The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

OH YEAH! Rooney Rocks It

First, the credits including the score by Trent Rosner who, along with Atticus Rose, did the entire film score, were a work of art in their own right. In fact the transition from credits to opening frame was a little jarring but there he was, Daniel Craig, a sexy, grizzled, intelligent looking Mikael Blomquist.

Superficial stuff - loved his look. His black overcoat, dark jeans turned up at the bottom, messenger bag, the glasses he dangles off one ear (I have worn glasses for 50 years and never dangled them like that. BUT I'm going to start practicing ha ha!) he just exuded the vibe of a tres hip, intellectual journalist working for one of those uber cool oversized European magazines. Don't talk to me about his lack of Swedish accent; I didn't miss it. I could care less.
When the Golden Globe nominations came out I said I would give Best Performance by an Actress to Tillda Swinton - based only on the trailer - but would reconsider if Rooney Mara's performance merited it. Her performance merits it. She is amazing. And HER accent was perfect - at least to my American ears so please correct me if I'm wrong. While Noomi Rapace was brilliant, so was Mara. She and Fincher created a character that wasn't just a copycat. Rooney made the part her own. I don't think you can say who was better. The question is irrelevant!
I am a HUGE fan of the Swedish film in general but I think this was a foreign film begging to be remade in the English language for that huge audience who will just never see a subtitled movie. And everyone in this version - many of whom were Swedish actors - was as real and authentic as the cool and crisp writing by Steven Zaillian. ( And Stieg Larsson of course.)

Christopher Plummer as Henrik Vanger, who starts the action with his obsession with the disappearance of his niece, 40 years ago was masterful. The reunion utterly emotional. Stellan Stargaard, as Martin Vanger,couldn't have been better. He is so nice, open hearted, reasonable and normal. And then the switch. The suspense was palpable, the creepiness factor turned up to high. Ugh! And Robin Wright as the publisher/love interest? It took me a bit to realize it was her, I took it for granted she was a Swedish actress!
Neils Arden Oplev's film was wonderful, exciting, thoroughly engaging. Fincher's film is that too but in overdrive. If Oplev's film was the "unplugged" version, Fincher's was plugged in, very! I absolutely loved it. Fincher doesn't just capture action with his camera, he really creates a visceral reaction with it. His sweeps and pans, cuts and closeups, all the visionary tools he brings to bear, made it a strong, thrilling and emotional ride. A ride I am absolutely looking forward to taking again and that is something that we have to also give credit where credit is due. Steig Larsson. I mean, I've read the book. I've seen the Swedish film twice. I just saw the new Daniel Craig/Rooney Mara version and I can't wait to see it again!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Amazing movie! Rooney Mara Is an amazing actress!

This is my second favorite movie ever. The acting was amazing but the rape scenes made me feel extreamly unconfortable but dont let that change your mind its amazing!!!!!!!!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Wierd movie

It was an ok movie... my husband had to explain a lot of it to me because he read the book and the movie left a lot out... I had to watch it twice and you need to pay attention because if you miss anything you will be lost. The movie lighting thru the entire movie is really dark and that is hard on my eyes...The rape scenes were horrendous, but I suppose necessary to the movie.... not one of my faves.

0 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

DVD looks like a burneed copy of a movie

The filmakeres intentionally did this to honoe Lizbeth's Hacker personality and skills. It is an authentic Sony DVD but it looks like a Bootleg. Other sites includung Amazon have issued this warning. B & N should do so also. It is a Sony DVD-R with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo written in marker.

A Film Aficionado's Dream. A Entertainment Viewer's Nightmare.

The cinematography, atmosphere, acting -- brilliant. But the real question...is it entertaining? No. I wanted so much to like them dark, moody crime-thriller, but it was simply too much. The plot was overly complex and often confusing. The characters--as dark and fascinating as they may be--weren't people you could relate to or really come to care for. Plus, I've seen my share of graphic violence and sex in cinema, but for some reason I found it incredibly uninteresting in this film. Overall, I wish I could say I absolutely loved it, but I didn't. I'm not use to being the "it's not for everybody" people that you often read about in other viewers' reviews, but apparently this time I am. I just found the movie to be way over the top, the atomsphere overly dark and uninteresting, and the movie to be WAY too long. Sorry. It was a downer for me.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

To readers who've read the novel and watched both films!

Having read the hauntingly addicting novel, I must exclaim that this version of the film is better than the original. Anyone who has read the novels will agree, others who have viewed the original film will state the opposite. I believe Rooney Mara's portrayol of Lisbeth Salander was synonymous with the way Stieg Larsson(the author) described her in his novel. Lisbeth was described as rude, dark, intellectually gifted, edgy, taciturn, ominous creator who had a very dark past! I am not saying Noomi Rapace's portrayal was terrible, but it was off by a great distance from the way she was described in the novel. I've watched both films, to form my cumulative review for the two. Noomi's portrayal of Lisbeth was a cliche, yes she was dark but there was way more to her exterior then her look lead on; she was the typical grunge chick you would find at any of your local bars, Rooney's isn't. Noomi's was P!nk tough, she spoke to much in the film, she was compassionate, she expressed her emotions too much, (Larsson didn't write any of that in the novel). Yes we all knew that a love connection was going to form between Mickael and Lisbeth for example - when Mickael was shot in the temple...and he rushed to his house to bandage himself up. Noomi's portal made Lisbeth too compassionate she exclaimed and rushed to his rescue. Roony's portrayal held her composure, she didn't rush to his aid, she simply turned on the shower and went to own objective then she had sex with him (this is how Larsson described her). Roony's portrayal was a better representation of Lisbeth (from the way the novel described her) in my opinion. Both films were great in there own rights but I'll be spending my $ to purchase this version of the timeless detective story by the late Larsson.

TGWTDT

I thought the English version of the film was a bit sanitized from the Swedish version. Noomi Rapace, as Lisbeth Salander was harder and tougher, and frankly, more realistic than Rooney Mara. There's nothing like a good suspense movie, which the Swedish version was. Maybe because that one had been around awhile, and the English version was almost lacking in suspense. The English version cut some corners from the original AND the book also. Someone commented that the rape scene in the English version was upsetting, which is understandable...rape is upsetting. But I thought that Noomi Rapace did a better performance as an actress in that particular scene, plus as a character as a whole, she captured the Gothic study in character moreso than Rooney Mara. I've seen the entire Swedish triolgy (I have all 3 on DVD), and my vote is for the Swedish version...story line, character study and integrity to the original.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Wonderful Movie!

The movie was just as good as the book. The part where she tattoos her guardian could have been a little more violent than it was but Rooney Mara takes your breath away in this movie! She was the perfect actress for this movie. She is absolutely lethal! I loved the movie so much! Can't wait to pick up my copy on Blu-Ray! Well worth the money to buy this movie and I hear the studio is in works for the next 2 books to be turned into movies! Awesome!

Great Movie, Amazing Story Plot, Unique Story!!

At the beginning of the movie, I felt bored and sleepy while watching it lol but later on, the twist of the movie excited me and I just can't help but to pay attention to what will happen next! It's so thrilling and the twists are so exciting! The character of Lisbeth Salander (played by Rooney Mara) is so unique and interesting! She played her character very well and you will be drown deep into her weird yet very smart personality. Her detective-hacker skills really enticed the story. She's so smart, and has a mysterious attitude and past, which was revealed on the next part of the series. I haven't read the books yet, but after seeing the movie, I can't wait to see the next series and makes me interested in getting my hands on the books. It will be more interesting if they will make the movie sequel for the next part of the books, which I have read they will. Exciting!!!

Must Watch

I saw this movie seven times in theatres. Enough said.

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