Thomas to Owen: Can the Cycle Be Broken?

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thestich
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Re: Thomas to Owen: Can the Cycle Be Broken?

Post by thestich » Tue Mar 13, 2012 5:40 pm

Yes, the dad completely latches onto his own distrust of his soon-to-be-x-wife's religious fervor, leaps to the presumption that this is why his son is calling and is so upset, doesn't stop to come down to his son's level because he so wrapped up in his frustrations and worries. Viola, disaster and Owen doesn't get to have the talk with his dad that he so very much wants to have. Owen may not be able to explicitly grasp all that but he realizes the "disconnect" and that he doesn't have the skills to bridge the communicative distance to his dad. But I don't think that's the same as rejecting or giving up on his dad. Yes, for that one call things don't work out. Yet Owen reached out to his dad for help and so I think he would likely do so again. A couple of weeks or months down the road, if he were to give it a try, I think he would find his dad very receptive to hear from him and try to reach out to his level and talk to Owen.
Great comment! :think:
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danielma
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Re: Thomas to Owen: Can the Cycle Be Broken?

Post by danielma » Tue Mar 13, 2012 11:41 pm

I don't want to rain on people's parades (before I start this post)...I understand people want to be optimistic about Owen breaking the Cycle...and more power to them.

But realistically for me, I don't see it happening. I'm sorry I just don't. Whether it be by Abby's Master Plan or by Coincidence, I just truly believe that this relationship will end by coming full circle much like it did with Thomas.

The part that I think is undecided (for me at least) was "Is this the grand design of Abby and is she a great manipulator? Or is it just something that will happen due to the circumstances of the situation? Is it just something that happens out of natural occurence?"

It goes back to the old age arguement of Abby

If she is a 12 year old, then by all chances History will repeat itself because that's all she knows and chances are there is nothing she can do to prevent it from happening due to arrested development

If she is a manipulator and is really far more cunning then she appears, then the strings are being pulled quite nicely.

Now I know a lot of people say "Well the choice is Owen's, and it is up to Owen to choose his own fate, so that is a possibility from him not becoming another Thomas considering he is smarter"...To an extent this is correct, Owen is not Thomas...But Abby is Abby...Abby will not change, the primary exsistence of her nature is that selfish drive to survive. At the end of the day, that's all that matters in this exsistence, is that basic instinct for survival. And that's what will dominate both their lives.

It's fine to say that Owen has a choice, but in reality I don't think he has much of a choice. I think that the main focus is that Carnal Insitinct for Survival and that's something that will never change about Abby...therefore it will dominate her life and subsequently anyone who is involved with her. I don't think Owen really has much of a choice as he will feel compelled (whether it be by love, guilt or whatever emotion) to simply help her in her plea.

I think from here the relationship will always be doomed to repeat itself...because that's the one primal instinct that Abby operates under and its the primal instinct that dominates her exsistence (and therefore will come to dominate the exsistence of any of her tag alongs)

The question for me wasn't the "fate of Owen"...it was rather "Is this all according to Plan? or Is this by coincidence?"
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Re: Thomas to Owen: Can the Cycle Be Broken?

Post by gkmoberg1 » Thu Mar 15, 2012 4:28 am

Well said. Maybe the answer to your final question is that it's a little of both. Perhaps Abby finds it convenient & comfortable to allow things to develop by coincidence into a pattern that she has found successful - across many iterations. :twisted:

But then with that in hand, I still do think it all comes down to Owen - or whomever is her current friend/partner. Substitute Owen, Tomas, me or you in the following:

<> At age 12 Owen is weak and inexperienced and so is far more of a burden for her than an assist.

<> At age 19-?? Owen is strong and active and so is far more of an assist than a burden.

<> At age <something-like-however-old-Tomas-was> Owen is burnt out / guilt-ridden and returns to more of a burden than an assist.

<> Abby moves on.

And so there is a cycle.

Problem for me is that it remains the choice of the friend/partner to remain with her. During the daylight hours of any day the current Owen can get up and walk away; Abby can do nothing to stop this.

Owen and Abby exit the movie embracing each either other on acceptance and love. ( I'm still reading LMI-2 and maybe we can trick the author into writing a LMI-0 for us so that we can see how Tomas and Abby came to be. :roll: ) We know it's not going to last forever, except for the Casper Nom The Poor Boy gambit [1], so yes either Owen gets old and "retires" or becomes dinner :twisted: or perishes along the way à la Kirk Barrett's Quick Bright Things .

And if the gets up some sunny morning and wanders off, sure, she can start again. So even in that scenario, there's still the likelihood of a cycle.

[1] My name, not his. Me not putting words his mouth. But I agree with his line-o-thought.

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Re: Thomas to Owen: Can the Cycle Be Broken?

Post by Lee Kyle » Sun Mar 18, 2012 4:21 am

I believe if the cycle is going to be broken, Owen has to be the one to do it. The Owen we encounter at the beginning of the movie seems ill-equipped for such a task. But Let Me In shows significant change taking place in Owen in just three weeks. Although 7th grade boys are of necessity changing rapidly, the transformation we see in Owen is much greater than the typical change that happens even at this age. Consider:

1) Owen hugs Abby when she throws up. I remember what I was like as a 12-year-old boy. I also have seven children, and I have taught junior high students for 20 years. Let me tell you, there are very few 12-year-old boys who would make such a suave move at such a critical moment. Most would be repulsed. Many would say something thoughtless or even nasty. Owen grabs her and comforts her. This is the moment, actually, in which Owen "grabbed" me. I was so utterly impressed with what he does here, that from this moment on I was totally rooting for him. Go Owen!

2) Owen hits back. If you were never bullied at that age, be glad. I was, and I know what a huge step this is. Owen mans up and gives that bully a smack-down. Go Owen!

3) Owen visits Abby's apartment after realizing she is a vampire. He insists that she say he can come in. He is obviously in charge throughout the entire encounter. What has happened to quiet, passive Owen? Talk about manning up!

4) Owen lets Abby in and then saves her life. It's easy to lose sight of the fact that these are very adult decisions. Have you ever had to decide whether or not to let someone live or die? I have. Let's just say this process puts childhood to death in a hurry.

5) Owen closes the door. Saving Abby from the police detective, and then closing the door on him while Abby eats him, is simply huge. Owen has come a really long way in a very short time.

6) Owen runs away with Abby. I know lots of teens run away from home. Not many of them are 12-year-old boys, however. Owen is not the same person he was when the movie began.

Is Owen still a child? Of course he is. Nevertheless, the changes he undergoes are realistic yet radical. He is already showing signs of being a confident leader in their relationship. He is the sort of person who might go a different route than Thomas.

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Re: Thomas to Owen: Can the Cycle Be Broken?

Post by stevenpotts3@aol.com » Wed Apr 11, 2012 4:30 am

Personally, the cycle actually being real is what ruined LMI for me.
Last edited by stevenpotts3@aol.com on Mon Apr 23, 2012 4:38 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Thomas to Owen: Can the Cycle Be Broken?

Post by Casper » Wed Apr 11, 2012 6:24 am

gkmoberg1 wrote:<> At age 12 Owen is weak and inexperienced and so is far more of a burden for her than an assist.
Yes, but this is also the height of their love for each other. You appear to perhaps be begging the question here. You are asking us to admit that love itself is a burden. You also may be overlooking the fact that Owen as a vampire would not be "weak". The matter of inexperience would resolve itself in a short number of years, unless you also assume that Owen is incapable of gaining experience. I think for Abby, given a few years for Owen to adapt, he would be quite a fantastic "assist". The only real "burden" here is for Owen to come to terms with such a monumental decision.

As I said, I argue for this scenario rather adamantly. :?
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Re: Thomas to Owen: Can the Cycle Be Broken?

Post by gkmoberg1 » Mon Apr 16, 2012 2:28 pm

Ummm, no. :)

I was saying that a 12 yr old is not much of an assistant to a vampire. That was it, nothing more.

"Owen as a vampire" is a separate matter. That's a game changer. And yes you can argue for that, np. 8-)

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EEA
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Re: Thomas to Owen: Can the Cycle Be Broken?

Post by EEA » Thu Apr 19, 2012 4:26 am

I think it can be broken. Owen has changed and I feel that he can help Abby to pull away from this endless cycle. I always hope that Abby is able to find a cure.

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Re: Thomas to Owen: Can the Cycle Be Broken?

Post by Angelalex242 » Thu Apr 26, 2012 7:10 am

There are two ways to break this cycle.

Option A:Abby dies. The cycle obviously ends then. But nobody wants that option.
Option B:Owen is turned. And that essentially makes this American LTROI.

I think we can throw A out...

Which leads to two primary options. The Cycle Continues, or Owen is Turned.

If Owen is turned, that makes this even a greater act of will for Abby then it was for Eli. Abby is, essentially, giving up a little bit more the then Eli does by making the choice to Turn. Again, going by LTROI, (or more accurally, LTODD), she's actually due to turn Owen the first night he leaves with her. That would represent a more abrupt break then even I thought before I heard about it.

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Re: Thomas to Owen: Can the Cycle Be Broken?

Post by sauvin » Thu Aug 09, 2012 6:14 pm

Angelalex242 wrote:There are two ways to break this cycle.

Option A:Abby dies. The cycle obviously ends then. But nobody wants that option.
Option B:Owen is turned. And that essentially makes this American LTROI.

I think we can throw A out...

Which leads to two primary options. The Cycle Continues, or Owen is Turned.

If Owen is turned, that makes this even a greater act of will for Abby then it was for Eli. Abby is, essentially, giving up a little bit more the then Eli does by making the choice to Turn. Again, going by LTROI, (or more accurally, LTODD), she's actually due to turn Owen the first night he leaves with her. That would represent a more abrupt break then even I thought before I heard about it.

(C) After a few years, the rose of romance no longer has its appealing blush, and Owen has gained enough experience and confidence that he feels he can operate on his own. Fed up with the demands her lifestyle imposes and with her always being just a temperamental snot-nosed kid, they part with considerable acrimony, with Abby taking the house and the car, and Owen keeping the television set and the music collection. This would make it a very American LTROI.

I'll just go away and hide now...
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