition to that Moretz bit, Cinematical sat down with Hammer Films' producer Simon Oakes, who talked in-depth about Let Me In, covering why they're even remaking it and so much more. Here are the best parts:

"Frankly, [you must] not muck about the basic tenets of the story, which is important. More than anything else, stay true to the imagery and mystique and the mythology of the original, and set it in the right time as well, not update it in terms of its timing. Set it in that [early '80s] era."

"If you call it a faithful remake, I think that's true to say that's what it is. It's not a re-imagining; the same beats [are there]. Maybe the scares are a little bit more scary. We haven't been able to ramp that up quite a lot, obviously, for budgetary reasons. We've played a little bit with some of the chronology, without giving too much away. Fundamentally, that's what. High production values. [Let the Right One In director] Tomas Alfredson did a phenomenal job... [We had a] longer shooting period, more coverage, more effects."

I suggest reading the full interview over on Cinematical because Oakes goes on to say a lot more about this remake and everything he says makes me more confident that this won't turn out bad at all. Sure, there will always be naysayers, but I think everyone involved in this - from the director to the actors to the producers - knows exactly they need to accomplish and have set out with the best intentions. It's really as simple as that. Reeves has already finished shooting and Overture Films currently has Let Me In set for release on October 1st later this year. We'll bring you updates as they arrive. Are you still concerned about this remake?

Pin It

Related categories: Hype, Movie News, Opinions

Shane

There was no need at all to remake such a great film.
Perseus

I must say this young lady has a beautiful mindset and it's remarkable to see such a work ethic and standard set so high for such a young age. Really, all I can say is kudos, because if all 54 trailers of Kick Ass indicate anything, it's that this girl IS the essence of this film. Thanks for the interview site, Ethan. You guys rock here at FS.
People's Champ

The girl definitely has a future.
Conrad

Good article!! This Chloe girl is really something else. i agree w/ you Ethan, I can't wait to see what kinda of actress she grows up to be.
Avidan Pell

Th original is a classic. It is too soon to be remade. Not enough people know about the first one. This is just another (of course, profitable) attempt of Hollywood to make money off brilliant ideas that werent American.
http://twitter.com/pannalogic Panna

Because people don't like to read. sigh.
ImaginaryVisionary

I just watched the original Let the Right One in a few days ago for the first time, and loved it, but my reason for watching it was because I heard they were remaking it and the story always intrigued me. It does sound like they've got the right idea, in keeping with the original source material, BUT...there's a reason that film never found a big market here in the US (aside from film buffs) even for a foreign film. To be honest, if you put out a vampire movie in our culture right now, you're not drawing an audience that's going to appreciate the sentimental value or the pacing of Let the Right One In. You're drawing the Twilight crowd, a crowd that isn't going to read synopsis's, or pay much attention to who is saying what in which review. All they're going to see is the word "vampire" and a lot of people will go. Then, when its not full of shallow vampire lust and gore, they'll leave the theater disappointed and bad word of mouth will kill the movie. You almost have to raise the bar at least a little bit in terms of pacing and excitement in order for a movie like that to survive in our market. Another thing that may not go over as well here is the age of the main characters. It was a little odd seeing "kids" in bed together in Let the Right One In. I know in reality Middle Schoolers are doing much worse, but we're not used to seeing it on film as acceptable, not to mention nurturing (and I'd even venture to say 'healthy') over here in the states. In Europe that type of thing goes over a little better. Over here...if there's a scene like that, get ready to hear the right wing protests about child pornography in the film. Personally I'd love to see a big budget Hollywood version that sticks to every aspect of the original store, but with better production. At the same time, I wouldn't be opposed if they spruced it up a bit and made it a bit more exciting. My only concern about Moretz is she's always played a snarky sharp tongued child, and while I don't have any doubts about her acting ability....I'm hoping she doesn't bring that to the character in the film because I don't want to see Juno the Vampire. I liked the dark, almost speechless female lead in the original.
Aw

Hah. They filmed part of this at my high school (here in Albuquerque), and at in front of an office building across from my house. I'll probably only go see it to see Albuquerque
Hank

Jesus typo galore.
Cineprog

I would like to see Let Me In, Just to see how it differ from the original film Let the right one in.
http://currentconfig.com/ Chris Rugen

I'm still skeptical. I believe the film's ultimate punch comes from its broader tragedy less than the individual ones. It sounds like they're misinterpreting/reinterpreting the characters and the dynamics of the film and considering it to be faithful because the basic plot and scenes will be the same. The sadness of the girl in the original, and the deeper horror of the film, is not that she feels trapped, but that she truly is a predator. And even if she sees the boy in a way that feels warm and protective to us, it's really that she sees his ability to do what the old man can no longer do for her: protect her from the world when she's vulnerable. Every scene in the original is about that contrast of the vulnerability of the little girl and little boy against the dirty, animalistic, ruthless, and aged true nature of the girl and the monster that the little boy *could* become. She is already lost. He is not yet. She is trying to use that dark part of him. I don't think the girl is trapped by an "alternate personality". Every scene in the film is building to the climax at the pool, which isn't a happy ending. And it was triggered by something the girl encouraged. It's simply a *different* tragedy than what *could* have happened. What I love about it is that we are given so many reasons to want things to turn out the way they do, because the boy and girl seem so vulnerable. But at the same time, the film continually shows us why that's actually a tragic and frightening outcome. We'll see, I suppose.
Vold

Chris Rugen - Exactly my thoughts.
Stevie

Ack! Really torn on this one. Love Chloe, but hate the prospect of seeing Hollywood crap all over Let The Right One In -- which in my humble opinion is one of the most touching and haunting films you're likely to see. The gut-punch viewer realisation in the final scene is simply superb. The more I think about it, the more I'm inclined to probably give the remake a wide berth. I'd also recommend that anyone thinking of seeing it should buy Let The Right One In instead. (Yep, buy... it's a definite keeper.)
DEADPOOL 72

why are they remaking let the right one in,its a classic. i tell you why,because the thick bastards out their that can't be arsed to learn to read,so subtitles cause them a major problem. watch the film how its meant to be seen in swedish.
jimmey

remakes suck. this remake sucks on a nuclear scale. fuk hollywood!
Duude

Damn it, Chloe!
SlashBeast

If it's too early to remake, it's too early to call it a classic (and it's not, except in Sweden where people have actually seen it).
Emz

I really enjoyed the film, if im honnest it was nice to see a vampire film that wasnt about glamor and high school romance, the vampire doesn't sparkle I havn't seen the orrignal and im sure it is a very good film and i do intend to watch it because i enjoyed that this film shows vampires as there ment to be preditors, I think that the orrignal will be very intresting.