If you haven’t read Swedish author Stieg Larsson, you should; “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” is the first of his three novels. The film is a strong adaptation, moving at a leisurely pace that develops both character and plot. Your typical thriller is more interested in advancing the plot, but director Niels Arden Oplev makes the protagonists, Mikael and Lisbeth, just as intriguing as the mystery they’re investigating. And Noomi Rapace, who plays Lisbeth, is impressive.
Three separate events open the story. Investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nykvist) has been found guilty of libel and is sentenced to three months in prison, but has six months to get his affairs in order. Elsewhere, an elderly industrialist, Henrik Vanger, weeps after opening a package that contains a framed dried flower. Finally, hacker Lisbeth Salander (Rapace) learns that her previous court appointed guardian has died and she is now under the control of a sadist who believes he can blackmail her into performing sexual favors in return for reports of good behavior. Lisbeth, who is violent and antisocial but extremely bright, is not one to take this passively. Eventually these characters come together when Vanger hires Mikael to investigate the 40-year-old disappearance of his niece, Harriet. Mikael’s traditional investigative methods and Lisbeth’s digital ones create an effective team, especially when it seems that someone in Vanger’s family is not only responsible for Harriet’s disappearance but also for the deaths of several women. “The Girls with the Dragon Tattoo” is a long movie, 2 hours and 35 minutes long, but you won’t notice the time. You’ll be engaged every minute of this engrossing film. Subtitles. 3/26/10
1 comment:
After seeing this film and spending over 2 1/2 hours of reading subtitles I should have been sick to death of this movie. Not so! This picture was as good as anything I have seen this year and I hated to see it end. Thoroughly engrossing, go see it.
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