Old post, but everything on this sub is old and I just found it.
I don't dislike LMI, I just don't like how they handled some of the elements of the story.
It's just... I'm not sure how to put this without sounding like my head is completely up my ass... Okay! I know how to summarize it!
So apparently the American Adaption was originally going to be titled "Let Her In" and they changed it to "Let Me In" on Lindqvist's suggestion due to "Let Her In" being inaccurate.
But it's still indicative of the things in LMI that upset me a bit.
The fact that some plot points are sort of just ignored. Eli's gender is a really great example of this.
It's made really explicit in the book. The original film left it vague. LMI went with entirely female vampire.
It's not that this makes the film some horrible travesty it's just... There are plot points from the novel that could have been explored more deeply that I feel were ignored. In all fairness, LTROI also sort of ignored them.
I get that you are never going to be able to put everything from a book to film (Zombie Rapist Hakan will never appear on screen, for example. With good reason. It's a pretty fucked up scene.) but... I dunno, man.
The book just leaves a lot of potential that the films left untouched. LMI more so.
Don't get me wrong, as it's own creature, it's great. If the novel/original had never existed, it would have been a solid vampire movie in it's own right. Heck, even in their shadow it's still a pretty good film.
I just wish it had gone into more depth with some stuff. I feel the same about the Swedish film, honestly. It just sort of brushed on the stuff.
Eli's past, for example. I'd love to see some of the flash-backs from the book appear on screen. I'd love to see the man in the wig appear. Or even better, what would Abby's man in the wig be like? Given the different setting?
So, TL:DR
Somewhere in between
As a film, it is definitely a solid vampire movie. As it's own creature, it's a solid vampire movie.
I just know that there is unused potential, and I have a hard time forgetting that when watching the movies. xD