Let Me in - Blu-Ray Review

For any horror or thriller fan that hasn't yet seen " Let Me In ," stop reading this review and just go see it. Get it from Netflix, borrow it, buy it- whatever it takes! Genuinely creepy and expertly designed to stab into the deepest recesses of your psyche- "Let Me In" deserves a great deal of praise. Now you might be asking yourself- should I spring for the Blu-Ray version? Consider that carefully as your experience will vary drastically depending upon your choice.

I won't spoil the plot here, instead I'll be discussing the blu-ray features, but let me say this much... The world is a darker, slightly more disturbing place after you've seen this film. Innocence no longer quite carries the same weight it once did and the dark corners of your room and the outside of your windows are no longer quite so friendly. The publisher made sure to pack in plenty of extra features as incentives to purchase the blu-ray edition. Is it enough though?

I should say right now, if you are only interested in viewing the movie itself at the lowest cost possible- skip right over to the DVD section and save your money. Most people pass over the blu-ray version for this very reason. Far too few people have HDTVs and the extra cash lying around to justify the extra bells and whistles. Though "Let Me In" is one of the rare cases where you will be missing out.

The trailer, concept art, stills, posters, and the rest of the gallery will likely be at the bottom of the potential buyer's incentive list. Don't get me wrong- the trailer is top-notch, but not worth quadruple the media price. The stills on the disc range from fascinating to disturbing with little in the middle. They're a nice bonus, but by no means the meat of the package. I should mention that some of the distant perspectives taken in the concept art completely alter the context of some scenes. But more on that later. Additional conceptual features include the special effects gallery- brushing away a little of the cinematic intrigue for those curious.

The audio commentary is respectable, but still not quite the decisive piece of content buyers will be looking for. The insight from Matt Reeves is a fantastic addition, but one that not everyone will fully appreciate. He shares his vision, influences, and interests throughout the film with some interesting results. You definitely shouldn't make your first viewing one with the audio commentary. My suggestion is to wait a week or two after seeing the movie so that you can better form your own opinions on it before hearing the director's perspective.

The deleted scenes and additional commentary were the first features to strike gold. While they aren't as numerable as you might have expected, it's always a great feeling to see what landed on the cutting room floor. I won't ruin anything here, but you can gain some deeper appreciation and insight into the setting and intrigue in the plot by viewing the deleted footage.

Dissecting "Let Me In" is probably going to become a favorite among fans. It tries to inject some rationale and intellectual analysis into the film. While some decry the accuracy of the included interpretations, it's still a fascinating feature. It makes you think and more carefully consider the themes at work. This coupled with the 'Making of' feature offer up a rare glimpse of the psychological warfare being utilized against you by the director. It's fascinating to come to the various realizations of just how filmmakers can tug at your strings and elicit the emotions they want. Namely 'fear' in this case...