The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - 2011

Columbia Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Scott Rudin Productions

Directed by David Fincher

Cast:

• Mikael Blomkvist – Daniel Craig
• Lisbeth Salander – Rooney Mara
• Henrik Vanger – Christopher Plummer
• Martin Vanger – Stellan Skarsgard
• Dirch Frode – Steven Birkoff
• Erika Burger – Robin Wright
• Anita Vanger – Joely Richardson
• Cecilia Vanger – Geraldine James
• Dragan Armansky – Goran Visnjic

Story: A renown Swedish investigative reporter, Mikael Blomkvist, who has exposed the illicit dealings of a major financial player is taken to court and successfully sued. He resigns from his position at his newspaper and is approached by a retired industrialist to investigate the forty year old mystery of his granddaughter's disappearance. As he investigates, he finds there are many skeletons hidden in this family's closet, including the family Nazi's, but most of his leads are ending in dead ends. Mikael decides he requires assistance. The industrialist had Mikael's background checked prior to hiring him, so Mikael demands to see the report. Having read things that could only be discovered by an adept hacker, he insists on hiring this individual as his assistant. Lisbeth is a very different individual, a thin, goth appearing girl with multiple piercings and tattoos, including a large dragon across her left shoulder. We see enough of her life to know she is a hard individual who cares little for the conventions of society, and has a very mean temper. But she is an adept researcher who knows how to analyze information, and together, Mikael and Lisbeth must piece together the mystery of the disappearance of Vanger's granddaughter.

Review: Rooney Mara and Daniel Craig form an interesting and unusual pair in this thriller based on the book by Swedish author Stieg Larsson. There is a lot of exposition at first, since the characters are new and their lives complicated, to say the least. And frankly, at just under two and one half hours, I would not be a proponent, but this film is an exception. The background of the characters, especially Lisbeth's, is required to understand the darkness of not only the family being investigated, but the investigators themselves. The depth of Lisbeth's darkness can be seen in the way she deals with a purse snatcher in the subway, and with the abusive state appointed clerk who administers her funds after her guardian is hospitalized. Christopher Plummer is superb as the retired industrialist who only wants closure to the disappearance of his granddaughter, an event he might have put out of his mind except that every year on his birthday he receives the same gift she gave him before she disappeared. Stellan Skarsgard gives a wonderful performance as the incompetent grandson who is ruining the company, and Joely Richardson is magnificently understated in her role. Perhaps the most impressive player is Daniel Craig, who continues to astound us with his range and depth of ability. To transition from the hard, emotionless Bond to this role is a total reversal of character, but one we have seen before in Defiance and Lara Croft. Craig, I believe, is the next actor to be added to the list of phenomenal performers like DeNiro, Hopkins, Pacino, and a scattered few more. Lastly, Rooney Mara impresses me with her ability to remain detached yet empathic in this role. Overall, this film is a wonderful peek into the dark underbelly of the human condition, and a must see for fans of Hitchcock, Craven, and the other masters of horror who have gone before. Rated R for graphic violence, rape, torture, language, and sexuality, I would hazard to say this film belongs in your collection if you are a fan of the detective genre.