Line #73 Film/LetTheRightOneIn


1	[[quoteright:348:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/let_right_one_in.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:348:[[ReallySevenHundredYearsOld Eli has been twelve]] ''[[NotGrowingUpSucks for a very long time.]]'']]
3
4	''Låt den rätte komma in'' (''Let The Right One In'') is a 2008 film. It is an adaptation of the [[Literature/LetTheRightOneIn novel of the same name]] by [[UsefulNotes/{{Sweden}} Swedish]] author Creator/JohnAjvideLindqvist, who also wrote the screenplay for this film version.
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6	It's the story of Oskar (Kåre Hedebrant), a 12-year-old boy who is being bullied at school. One night, he meets Eli (Lina Leandersson), a girl who just moved in next door with her dad. However, Eli isn't affected by the cold and hates daylight, and it's quickly shown that her "dad" Haake (Per Ragnar) kills people and drains their blood to feed her. As Oskar befriends Eli and more people go missing, suspicions are raised.
7
8	''Let The Right One In'' is most notable for being simultaneously heartwarming and horrifying. Although it has few outright scares, it can be a deeply disturbing movie, as the main characters' relationship invokes both young love and a temptation into darkness.
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10	For tropes on the original book, see ''Literature/LetTheRightOneIn''. For tropes from the English-language remake, see ''Film/LetMeIn''.
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12	----
13	!!This movie provide examples of:
14	* AdaptationalAttractiveness:
15	** In the book, Oskar is an overweight child. The movie portrays him as a more healthy-looking boy of average weight.
16	** There's more description of Eli being filthy and mangy in the novel.
17	** Håkan's acid injury in this film is far less graphic than the description we are given in the book.
18	* AdaptationalHeroism: In the novel, Håkan is a pedophile who met Eli while he was leering at children at a playground. In the movie, Håkan's pedophilia is only alluded to.
19	* AdaptationalSlimness: Oskar is played by the normal-sized Kare Hedebrant, whereas in the original book, Oskar is overweight.
20	* AdaptationalVillainy:
21	** In the movie, Eli is outraged when Håkan fails to bring her back blood and verbally lashes out at him. In the novel, while she still pleads with him to go out and try again, it is in a much more subdued and dispassionate manner. The book's Eli in general seems to play a more passive role in their relationship, mostly just dully reacting to Håkan's anger and increasingly perverse demands.
22	** Zigzagged with Håkan, as most of his characterization in the novel is internal and isn't apparent on-screen. Both his sexual appetite and his reluctance to commit his murders are never given any focus, making him a more willing killer but also omitting his backstory as a disgraced pedophile and his deranged sexual interest in Eli. [[spoiler:Not to mention being KilledOffForReal at the hospital instead of coming back to hunt Eli as a monstrous revenant.]]
23	* AdaptationDistillation: The film distills the novel down to just the boy and the vampire, with a minor subplot about the strained relationship of an older couple, all other elements solely serving to move the A plot forward.
24	* AdaptationExplanationExtrication: In the film we see [[spoiler:Eli's castration scar]] with no further context than earlier comments of "I'm not a girl." While some viewers who haven't read the book have been able to infer what it meant, others were confused.
25	* AdaptationNameChange: Jonny from the book is Conny here in this film.
26	* AlasPoorVillain:
27	** Håkan might be the only time in movie history where you could cry for the death of a ''serial-killing pedophile'', [[spoiler:holding a sobbing Eli in his arms and letting her feed on him before falling out the hospital window to his death]]. Especially considering [[spoiler:[[BodyHorror what he does to his face]] [[HeroicSacrifice to keep Eli safe]] beforehand.]]
28	** [[spoiler: While Jimmy definitely deserved his fate, Conny and Martin were visibly having second thoughts about drowning Oskar and wanted to leave, but Eli brutally kills them anyway]]. [[spoiler: This is partially subverted, though, as Andreas, who was even more reluctant, was not killed.]]
29	* TheAlcoholic: Oskar's dad, adding to the guy's overall misery.
30	* AliensInCardiff: Vampires in a Stockholm suburb.
31	* AmbiguouslyGay:
32	** A ''lot'' of people thought Oskar's dad was gay due the scene where his friend comes over for drinks and Oskar acts uncomfortable. WordOfGod is that the father wasn't gay and that Oskar's discomfort had to do with the father neglecting him so he could get drunk with his friend.
33	** To say nothing of Oskar himself, who, when Eli tells him [[{{Foreshadowing}} she's not a girl]], merely shrugs it off. [[spoiler:In a sense, she/he's right.]] In the book, [[spoiler:Eli being a male is initially harder for him to accept than being a vampire and it makes him question his sexuality as a result.]]
34	* AssholeVictim: By the end of the movie, [[spoiler: Conny and his older brother Jimmy get brutally killed by Eli when they try to drown Oskar. Martin may not have been as monstrous as they were but he still helped them in trying to drown Oskar]].
35	* BattleDiscretionShot: The climax of the film where [[spoiler:Eli slaughters all of the bullies]]. See GoryDiscretionShot.
36	* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: During their first encounter in the playground, Oskar shows Eli a moment of kindness that stops her from making a meal out of him. From that night on, the OddFriendship they form puts him off-limits to Eli, even when she is feral and blood-starved.
37	* BeingEvilSucks: Håkan, in his weaker moments. Eli is also revealed to feel this way about her existence and the carnage it requires her to leave behind. The sole other vampire Eli had encountered in the past two hundred years claimed that their kind are so few because they tend to kill themselves out of guilt.
38	* BerserkButton: Don't mess with a vampire's best friend. [[spoiler: The bullies at the end learn the hard way.]]
39	* BigBad: Conny serves as Oskar's main tormentor even though others also take on roles throughout.
40	* BigDamnHeroes: Just as Oskar's in the process of drowning, Eli shows up to [[spoiler:tear apart the guy holding him under the water.]] Yeah, it's that kind of story.
41	* BigDamnKiss: Oskar and Eli...[[spoiler:with Lacke's blood dripping from Eli's mouth.]]
42	* BitchInSheepsClothing: Martin, one of the bullies, pretends to befriend Oskar after the incident on the ice, but it's only to lure him into a trap at the end.
43	* BloodFromEveryOrifice: What happens if Eli enters a place without being invited.
44	* BloodlessCarnage: ''Relatively'', with {{Gory Discretion Shot}}s or long-range/obscured views preferred – so the horrifying slaughter is conveyed with surprisingly almost no blood to be seen, considering how much is let.
45	* BloodOath: Oskar cuts his hand and suggests this to Eli. Eli, [[WarmBloodbagsAreEverywhere being a vampire]], takes it [[HorrorHunger somewhat less than calmly]].
46	* BookEnds:
47	** The opening shot is of falling snow, and a shot near the ending is of the same falling snow.
48	** Oskar stands in his underwear looking out into the night (pressing his hand to the window and removing it with a sticky sound) at both the start and near the end.
49	* BoyMeetsGhoul: A charming story where the bullied boy with an interest in serial killers meets a charming [[spoiler:castrated]] vampire when [[spoiler:he/she]] moves in next door.
50	* BullyBrutality: The bullies that harass Oskar and end up [[spoiler:almost drowning him]].
51	* ChastityCouple: According to the director, Oskar and Eli are meant to be this, due to their age [[spoiler:and Eli's lack of genitalia.]]
52	* ChekhovsSkill: The Morse code during the ending.
53	* ChildrenAreInnocent: Even two of the bullies are fairly sympathetic (and one of them even [[spoiler:stays alive]] in the end).
54	%%* ComingOfAgeStory: Oddly heartwarming. Kind of.
55	* CrazyCatLady: Gösta has a lot of cats moving around his small apartment.
56	* CreepyChild: Eli consistently through the film. Oskar may count as well.
57	* DarkSecret: The audience knows that Eli is a vampire the entire time; Oskar finds out eventually. Stemming from this, Eli tries to hide the more gruesome aspects of her affliction from her new friend (such as what happens when she enters a house without permission, and what she does while sleeping/recuperating in the bathroom), but Oskar deals with each in turn. She also hides [[spoiler:her true gender]] for a while, but this is more because Eli isn't sure whether Oskar will still like her if he knows.
58	* DeathByAdaptation:
59	** In the book, Eli only killed [[spoiler: Conny and Jimmy]]. In the movie, she kills [[spoiler: all but one of the bullies.]]
60	** Sort-of did with [[spoiler: Håkan.]] He still dies, but in the film, it happens [[spoiler: after falling out of the hospital window, and he doesn't come back as a RevenantZombie like in the book.]]
61	* DeathSeeker: Virginia is turned into this after being bitten by Eli, telling Lakie that she wants to die, and telling him to open the blinds, [[ManOnFire in order to make her burst into flames]]. When he won't do it, she gets a nurse to.
62	* DeathOfAChild: Repeatedly in [[spoiler: the pool scene, that leaves several 12-year-olds ''torn to pieces'']].
63	* DemotedToExtra: Håkan and the alcoholics have significantly reduced roles in the film adaptation.
64	* DisproportionateRetribution: [[spoiler: What Jimmy does to Oskar. Did you smack my little brother? Now I'm going to drown you in the pool and cut your eye out if you come up. Then there's what Eli subsequently does to the bullies...]]
65	* TheDogBitesBack: Oskar. When he's introduced, he's suffering from bullying, and Eli encourages him to stand up for himself which leads to him taking weight-training classes and ultimately smacking one of the bullies with a stick and splitting their ear.
66	* DragonInChief: Jimmy, the older brother of Conny in this version, is more sadistic and eager to kill Oskar.
67	* DudeLooksLikeALady: [[spoiler:Eli's not a girl.]]
68	* EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette: Eli is one thanks to the effects of vampirism.
69	* EnemyToAllLivingThings: One possible interpretation of the reaction of the cats to Eli and other vampires.
70	* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Oskar to Eli, if you consider Eli evil. Certainly Eli to Håkan, and Conny and Jimmy to each other.
71	* EvenEvilHasStandards: Oskar is thrown into the pool by Conny's AxCrazy older brother Jimmy. Oskar is then told that if he can't hold his breath underwater for three minutes, his eye will be gouged out. When Oskar actually starts to drown, the other bullies are clearly uncomfortable, and one of them backs out entirely.
72	* EvilDetectingDog:
73	** Cats detect and viciously attack vampires on sight.
74	** Håkan's efforts to drain the blood of a passerby that he's just killed are thwarted when a dog comes by and begins barking, forcing him to flee as his owners come.
75	* FacialHorror: Håkan after he pours hydrochloric/sulfuric acid on his face to disfigure him well enough to be non-detectable by the cops. And yes, we get to see the results, which as detailed above in AdaptationalAttractiveness are less horrific than the book's example.
76	* TheFilmOfTheBook: This would be the first of this book's examples of this trope.
77	* FirstKiss: Oskar's first, anyway...
78	* {{Foreshadowing}}: Early on, Eli tells Oskar that she'll take care of his bullies if he can't stand up to them on his own.
79	* FourthDateMarriage: Kind of. Oskar hugs Eli and says he likes her the fifth time they meet; the sixth time, the pair cuddled in bed, and Oskar asks her to be his girlfriend. Then [[spoiler: they run away together after the eleventh meeting.]] True, they're twelve, but they are meant to be soul mates.
80	* GangOfBullies: Oskar is regularly tormented by one.
81	* GilliganCut: Eli tries eating a piece of candy. Cut to Eli upchucking it behind a building.
82	* TheGlomp: Oskar's first hug nearly knocks over the unsuspecting Eli.
83	* GoryDiscretionShot:
84	** Eli's attack on [[spoiler: Lacke]] is shown mostly behind a partially closed door.
85	** The ending: [[spoiler: Conny's brother, Jimmy, as well as the rest of the bullies, show up at the pool and start a fire to lure the teacher outside while Oskar stays in the pool. Jimmy forces Oskar into a sadistic game: stay underwater for three minutes, or he will gouge out one of his eyes. After being held underwater for about a minute, a crash through the pool's window signals that Eli has come to the rescue. We only witness the rescue underwater from Oskar's perspective, but the screaming above the water, as well as the downpour of blood and body parts tells us all we need to know.]]
86	* GrowlingGut: Eli's stomach growls due her being a vampire and her hunger for blood.
87	* HairContrastDuo: Oskar is blonde and Eli is brunette. One is a meek child, the other is a murderous vampire.
88	* HateSink: Conny and his older brother Jimmy lack their redeeming qualities from the original novel. Conny relentlessly bullies Oskar in violently humiliating ways, before threatening to drown him in a frozen pond. Jimmy is an even bigger sadist than his brother, and seen bullying him too. When Oskar stands up for himself, they later gang up on him in retaliation. Jimmy makes a "bet" with him about holding his breath underwater for three minutes, and either getting his cheek cut open, or his eye cut out.
89	* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Håkan '''[[NightmareFuel pours acid on his face]]''' to keep the cops from [=IDing=] him and going after Eli.]]
90	* HeterosexualLifePartners: Jocke and Lacke. "I have nothing left now he's gone" says Lacke after Jocke's death, even though his girlfriend, whom he loves, is sitting next to him.
91	* IJustWantToBeNormal: Even with the super-strength, [[BlessedWithSuck being a vampire]] [[IncrediblyLamePun SUCKS]].
92	* IneffectualSympatheticVillain: Håkan. He isn't awfully good at what he does and gets [[NoRespectGuy no respect]] for it. A strange example as his incompetence seems to make him ''creepier''.
93	-->'''DVD Commentary:''' Yeah, he's sort of the Series/MrBean of serial killers.
94	* IntertwinedFingers: Eli does this with Oskar in the scene where they cuddle in bed together and he asks her to be his girlfriend.
95	* KidsAreCruel: The bullies. And then far, far more, in [[spoiler: the bullies' punishment]].
96	* LesbianVampire: [[spoiler: A strange {{Gender Flip}}ped/[[InvertedTrope inverted]] example: Eli was born a boy and has an interest in another boy. However, because his "change" wasn't of his own choosing Eli may place themselves anywhere from a ''transgender'' vampire to a ''non-conforming body mod'' vampire.]]
97	* LittleMissBadass: Eli's vampire powers let her easily take down men twice her size.
98	* LowerClassLout: It's set in a poor suburb, so almost everyone is working class. Several of the bullies have male names ending in -y, a pretty strong working class indicator in Swedish. Subverted with Lake, an unemployed alcoholic who nevertheless becomes the HeroAntagonist of the story.
99	* ManOnFire: Virginia bursts into flames when the blinds are opened.
100	* MasculineGirlFeminineBoy: Oskar is somewhat effeminate in comparison to the more androgynous Eli ([[spoiler:who is, of course, really an emasculated boy]]).
101	* MoodWhiplash: The film switches between sweet and scary at the drop of a hat, sometimes mixing both in one scene. A strangely funny example: the news reporter who discusses Håkan's apprehension ends the story by saying "And now, the sports."
102	* MovingAwayEnding: Unlike the novel, the film adaptation has this happen more obliquely, as Oskar and Eli are shown riding a train out of Stockholm a short while after the swimming pool massacre. It's less clear than in the novel that they're leaving for good because of the murders, but it's still heavily implied.
103	* MustBeInvited: It's in the title. As Eli demonstrates in response to Oskar's query, if they don't get one... things get pretty messy.
104	* NightmareFace:
105	** Averted with Eli.
106	** Håkan doesn't look too good after pouring acid on their face.
107	* NonhumanLoverReveal: In an odd puppy-love sort of way. Maybe.
108	* NotGrowingUpSucks: Eli is a 200-year-old vampire stuck physically, and to an extent mentally, as a 12-year-old after being 'turned' at about that age.
109	* NotUsingTheZWord: Eli is somewhat in denial about being a vampire, preferring to think of it as having an illness. The book does go into the biological specifics of what goes on inside a vampire's body once infected, but being infected with vampirism still unavoidably makes you a vampire.
110	* OffscreenMomentOfAwesome: Considering how much you might hate the bullies by the end of the story, it almost seems a shame for their comeuppance to happen off-screen.
111	* OffWithHisHead: Eli rips Jocke's head off after attacking him.
112	* OnlySaneMan: Andreas is the only member of the group of bullies tormenting Oskar that seems uncomfortable if not remorseful with what he's doing. He breaks down crying as he is forced to repeatedly whip Oskar, and [[spoiler: is the only bully not killed in the climax, instead of sitting on the bleachers sobbing]].
113	* OurVampiresAreDifferent: These vampires aren't actually undead - at least in the film, it's made clear you have to ''survive'' the attack to turn into a vampire. [[MercyKill Killing your victim]] is the [[ShootTheDog nicer option]]. To be specific, along with the common death-by-sunlight, paleness, and blood-drinking attributes, these vampires cannot enter a house without getting permission, occasionally have cat-like eyes that glow in the dark, and [[ShapeShifter can "think" claws on their hands and feet, and wings and fangs]].
114	* PayEvilUntoEvil: The bullies deserved ''everything'' Eli did to them, and it wasn't pretty. They went to the pool with the intention of either mutilating or drowning Oskar. They had no idea they'd never leave.
115	* PetTheDog: Frequently back and forth between Eli and Oskar. Considering [[ReluctantMonster what she is]], the bond between them is genuinely touching as each grows to care about the other.
116	* ProtagonistCentredMorality: We're clearly meant to root for Eli and Oskar, despite the fact that [[spoiler: the former spends the movie murdering perfectly innocent people, and the latter is perfectly okay with her doing so because she's nice to him and saved him from his bullies [[DisproportionateRetribution (by violently murdering them)]]]].
117	* ProtagonistJourneyToVillain: The story is one for Oskar, [[AlternateCharacterInterpretation possibly.]] He's obsessed with serial killers, thinks about hurting or even killing his bullies, [[spoiler: has no problem with it when Eli ''does'' kill the bullies, and after the ending, well, he'll probably have to help her find food somehow...]]
118	* PuppyLove: Sort of; a very dark example.
119	* QueerRomance: [[spoiler:Does Håkan's odd relationship with Eli count? As for Oskar, he talks about "going steady" with Eli, though when Eli asks exactly what difference that will make between them, Oskar doesn't seem to think there will be any.]]
120	* Really700YearsOld. [[spoiler: Eli.]]
121	* RedemptionEarnsLife: One of the bullies shows much more guilt about what they're doing, and backs out when he realizes Jimmy is actually going to drown Oskar. [[spoiler: He's the only one who Eli doesn't harm during the pool massacre]].
122	* TheRenfield: Eli starts out with an older 'guardian' who tries to protect her by draining blood out of victims. [[spoiler:By the end of the movie, Oskar has possibly become this (depending on your interpretation). The follow-up short story collection ''Let The Old'' Dreams Die was written because the author didn't like this interpretation. It shows Oscar and Eli mixing their blood, making him a vampire as well.]]
123	* RoaringRampageOfRescue: [[spoiler:Eli's slaughter of Conny and Jimmy at the climax, to rescue Oskar from drowning.]]
124	* SameLanguageDub: Lina Leandersson's voice is dubbed over by another actress's with the intent of making the character more androgynous.
125	* SceneryPorn: The lingering shots of Blackeberg in the middle of winter manage to be both beautiful and gloomy at the same time. Most of the outdoor scenes were shot in Luleå in the north of Sweden, instead of Blackeberg, since during the filming of the movie, Stockholm and southern Sweden had experianced a lot of snowless winters. In recent years following the making of the film, the winters have been notoriously cold and snowy. Stockholm has been hit by blizzards so bad that all trains stopped and traffic could not move.
126	* SuicideBySunlight: [[spoiler:One of Eli's victims does this to herself.]]
127	* SymbolicSereneSubmersion: PlayedForHorror. The bullies forcefully hold Oskar's head underwater for three minutes (which will kill him). But Eli shows up and saves the day, and Oskar goes from being forcefully submerged and drowning to peacefully underwater [[spoiler:as the disembodied limbs of his bullies are thrown around]], marking his transition from predator to prey and his commitment to Eli.
128	* SympatheticMurderer:
129	** Oskar wants to kill the bullies for torturing him.
130	** Håkan kills for Eli but hates doing it, being even more dispassionate about it than in the novel.
131	* TearsOfBlood: [[spoiler:When Eli isn't invited into Oskar's place but enters anyway, blood begins pouring out of her head and orifices, including her eyes]].
132	* TeensAreMonsters: There's only one featured teenage character, and he's probably the least sympathetic person in the film.
133	* TitledAfterTheSong: Music/{{Morrissey}}'s "Let The Right One Slip In" (though the title got strangely mangled in translation back to English).
134	* TrappedInVillainy: Eli didn’t choose to be a vampire, and tells Oskar that she kills because she has to, which she claims is better than killing for revenge.
135	* TooDumbToLive:
136	** Lacke tries to kill Eli with a kitchen knife... that he drops before she even wakes up. Or how about turning his back on a vampire without finishing the job? In the book it is stated that he couldn't bring himself to kill a child. Here he is just startled by Oskar.
137	** Håkan does not seem so concerned with at least trying to cover his tracks by hiding the corpses of his victims or taking any other precaution, culminating in [[spoiler: attempting to kill a boy ''in a gym and trying to bleed him in the changing room'', without even making sure that no one else is around. Needless to say, he gets caught mere minutes later]].
138	* TragicHero: [[spoiler:Lacke.]]
139	* TrialBalloonQuestion: Twofold. Eli asks Oskar if he would still like her if she weren't a girl. He says sure he would. What Eli really means is [[spoiler: he is neither female nor human.]]
140	* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: One of Oskar's first scenes has him rehearsing a YouTalkinToMe and pulling a knife... on a tree. And then, of course, there's [[UndeadChild Eli]].
141	* UndeadBarefooter: Eli tends to go barefoot even in snow; that's one of the first signs that there's something weird about her.
142	* UndeadChild: Subverted. Eli insists she isn't ''technically'' undead.
143	* UnnervinglyHeartwarming: In the film, after Oskar saves vampire Eli from a would-be vampire hunter, Eli rewards him with a kiss on the lips, which would be adorable... if her mouth wasn't filled with the vampire hunter's blood.
144	* UnsettlingGenderReveal: [[spoiler:Eli's genitals are completely missing. In the novel, the vampire who bit him/her also chopped off all his/her male parts, making him/her... well, it's hard to say. It's not clear whether Eli really thinks that makes him/her female, or is just more comfortable as a girl. All this is made much clearer in the book.]]
145	* VampireBitesSuck: Unlike most vampire stories, victims keep struggling and resisting even while getting chewed on.
146	* VillainHasAPoint: There's no defense for the murders Eli commits, but she claims that killing to survive is more moral than killing for revenge or pleasure.
147	* VillainProtagonist: Calling either Eli or Oskar good guys would be debatable. Eli murders perfectly innocent people without remorse [[spoiler: and mercilessly slaughters Oskar’s bullies]], while Oskar is obsessed with serial killers, fantasizes about killing his bullies, [[spoiler: and has no problem when Eli ''does'' kill his bullies]].
148	* ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend: Eli takes this up to eleven. [[spoiler:At the ending, she brutally massacres the gang of bullies trying to drown Oscar.]]
149	* ViralTransformation: Vampirism is transmitted through the bite, and though it gives the person a HorrorHunger for blood it doesn't make them fundamentally evil. That said, it's bad enough most people are driven to suicide shortly after turning for fear of turning into murderers.
150	* TheVirus: Vampirism is repeatedly referred to in the context of 'being infected'.
151	* VoiceOfTheLegion: Eli's voice gets a bit of an echo after her true side starts showing up.
152	* WarmBloodbagsAreEverywhere: Happens towards the middle. Eli follows Oskar to a secluded spot after she hasn't fed for a few days, and Oskar unexpectedly [[BloodOath cuts his palm]] and offers to be blood brothers with her. She manages to fight the urge to eat him by lapping up the blood he was spilling, but reveals her GameFace in the process, growls, and runs away to feed off someone else.
153	* WeakenedByTheLight: Vampires and sunlight. It's sort of a given.
154	* WhamLine: [[spoiler:"Even if I wasn't a girl...would you still like me?"]]
155	* WhamShot:
156	** [[spoiler:Eli's scarred crotch]].
157	** [[spoiler:When Eli starts murdering the bullies.]]
158	* WhiteHairBlackHeart: Oskar looks about as stereotypically Swedish as you can get. [[CreepyChild Physically]] [[ProtagonistJourneyToVillain speaking]], [[AlternativeCharacterInterpretation of course]].
159	* WiseBeyondTheirYears: [[InvertedTrope Inverted]] by Eli, who despite having lived for over 200 years, is somewhat mentally limited by being physically 12.
160	* WindowLove: Lots of this. When we first meet Oskar, and again after [[spoiler: Eli leaves]], he presses his hand against his window, perhaps an expression of his isolation and longing for connection. When Eli watches Oskar through the window as he does his after-school session in the swimming pool, she presses her hand against the window for the same reason; in this scene she's also, says WordOfGod, trying to look like a normal kid by wearing heavy winter clothes although she doesn't feel the cold. Finally, when Oskar comes over to Eli's apartment and asks if she's a vampire, she backs away from him behind a glass-paned door and they press their hands together on opposite sides of the pane, she moving her bare hands around, first one and then the other, and he following with his gloved hands. Right after this, she opens the door to let him through. Also, when Eli comes to Håkan's [[spoiler: hospital room and is sitting outside on the window ledge unable to come in]] she presses her hand to the window.
161	* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: Eli, a vampire who is trapped not just physically in a 12 year old body but mentally and emotionally as well, forced to kill to survive, whose only friend is an equally screwed up boy.
162	* WouldHurtAChild: [[spoiler: Eli’s pool massacre. She mercilessly slaughters Conny and Martin, who were starting to have second thoughts and wanted to leave at that point]].
163	* WoundedGazelleGambit: Eli lures Jocke in an alley by looking as if she is hurt, prompting him to help her out, leaving her to attack him.
164	* YourVampiresSuck: Averted. There are virtually no references to any vampire tropes not used in the movie. In many ways, this helps to create a greater sense of realism. The characters are smart enough to know that what works in the movies won't work in real life, and that discussing things in terms of what movies they are or aren't like is totally pointless.

Context Film / LetTheRightOneIn