I am not sure why I was initially curious to see this film. Maybe because it promised to be a modern-day existentialist tale about alienation and loneliness which only incidentally used vampires as its building blocks. Unfortunately, the film is incoherent and neither manages to be a serious discussion of marginalised characters nor a dark vampire romp with a brain.

Oskar (Kare Hedebrant) is a quiet twelve-year-old who does not fit in and is bullied at school. Eli (Lina Leandersson) is an ageless vampire caught in the body of a young girl of Oskar's age. The two are drawn to each other. Forbidden friendship grows into a confusion of experiences and adoration for Oskar and a new opportunity for Eli, who has recently lost her last devotee, who helped bring her blood. Soon they are drawn into an unbreakable bond of revenge and violence.

Unfortunately, the characters are flat and void of all emotions, although it is fundamentally the script and direction which let the acting down. Eli lacks the tired wisdom which ought to veil her character and Oskar lacks the quirkiness that all children have, however gormless they may be. Had these aspects been exploited, the film could have been the dark and powerful existential film it promised to be. Instead, the film whets your appetite but leaves you thoroughly unsatisfied, and the final scene -albeit obvious- feels precipitated and out of character.

The drained aesthetics of the film is the only highlight. It is a visual dream which floats in the darkness of forbidden hours. The snow, the smears of blood, the pale skin, the unhealthy loneliness, all reverberate beautifully against the retina.