The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Noomi Rapace in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Tuesday, 09, Mar 2010 04:12
Directed by Niels Arden Oplev, out March 12th in cinemas, starring Michael Nyqvist, Noomi Rapace, Sven-Bertil Taube, Peter Haber, running time 153 mins.
What's it all about?
Based on the first book of the late Steig Larsson's hugely popular Millennium trilogy - 25 million copies sold worldwide - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo sees investigative journalist Mikael Blomqvist (Nyqvist) contracted to unravel the disappearance of one of a wealthy Swedish dynasty, before he heads to jail for a libel conviction. Aided by the troubled and explosive young hacker Lisbeth Salander (Rapace), Mikael uncovers a dark and deadly secret stretching back through generations.
As an example...
"There is no answer. You'll only breathe life into Henrik's obsession. Give it up before you become obsessed yourself." - Detective
What the others say
"Slyly inverts all manner of gender conventions by having its narrative orientation gradually shift from a rather unengaging, anodyne hero to an altogether more dynamic and self-reliant heroine (the girl of the title)." - Anton Bitel, Little White Lies
"Gives a relatively faithful idea of the novel's ingenious construction but only glimpses of its scathing portrait of Sweden as a corrupt, bankrupt and misogynistic society." - Boyd van Hoeji, Variety
So is it any good?
Steig Larsson's Millennium trilogy have sold more globally than the Twilight Saga while the book's crime thriller/corporate polemic tone has an intriguing real-life parallel thanks to the dispute between the late author's long-term partner and his family over the rightful fate of his multimillion fortune. Thanks to Niels Arden Oplev's thrilling and intelligent adaptation of the first book in the Millennium trilogy, both the popularity of Larsson's novels and the ferocity of the claims to his estate are likely to increase after the international release of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.
Larsson's own career in investigate journalism means the film's assault on Swedish secrecy and the sins that pervade corporate and federal worlds feels wholly authentic, almost enough to spark the Swedish police into investigating the basements and country estates of the country's landed gentry. And the director's detached, calm approach to the novel's narrative keeps the viewer entranced throughout as we move from a "follow the money" plot, with something of The Insider of its 'cog in a machine' opening arc, to a darker societal mystery played out alongside a revenge saga. The truth is deftly, slowly released while Oplev and screenwriters Nicolaj Arcel and Rasmus Heisterberg are to be applauded for never simplifying Larsson's complex plot nor compromising the audience through toning down its frequently graphic content. The book's Swedish title, Män Som Hatar Kvinno/Men Who Hate Women, suggests rather too literally the theme of misogyny and subsequent female empowerment that powers our titular heroine. But what a heroine she is, with Rapace bringing a feral, impulsive power to the now-iconic character of Lisbeth. The real lead of the piece, with Mikael the eventual sidekick, Lisbeth is an amazing creation, with strength, fragility, a terrifying past and determination, even in the face of horror. She's simply a magnificent heroine and it's no surprise Larsson's books have proved so popular with such a compelling lead. Thankfully, its sequel The Girl who Played with Fire has already been made and released in Sweden, because as soon as the credits roll on the first instalment in the trilogy, you'll be desperate to follow Lisbeth's next adventure.
With a darkly comic script to accompany its graphic and shocking themes, a well-paced detection strand and a crimefighting duo far too credible and compelling to don capes, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is the brilliant starter to a sumptuous three-course thriller.
9/10
Lewis Bazley