The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Noomi Rapace as Lisbeth Salander in The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

A refreshingly unconventional crime story, this Swedish film was originally titled Män som hatar kvinnor which in English means Men who hate women.

Directed by Niels Arden Oplev, this film is an adaptation of the first in a trilogy of award-winning crime novels written by the late Stieg Larrson. It provides a solid opening and gives the world a glimpse into some of the darker aspects of family life.

Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) is a journalist unjustly accused and found guilty of libel, but before his impending prison sentence he is hired to solve the murder of Harriet Vanger, a niece of wealthy industrialist Henrik Vanger.

The murder, which took place 40 years ago, intrigues Blomkvist, who is helped along the way by a persistent but troubled hacker in the shape of Lisbeth Salander (played by Noomi Rapace).

The first hour delicately delves into the lives and the mindsets of the characters, gradually moving the film through the gears. The pace rapidly picks up in the second half: pieces of the puzzle are strung together through revelations in religious passages, photos and the uncovering of vicious murders.

Moral issues are littered throughout, which gives the film an uncompromising edge, felt through the challenges Lisbeth and Mikael encounter as they try to solve the case. They bring an unusual chemistry to the screen that only helps to add more complexities to a film that one could say has too many.

The best acting has to be that by Noomi Rapace, who expertly plays a straight-talking, erratic but intelligent young woman with big personal issues. She delivers a performance as ice-cold as her character demands and gives the film an unconventional spark.

The film pulls you in many different directions, as you would expect a suspenseful thriller of this nature to do,  whilst the Swedish setting is shown off  by some potent cinematography.

The film may have gone 20 minutes too far as the Hollywood treatment unwelcomely gets applied, and perhaps takes some gloss off the work done beforehand.

Men Who Hate Women was the original title that, if stuck by, probably would have been too much of a giveaway but at the same time, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo perhaps puts too much emphasis on Lisbeth as the sole protagonist, but as she provides the standout performance, it can be excused. Either way this film is a must-watch.

Rio Cinema
107 Kingsland High Street
Dalston

Tel: 020 7241 9410