Review: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

I've been trying to come up with a way to discuss with some cohesion the so called 'serial killer' films of David Fincher, a category in which Se7en and Zodiac are now joined by The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. But there is no way to do that because these 3 films could not be less alike. Se7en is considered by many (myself included) to be a modern classic of the crime genre. Its dark, foreboding portrait of urban and moral decay is the setting for a fascinating investigation in to the nature of sin. Zodiac is about obsession, about the way some mysteries have no solution, but some poor folks can't stop searching for one regardless.

And so what is The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo about? 'What was the book about' might be a better jumping off point, and from there we can leap to lingering anti-semitism in Sweden, or that children really get their values from their parents, or perhaps simply that sometimes, one bad turn deserves another. Oh and violence against women is bad, both because, well it just is but also because god help you if Lizbeth Salander finds out. As the heroine of this story, Lizbeth draws our complete attention, no matter the terrible circumstance.

If you've read the novel, then you know this already: rape figures centrally as a crime committed and then revenged. You will see rape, more than once, if you sit down and watch this, and I won't bother saying whether you should or shouldn't shield your eyes - that is irrelevant. We've all got different thresholds for this kind of thing. I can say that I don't pale easily at the movies, and some of the scenes here made me profoundly upset and uncomfortable. That was clearly the intention, no punches pulled.

Fincher has cast this take on Stieg Larsson's novel wisely. The subject matter has the potential to be pulpy, but the stars here are just too credible to conduct the current of the story in any way that other than earnestly. It's no surprise that Daniel Craig, Stellan Skarsgard or Christopher Plummer are up to the task, so the question lies with whether relative newcomer Rooney Mara can match the chops. The answer is: And then some. I said Lizbeth holds our attention, and playing her, Mara immediately has pushed herself into a deserving spotlight. We last saw her portraying Mark Zuckerberg's girlfriend in the rapier opening scene of Fincher's The Social Network and it's an understatement to say she has completely transformed herself here. She is more than capable of all the ferocity and vulnerability demanded of the character, no small feat.

That is the best reason to see this film. So overwhelming is the character of Lizbeth Salander that it makes the main plot of solving a 40-year old missing person case, and tracking down a serial killer seem like mere window dressing. Having not read the novels, I think I might now understand some of the fascination.

As for other elements of the film - it is breathlessly paced, and thoroughly well realized from top to bottom. The feel is consistently cold and lonely, and the score, once more a collaboration between Nine Inch Nails front man (or only man I guess) Trent Reznor and producer Atticus Ross is another great addition to the recent increase in non-traditional scores. This is electronic, but also somehow organic, and the textures all suit this story well - it's all short moments of warmth amidst horrible expanses of cold.

Like most David Fincher films, this is easy to recommend or to not recommend - those who read the novel or who typically like his style will find lots to like. For some, though, this is certainly unpalatable.