DIRECTOR: Niels Arden OplevSTARRING: Michael Nyqvist, Noomi Rapace
So, apparently these books upon which this film and its sequels are based are the latest craze to hit the literary world. I haven’t had the time to pick them up myself, but after seeing this film they’ve been elevated to the top of my to-read list, in hopes of catching up by the time movie #2 (The Girl Who Played With Fire) gets released in the States. This is a Swedish film that strongly proves to me that Europeans know what the hell they’re doing when it comes to subtlety and intelligence. I’m curious to see how the American remake measures up...
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo begins by following a disgraced reporter named Mikael Blomkvist (Nyqvist). While waiting to serve a short prison sentence for trying to expose a corrupt politician, he is approached by Henrik Vanger, a wealthy old man who hires Blomkvist to solve the decades-old disappearance of his niece, Harriet. As Blomkvist begins to look into the mystery, he eventually joins forces with Lisbeth Salander (Rapace), a brilliant hacker and the girl mentioned in the title; she is perhaps more of a mystery herself than Harriet Vanger’s disappearance.
I’ll leave it at that, seeing as the plot and characters’ backgrounds get fairly complex. The interesting thing about this film is that before Americans got ahold of these books and marketed them here, this was originally titled Men Who Hate Women. While it’s certainly not a poetic title, it probably lends itself to the story’s purpose better than the new title. This is not about Blomkvist and his own work, or even his efforts to solve the case; it is about women. It’s about Lisbeth and the violence she has endured; or the horrors that Harriet may or may not have suffered; or, without revealing too much, about the victims Blomkvist and Lisbeth discover along the way. This is a film that, if you so choose to see it, should be looked at as more than just a murder mystery. It’s an example of something I’ve talked about before: the ability of a film to have an underlying statement without beating it into the audience’s head. Everything is there, but even without it, the film works. It’s a skillful accomplishment.
As far as technicalities go, everything one would hope would be in a European film is here. It knows when to be subtle and it certainly knows when to not shy away. I will say that this isn’t really for the delicate viewer; there is one scene in particular that even horrified me, and that’s difficult to pull off. What I most appreciated, however, was the casting of Lisbeth. Even though I haven’t read the book yet I knew she was perfect: androgynous, sexy without being sexualized, and chillingly calculating. Bravo, Ms. Rapace!
Bottom line: so good that I’m nervous about the remake. Even though David Fincher (of Se7en and Fight Club) is directing it, I’m worried that we Americans will miss the point entirely. I feel it’s too important a point to overlook. So… go see it!
FINAL GRADE: A-
So, apparently these books upon which this film and its sequels are based are the latest craze to hit the literary world. I haven’t had the time to pick them up myself, but after seeing this film they’ve been elevated to the top of my to-read list, in hopes of catching up by the time movie #2 (The Girl Who Played With Fire) gets released in the States. This is a Swedish film that strongly proves to me that Europeans know what the hell they’re doing when it comes to subtlety and intelligence. I’m curious to see how the American remake measures up...
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo begins by following a disgraced reporter named Mikael Blomkvist (Nyqvist). While waiting to serve a short prison sentence for trying to expose a corrupt politician, he is approached by Henrik Vanger, a wealthy old man who hires Blomkvist to solve the decades-old disappearance of his niece, Harriet. As Blomkvist begins to look into the mystery, he eventually joins forces with Lisbeth Salander (Rapace), a brilliant hacker and the girl mentioned in the title; she is perhaps more of a mystery herself than Harriet Vanger’s disappearance.
I’ll leave it at that, seeing as the plot and characters’ backgrounds get fairly complex. The interesting thing about this film is that before Americans got ahold of these books and marketed them here, this was originally titled Men Who Hate Women. While it’s certainly not a poetic title, it probably lends itself to the story’s purpose better than the new title. This is not about Blomkvist and his own work, or even his efforts to solve the case; it is about women. It’s about Lisbeth and the violence she has endured; or the horrors that Harriet may or may not have suffered; or, without revealing too much, about the victims Blomkvist and Lisbeth discover along the way. This is a film that, if you so choose to see it, should be looked at as more than just a murder mystery. It’s an example of something I’ve talked about before: the ability of a film to have an underlying statement without beating it into the audience’s head. Everything is there, but even without it, the film works. It’s a skillful accomplishment.
As far as technicalities go, everything one would hope would be in a European film is here. It knows when to be subtle and it certainly knows when to not shy away. I will say that this isn’t really for the delicate viewer; there is one scene in particular that even horrified me, and that’s difficult to pull off. What I most appreciated, however, was the casting of Lisbeth. Even though I haven’t read the book yet I knew she was perfect: androgynous, sexy without being sexualized, and chillingly calculating. Bravo, Ms. Rapace!
Bottom line: so good that I’m nervous about the remake. Even though David Fincher (of Se7en and Fight Club) is directing it, I’m worried that we Americans will miss the point entirely. I feel it’s too important a point to overlook. So… go see it!
FINAL GRADE: A-
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