Rating of
3.5/4
Compelling mystery thriller!
MovieAddict - wrote on 02/04/12
With a tone-setting opening credits sequence to a darkly atmospheric score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is an unrelenting and intense thriller that had me on the edge of my seat. A mysterious modern whodunit; as the story slowly unravels it becomes more and more gruesome and mysterious; grabs you and doesn't let go for the next hour and a half.
I did not read the book (the trilogy is already in my library on my list of books to read next) nor seen the original. That being said I thought the script was brilliant, location and shooting was beautiful and the cast was absolutely incredible.
Daniel Craig portrays journalist Mikael Blomquist who having been disgraced in court over a libelous story. He finds himself engaged to investigate, under the guise of writing a family history, the disappearance many years ago of the then-teenage granddaughter of industrialist Hennk Vanger (the superb Christopher Plummer). Vanger's family turns out to be massively dysfunctional - they live in houses within walking distance of each other, but haven't spoken in years. Blomkvist is assisted in the case by mysterious research assistant Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara), the titular girl with the dragon tattoo. Lisbeth is a ward of the state, answerable to a nasty social worker who demands sexual favors in return for letting her have access to her own money. Richly dark and edgy her Gothic anti society appearance blended well with the way she holds herself; angst ridden and moody. Despite the evilly rebellious exterior she is incredibly technologically savvy with a photographic memory, a talent for computer hacking and nearly fearless with a fiercely independent sense of self. There are twists, turns, dark alleys, blood, rape, explosions but yet the majority of the film is drama/mystery.
David Fincher has long been a favorite director of mine, with classical titles such as Se7en, Fight Club, Zodiac and The Social Network to name a few. With two more novels to be adapted - The Girl who Played with Fire and The Girl who Kicked the Hornet's Nest - can we look forward to seeing more of Fincher and Mara in future?
