The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2009)

Admirable film.

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

The first of the trilogy introduces our controversial characters that leads to an interesting case.Very well acted, hooked from the beginning, hard hitting and satisfying!If you only watch a few sub-titled movies in your lifetime, make one of them this one!

Although this Swedish version of 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' was followed by two sequels and an English language film a couple of years ago directed by David Fincher, it is very much the best of the four films.It is a very loyal adaptation of the book (generally one of the most faithful book-to-film adaptations around), which is a fantastic read and has become of my favourite books recently, adhering closely to many of the book's events and such and also perfectly maintaining the bleak and murky atmosphere the book effortlessly creates. However, 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' works even better on its own terms. The central relationship between Mikail and Lisbeth is ever so slightly rushed, however it still resonates while wisely not taking over the story too much (doing a much better job in this aspect than Fincher's.Fincher's version may be more audacious visually, though this film is a long way from a hack job, and the script here does occasionally lack polish and flow. However, the atmosphere is much more effective here and there is generally more tension and chills, and personally prefer the performances here too (though Rooney Mara in Fincher's film is certainly no slouch).Enough with the comparisons. 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' (2009) does look great, the bleakness of the setting adds so well to the atmosphere and it's tightly edited and very nicely shot. The haunting and doom-laden score fills one with dread and creates a lot of rich tension. Neil Arden Oplev's directing is masterful, building on the tension and suspense to frightening heights while also directing with a lot of class.'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo's' story is incredibly gripping, there is a lot of subplots and characterisation and the film remarkably makes everything intriguing, layered and complete. The long running time allows this to happen admittedly, but with a good deal going on and with deliberate pacing the film easily could have rushed through things or neglected aspects but very rarely does those things. The subplots are superbly chilling with constant and effortless delivery of shock after shock. The bleak and murky atmosphere is present throughout, as is the dark and at times brutal (but not gratuitously so) tone, with plenty of twists and turns that shock and surprise better than a lot of thrillers from the US.All the acting is very good indeed, but it's the two leads that really impress. Michael Nyqvist makes his vulnerable and flawed character a fascinating character that could have been less complex in lesser hands, but the film does belong to Noomi Rapace, whose seamlessly enigmatic performance is positively screen-burning.Overall, a great film and one of not many book-to-film adaptations that treats its source material with respect. Swedish thrillers don't get much better than this. 9/10 Bethany Cox

I finished reading all three books yesterday. Actually I read 1800 pages ( 3 times around 600 pages) in less than a week. The book is GREAT! But, maybe the fact that I wanted to see the movie right away spoiled my enjoyment!But I can say that the movie did follow all the most important things from the book and that the story is as it is in the book.Of course, I can say that the book is 100 better than the film, but it is always like that with movie adaptations.I do not think that the role of Michael Blumkvist was chosen right. I completely imagines him in a different way. Lisbeth role is quite good and the girl is good in her role.This movie gets seven from me. But if you read reviews here before watching a movie, do read the book first!

Having read the books quite a few years ago, I don't remember much of the details from there, but think this film greatly captures the essence of the book. It is of course, not an exact adaptation, however I did not feel that they missed much out that was crucial to the story. There are some discrepancies compared to the book though that I think are unnecessary changes. Just to note, this is the Swedish version that I watched, maybe I will watch the Hollywood one to see if it's better though I don't think it will be.The cast for this did a good job and was a really good fit for the characters they were portraying; with the exception of one actress that I felt did not fit into the image of her character. Nyqvist does well as Blomkvist, a confident kind of gentle person with attention to detail who had a pretty good upbringing. In contrast Rapace as Salander has had a much darker life and she portrays this perfectly. Her stoic expressions and speech delivery depicts how she has that emotional barrier and makes sure not to get attached to anyone.The story too is shrouded in darkness and reflects Salander's life. There is quite a bit of gruesome and grotesque images in the film, but fortunately it is easy to tell when it will appear so I can be prepared and avert my eyes. There is also some thriller action and the music score does well to match the mood of the scenes.This film also had great cinematography – especially with landscapes. Lots of beautiful shots and some great aerial perspectives.Read more movie reviews at: championangels.wordpress.com