Review of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2009) by Harry W — 24 Sep 2014

Internationally recognised as one of the most popular Swedish films in recent years, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo sounded like an interesting chance to branch out into world cinema.

At the heart of the story in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a mystery waiting to be uncovered as the story unfolds over the course of the film's 152 minute running time which may prove too much for certain viewers, particularly because it all unfolds at a slow pace. For me, this really did not bother me all that much because along the way are so many other gritty plot dynamics cleverly placed amongst the narrative which fuel the film with a rich dramatic atmosphere. There are times where the dynamics are not as appealing or as intense as others, but the atmosphere of the film overall is consistently intense and gives the film the right feel as it unfolds. As the mystery regarding the murder investigation in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo unfolds, viewers are given a greater insight into the characters. We see more and more into the determination of protagonist Mikael Blomkvist as the investigation really brings out his passion to bring down Erik Wennerstrom, but more importantly audiences bear witness to the extensive lengths that Lisbeth Salander is willing to go to get the information she needs. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo keeps itself consistent because while the premise digs deep into the mystery at the heart of the film, it also focuses on exploring its characters from both a perspective of them as human beings and as investigators into the crime. The narrative structure and focus in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo proves to be ideal, and it lets the story occur organically with a lot of dramatic power.

The visual style of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is terrific. Director Niels Arden Oplev doesn't only handle the material of the source novel very well, but he also justifies it turning into a film by giving it a lot of firm visual elements. He implements in a lot of strong scenery which gives the film many convincing situations, and he puts a certain level of blood into the film so that it has a striking level of strength to it. But the best visual aspect of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is the way that it is all captured with powerful cinematography. The camerawork in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is detached at the right times while up close and personal a lot of the time so that viewers can get a close perspective on what is happening and how it is affecting the characters, so it helps to keep the atmosphere of the film appropriately tense throughout the film. To add to the atmosphere is a tense musical score which gives it the extra edge from an auditory perspective.

But the one thing that really stands out for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and makes it such a powerful film it the cast, in particular lead actress Noomi Rapace.

Noomi Rapace 's leading performance is what keeps The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo consistently engaging. The story itself is already interesting, but the character that Noomi Rapace brings to the story just gives it that extra edge. In the leading role of Lisbeth Salander, Noomi Rapace is able to carry herself through all the gritty material in the story from start to finish. Noomi Rapace is incredible because she is able to deal with both all the harsh situations which are dealt to Lisbeth Salander as a woman as well as because she refuses to go lightly on any situation which makes her really come off as a strong character. She stands her ground with fierce confidence and power in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and completely draws the viewers in with the way that she is not the slightest bit afraid to take a full-fledged approach to the gritty edge of the film even as it charters through dark territory. The fierce level of dramatic strength in Noomi Rapace is incredible, and it alone makes The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo a consistently engaging and entertaining film. She says every line with organic dramatic passion and conveys that she is constantly in the correct headspace for the material and remains in character the entire time without stepping out for a second. Noomi Rapace elevates The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo above being simply a good film and renders it a great one which leaves me encouraged to see the remaining two films in the trilogy simply to see where she'll take the character.

Michael Nyqvist also does a powerful job. As well as engaging with Noomi Rapace very excellently through scenes with powerfully tense chemistry, Michael Nyqvist holds his own in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo because he brings a strong level of professionalism to the part which really intrigues viewers. He remains passionate to get to the heart of the film, and as it progresses through all kinds of plot dynamics which affect both the story and the character, Michael Nyqvist manages to keep up with them and remains consistently dedicated the entire time. He makes the mystery come alive by conveying the idea that there is no way of him knowing what will happen next which makes the mysterious nature of the film seem all the more genuine. Michael Nyqvist is really naturally talented as an actor which makes him a great lead for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

Peter Andersson also makes a memorable presence in the story due to his seriously sadistic nature and the pure level of dark intensity in his performance. His scenes with Noomi Rapace are powerful, and it shows them building off each other very well.

So while The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a long film, the engaging story, strong characters and lead performance from Noomi Rapace make it worth staying around for.