ON DVD
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Forty years ago, Harriet Vanger disappeared from a family gathering on the island owned and inhabited by the powerful Vanger clan. Her body was never found, yet her beloved uncle is convinced it was murder and that the killer is a member of his own tightly knit but dysfunctional family. He employs disgraced financial journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) and the tattooed and troubled but resourceful computer hacker Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace) to investigate. When the pair link the disappearance of Harriet to a number of grotesque murders from almost forty years ago, they begin to unravel a dark and appalling family history. The Vangers are a secretive clan, and Blomkvist and Salander are about to find out just how far they are prepared to go to protect themselves.
Director: Niels Arden Oplev
Cast: Michael Nyqvist, Noomi Rapace, Lena Endre, Sven-Bertil Taube, Peter Haber.
Release Date: Mar 19, 2010 Rated R for disturbing violent content including rape, grisly images, sexual material, nudity and language
Runtime: 2 hr. 32 min.
Genres: Art House/Foreign, Suspense/Thriller
The Girl Who Played With Fire
The second installment of author Stieg Larsson's best-selling "Millennium" trilogy gets translated to the big screen with this tale of a prominent magazine publisher who launches a comprehensive investigation into Swedish sex trafficking and political corruption. The publisher of "Millennium" magazine, Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) has built an empire on his ability to shake up the establishment. Approached by a young journalist with evidence that high-ranking Swedish officials are involved in sex trafficking and crimes against minors, the incensed magazine publisher launches a comprehensive investigation that threatens to implicate some of the most powerful politicians in the country. Noomi Rapace and Alexandra Eisenstein co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
Director: Daniel Alfredson
Cast: Noomi Rapace, Michael Nyqvist, Annika Hallin, Per Oscarsson, Lena Endre.
Release Date: Jul 09, 2010
Rated R for Brutal violence including a rape, some strong sexual content, nudity and language
Runtime: 2 hr. 9 min.
Genres: Suspense/Thriller
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest
Author Stieg Larsson's "Millennium Trilogy" winds to a close with The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, director Daniel Alfredson's adaptation of the best-selling novel following punky protagonist Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace) as she fights to prove that she's innocent of committing multiple murders. As Lisbeth lies in intensive care, the corrupt officials in high office attempt to take advantage of her incapacitated state by accusing her of murder. But fiercely independent Lisbeth isn't about to play the scapegoat, and the more her accusers work to ruin her life, the harder she and her loyal friend Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) must push back to prove them wrong. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
Director: Daniel Alfredson
Cast: Noomi Rapace, Michael Nyqvist, Annika Hallin, Per Oscarsson, Lena Endre.
Release Date: Oct 29, 2010
Rated R for Strong violence, some sexual material and brief language
Runtime: 2 hr. 28 min.
Genres: Suspense/Thriller
REVIEW:
The cinematic adaptations of late Swedish author Stieg Larsson Millennium trilogy are truly impressive works on various levels. The quality of the films do vary but the characters and cast all do such a wonderful job that it’s hard to be thoroughly engrossed in the overall story. The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo functions best as a standalone film, if you watch it on its own and enjoy the characters there are two more films waiting for you. If not, then you’ll probably enjoy a familiar if well done thriller with a strong cast. The Girl who Played with Fire and The Girl who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest are far more intertwined with Fire being the best of the three films in terms of story and intrigue, mainly because it focuses more on Lisbeth. In the role of Lisbeth Salander, Noomi Rapace just owns the screen every moment she’s up there. She gives Lisbeth a perfect blend of strength, alienation and scarred psyche. Rapace makes the character readily interesting and always the most engaging of the characters throughout the span of the 3 films. Michael Nyqvist doesn’t fare quite as well with her performance as Mikael Blomkvist. Nyqvist is up and down throughout the series, occasionally fully committed while at other times almost sleep walking through scenes. Story wise, the first 2 films offer the most intriguing plots while the finale lacks the proper send off the series deserves, adding in an ambiguous nefarious government entity that’s never fully explained. Directors Daniel Alfredson and Niels Arden Oplev display wonderful talent behind the lens and shoot the films with distinctive style and vigor. An American remake of The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo is already shooting with David Fincher directing with Rooney Mara cast as Lisbeth and Daniel Craig as Mikael.
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo B+
The Girl Who Played With Fire A
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest C+
Series as a whole B-
