Review of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011) by C S — 23 Apr 2013

Lisbeth Salander is easily the most interesting female protagonist to appear on screen in many years, and I'm glad to know her in that fashion, even if I'd probably be a lot less comfortable being in the same room with her.

That being said, probably the most helpful thing to know about this movie is that the original Swedish title of the book it's adapted from was "Men Who Hate Women". Lisbeth Salander may be a woman of extremes, but her extremity is still not as great as the seemingly ubiquitously misogynist world that created her.

While this is the American remake of a Swedish film adapted from a Swedish novel, one could argue that the second degree of distance and the rinse through the cycle of American commercial appeal do an important service for the story.

In this version, the focus is more on the drama and the action involved in unraveling the old mystery of the mysterious and wealthy island clan, and less on a world of men whose abuse of women runs the gamut from casual to horrifying.

While sacrificing character to plot devices normally cheapens a movie, in this instance, it serves to tone down the angry sexual politics that threaten to overwhelm the story. The result is more balanced.

Plenty of shocking moments remain, but the movie does not exist just to string them together. Well crafted, well acted, with a plot that gathers steam until building to a suspenseful climax.