Set in 1982 in the suburb of Blackeberg, Stockholm, twelve-year-old Oskar is a lonely outsider, bullied at school by his classmates; at home, Oskar dreams of revenge against a trio of bullies. He befriends his twelve-year-old, next-door neighbor Eli, who only appears at night in the snow-covered playground outside their building.
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Reviews
I love this movie so much
it is the rare 'crazy' movie that actually has something to say.
The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.
The movie is made so realistic it has a lot of that WoW feeling at the right moments and never tooo over the top. the suspense is done so well and the emotion is felt. Very well put together with the music and all.
This is an interesting take on a adolescent vampire. It starts to get a little confusing once you realize that Eli is a boy because this movie is about love. Love comes in all shapes, forms, sexualities and creatures and just because it is about love doesn't mean it has to be a sexually involved love. Love really comes down to a heartfelt desire to bond with someone regardless of their opposing or even negative attributes. It is touching when you take the time to look at it from that standpoint. After watching both movie adaptations of the book, I can't really say that I prefer one over the other even though may folks seem to believe this is the standout. I do know that there is a lot that is left unexplained and that means, at least for me, that I will have to read the book to answer some of my lingering questions. Overall, this movie works for me. I like the pace of it, the look of it and the care taken to show the bond developing between Oskar and Eli. I personally want my vampire movies to have an element of fear present and this just doesn't meet the mark and that is a bummer for me. Eli has the beauty and allure of a gothic vampire, especially in those eyes, but the danger he has the ability to impose is never really played up enough for me. I was so disappointed that the one scene that could have really shown his viciousness was only a shot of the aftermath. It is a good film. No doubt but the horror lover in me wanted more horror.
Bullied misfit teenager Oskar (a fine and affecting performance by Karle Hedebrant) befriends new neighbor Eli (a haunting and deeply moving portrayal by Lina Leandersson), who's a pallid and enigmatic young lass who only comes out at night. Could Eli be responsible for a spate of disappearances in the area? Director Tomas Alfredson, working from a thoughtful and original script by John Ajvide Lindqvist, relates the engrossing story at a deliberate pace, ably crafts a potently unsettling gloom-doom atmosphere, makes excellent use of the bleak wintry landscape, and grounds the fantastic premise in a plausibly drab mundane reality. Moreover, Alfredson warrants additional praise for keeping the graphic gore to a refreshing minimum and eschewing cheap jump scares in favor of creating and sustaining a quietly discomfiting melancholy tone instead. Better still, the touching friendship between the two oddball main characters gives this picture a surprisingly substantial amount of poignancy and resonance complete with a strong central message on the basic human need for companionship and the bitter lonely price one must pay for immortality. Kudos are also for both Johan Soderquist's spare moody score and Hoyte Van Hoytema's striking widescreen cinematography. An absolute corker.
(Flash Review)This is the most calm and subtle approach to the vampire genre I have seen. While it lacks the over the top expected vampire blood-filled scenes of typical movies, the gruesome scenes are impactful and eye- opening by themselves. Especially, as they contrast with the tone of film. The heart of the film is an unusual romance between a bullied boy and an older vampire girl as she helps him stand up to the bullies. Her father has other 'serious' issues. The cinematography and pacing are minimal and subtle. Overall, I felt there could have been a bit more story to chew on or a few more details included. The DVD I had only had crappy dubbing; no subtitles so I felt that lightly cheapened some of the emotional scenes as the voice-overs lacked true passion. Intriguing and slightly disturbing piece of cinema.
Tomas Alfredson is a director with different works with his own signature.Oskar, a boy of 12 is being bullied by his friends. He wants to take revenge, but he thinks he is too weak for that. He becomes friends a peculiar girl called Eli. Eli was not a human. She was fed on blood. An old man helps her with that. How far their friendship will go? What difficulties do they face in the world of human beings?Apart from the regular horror movies, this film is a piece of art. Beautifully and carefully visualized. You don't need to watch this movie for horror. But, do not miss it if you are a true film lover.A must watch.#KiduMovie