One vampire movie from 2008 was the anтιтhesis to Twilight that we needed and has, somehow, aged better than the franchise featuring Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart, even though both came out the same year. Twilight is notorious for the backlash audiences had to it during its debut back in the early 2000s that has leaked into its reputation today. However, even with the arrival of Twilight’s TV remake as a chance at redemption, the problems within the films have properly earned the franchise its less-than-kind status.

Many audiences have cited Stewart’s blank acting as Bella Swan, the plot holes, and the lacking worldbuilding as some of the major problems with the franchise, the list varying with each of The Twilight Saga movies. One consistent complaint, though, is that the films were not as advertised: a horror movie love story. As a result, Twilight was looked down upon while other films, which used the same premise but added the promised horror elements, were favored. A major example of this was one some may not have heard of but took Twilight’s idea in fascinating directions: Let The Right One In.

Let The Right One In Was A 2000s Vampire Movie That Couldn’t Be More Different To Twilight

Let The Right One In Plays With Horror Elements Twilight Did Not

The 2000s vampire movie Let The Right One In could not be more different from Twilight despite the fact that both utilize horror and romance tropes in their stories. Let The Right One In follows twelve-year-old Oskar (Kåre Hedebrant), who moves to a new town in Sweden and is promptly bullied by his classmates. Oskar befriends Eli (Lina Leandersson), a reclusive girl who lives in the same apartment complex and is a vampire, though that does not scare Oskar. Though it shares the concept of a human falling for a vampire with Twilight, the film diverges in major ways.

Let The Right One In leans further into the horror by showcasing the more terrifying aspects of vampirism as well as follows through with Eli’s descent into her darker side. Twilight’s most powerful vampires do have their moments, but Eli’s acceptance of violence from herself and Oskar add to the horror even as their love story plays out positively, making the film all the more unsettling and pulling off the premise Twilight ​​​​​​promised effectively. That type of persistent, creeping horror is why Let The Right One In is able to stand the test of time, even almost twenty years later.

Let The Right One In Holds Up As A Genuinely Scary Horror In 2025

The Gore And Message Make The Horror Work

Let The Right One in uses its message and visuals to create a scary horror movie that still meets the standards of 2025’s audience, unlike Twilight. Let The Right One In uses mild gore and violence in ways older vampire movies did, adding a sense of otherworldliness to Eli even in her most brutal moments and an air of mystery that the audience can see past, but the other characters cannot. That being said, it is the film leaning into a classic romance trope that makes it so haunting even today.

Eli and Oskar are able to be one of the best horror movie friendships and romance stories because their age underlines their affection for each other. That strong foundation of love between them makes the horror more poignant as the classic ‘love conquers all’ trope lets two innocents who have given into their darker sides succeed at every turn. That happiness between them becomes the pinnacle of the horror, something Twilight could not replicate as it leaned too far away from its own darker possibilities.

Twilight

Based on Stephenie Meyer’s best-selling novels, the Twilight film franchise unfolds the intense and tumultuous romance between Bella Swan, a quiet high school student, and Edward Cullen, a centuries-old vampire. Set against Forks, Washington’s moody, rain-soaked backdrop, their forbidden love story evolves amidst a world filled with otherworldly dangers and supernatural beings. As their saga progresses, they confront malicious vampires, protective werewolves, and the mysterious laws of the vampire world

Movie(s)

Twilight The Twilight Saga: New Moon, The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (2010), The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 (2011), The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 (2012)

First Film

Twilight (2008)

Cast

Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Ashley Greene, Peter Facinelli, Elizabeth Reaser, Kellan Lutz, Nikki Reed, Jackson Rathbone, Billy Burke

Character(s)

Bella Swan, Edward Cullen, Jacob Black, Alice Cullen, Carlisle Cullen, Esme Cullen, Emmett Cullen, Rosalie Hale, Jasper Hale, Charlie Swan