The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo [Guest Writer] (4½ Stars)

Be warned that you may find minor spoilers in this review. 

The story: 
Journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) and rebellious computer hacker Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace) team up to investigate the unsolved disappearance of wealthy Henrik Vangers (Sven-Bertil Taube) teen niece (Ewa Froling), only to uncover dark secrets about Vanger's powerful family. Niels Arden Oplev directs this 2009 Swedish drama thriller based on the first novel from Stieg Larsson's est selling trilogy.

I have been intrigued by this movie since I first got wind of it. I can't quite remember when, but I clearly remember browsing the shelves of Blockbuster for a good movie to watch when I came across this movie and it's interesting and compelling cover shot on the box. I admit to picking it up, skimming the summary and tossing it back down with a shake of my head thinking that it couldn't possibly interest me - that it would be too slow-paced for me to get into, that since I wasnt aware of the actor/actresses' abilities that I didn't want to take the chance of buying a dud. I hate wasting my money and only spend it on things that I know I will enjoy and be satisfied with. I also remember flipping through channels and coming across it again. Remembering the interesting movie cover, I stopped for a bit to see what it was about since this wouldn't cost me a dime and within about five minutes I was flipping to another channel. The minute I realized that it was a foreign film I firmly tossed the idea out of my head that it would ever be an enjoyable film to suit my tastes.

I've probably stated this in previous posts and I'm sure I've told this to Mike quite a few times but I'll state it here as well: I really don't like foreign films outside Asian cinema. I've debated this with Mike on several occasions or rather we discussed it and I have come to the definite conclusion that I don't think I could ever enjoy a German film. I have nothing against the them as a country - Hitler and Nazi's aside - but the language is so harsh to my ears, that I would constantly be distracted and unable to truly immerse myself in the film. While this may seem totally irrelevant, I felt the same about this movie as well. I didn't know what language it was in and didn't even care to guess, but given my history with foreign films, I decided that I wasn't in the mood to take the chance. It makes me wonder why I decided to watch it while I was browsing on Netflix tonight for something to watch. I had heard there was an American adaption of this film starring Daniel Craig but they didn't have it listed. It was a bit unfortunate, but at the same time I'm a little glad that I got to see the Swedish adaption first instead.

I had read the reviews and since it got such high ratings I decided to take the plunge and I'm glad I did. Many of the reviews I read went on about Noomi Rapace, the female lead's, acting abilities. I thought to myself, "Oh I just have to see what all the fuss is about." I can honestly say that the praise was all well deserved and I'll add my own to the mix! It took me a few minutes to get used to adjusting to the language and reading the subtitles but years of watching subbed Anime and Asian films really helped me in tuning it out and getting into the story more. It starts off a bit slow and I found myself only marginally interested in the male lead's predicament because I'm waiting for Noomi's first appearance the entire time. Perhaps I wasn't giving Michael his due, but, to be honest, it was Noomi's appearance on the cover of that movie box so many years ago that caught my interest anyways. She had always been the main lead for me from the beginning so I guess it can't be helped.

When she finally made her appearance, I wasn't disappointed. I don't know what it is about her and her character. I'm used to seeing people in outrageous Gothic/punk attire with enough piercings to hang a curtain from or enough tattoos to exhibit as a one-person art show. So I don't think it was quite her outward appearance but the vibe that she gave off in the movie that captured me. Perhaps I let the opinions of the reviews I read influence me. Whatever the case, I was captured from the first. I will say that this movie is definitely not for the faint of heart for some. I've seen hundreds of horror movies with enough blood to fill an ocean but this made me uncomfortable on a way that no horror movie has ever been able to. My mother often says that movies where the horrors are more realistic (I.E. stalkers, rapists, etc) is much scarier than any hulking immortal figure with a machete or a scarred man with a glove of knives ready to kill you in your dreams ever could be. I have to admit that I'm starting to better understand what she said so long ago. At the time, I was quite young and just brushed it off as crazy talk for old people. Maybe this means I should start reserving my seat in a retirement home because this made me, cringe in a way that I can't remember doing. I actually had a hard time watching in some areas of the film (well particularly one or two areas) and I've seen quite a few graphic scenes in my day.


This movie contains graphic rape and while many movies usually just allude to raping in some other way, somehow the director and Noomi managed to capture these scenes so vividly that I found myself fidgeting in my seat, glancing away from my screen and wanting to take my headphones off to drown out her screams. The prevalent theme seems to be abuse and violence against women. You will notice it in almost every faucet but of the movie - from Lisbeth's past and family history to the plot of the movie. Honestly, I was surprised and stunned that I found myself staring so avidly at the screen, wanting to know what would happen next. Sometimes my hand would itch on the mouse to skip through the movie at a part I found a bit dragging to find out what would happen next but was afraid I would miss something good in doing so. All in all, I wouldn't say that I'm the hugest fan of drama thrillers. I much prefer high impact, fast-paced action and thriller movies so it surprised me how much I enjoyed it. I would definitely recommend this movie to everyone out there. I'm looking forward to seeing the others although I think I'll wait a bit before I see the next movie. I'll go through all the foreign adaptions because I'm hooked on Noomi now before I see the 2011 American remake/adaption. I'm a bit leery of it because of the US's obssession with remakes lately has gotten a bit out of hand and a lot of the movies they have made lately have been....subpar to my tastes. Since it has Daniel Craig in it, a favorite actor of mine since I took notice of him in his role as James Bond, I'll give it a shot and the benefit of the doubt.