The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - (December 21, 2011): R
Distributor: Columbia Pictures (Sony Pictures Entertainment)
Opening Weekend Box Office: #3 with $12,750,000
Domestic Box Office Gross to-date: $27,776,000
Gross Revenue: $29,376,000
Production Budget: $90 million
Director: David Fincher
If anyone were to ask me to identify my favorite director, the answer would invariably be Martin Scorsese, but upon closer consideration, I would have to say that David Fincher may be a close second…between Se7en, Fight Club, Zodiac, and The Social Network; few would deny that the guy is brilliant. Regardless of his recent accolades though, there was little doubt that his newest project would be heavily scrutinized, as The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo had already received a highly successful Swedish adaptation, not to mention the legions of fans of the novel, which would comprise the strongest audience and understandably be pissed if too many creative liberties were taken. Easily the biggest buzz-builder involved the cinematic transformation of Rooney Mara, who was previously best known to audiences as Mark Zuckerberg’s girlfriend from The Social Network; however, in portraying the titular character of this film, the young actress seemed to be pulling out all the stops, and critics were thrilled. From a marketing standpoint, Sony Pictures certainly knew how to grab attention, with an unconventional and enigmatic trailer, complemented by one of the raciest posters I’ve ever seen…say what you want about its appropriateness within the eye-line of children, it was enough to get people talking. As the darkest entry of the Holiday Movie Season, I made sure to read the book before I went to the theater, so that I could understand and truly appreciate how The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo would translate to the big screen.
Set in Sweden, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo opens by introducing audiences to investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig), who was recently convicted of libel against prominent businessman Hans-Erik Wennerström. Blomkvist is soon contacted by aging industrialist, Henrik Vanger (Christopher Plummer), who offers the disgraced writer a unique job: he must help investigate the disappearance of Vanger’s great-niece, Harriet, who disappeared over forty years ago and many believe to have been murdered. Henrik believes that a member of his troubled family is the killer, and he offers Blomkvist a substantial salary and the necessary evidence to bury Wennerström (thus clearing his name), should he solve the cold case. Blomkvist moves into a small cabin on an isolated island owned by the Vanger family, where he meets Harriet’s brother and current CEO of Vanger Industries, Martin (Stellan Skarsgård), and the family lawyer, Dirch Frode (Steven Berkoff), who promise access to whatever resources necessary. When new clues and evidence fall into place, Blomkvist realizes he will need a research assistant; Frode suggests Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara), the unconventional and troubled investigator for a security agency who conducted the background-check on Blomkvist that Henrik had ordered before employment. Now working together, Blomkvist and Salander start to uncover a series of brutal and sadistic murders against women that may be connected to Harriet, delving into a dark secret that may not be as buried in the past as everyone previously believed.
Given that he was tackling an emotionally-charged book with a devoted fan following, David Fincher wasn’t exactly in for a cake-walk, but he more than rose to the challenge with tense, gripping direction, intelligent writing, and award-worthy acting. In this last regard, I am of course speaking to the talents of Rooney Mara, who plays Lisbeth Salander with such a raw, unhinged intensity, that her screen-presence is as mesmerizing as it is downright frightening…when she gives you that stare; you know that it would be the mistake of your life to get on her bad side. Put it to you this way, Bella Swan may have set feminism back a few decades back by weeping over vampires, but Lisbeth Salander forcibly rockets feminism to the complete opposite end of the spectrum, and for that Mara both deserves and demands the attention of Academy voters. When it comes to the other aspects of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, the stylish direction adds to a smooth narrative flow, keeping the tensions and suspense of a horrific murder mystery so high that I still got chills, even if I was fully aware of every twist and turn. However, despite being an undeniably strong film, some elements were definitely lost in the script-to-screen translation, unintentionally alienating uninitiated fans.
When I read the book, I distinctly remember having to re-read several plot points and constantly refer back to the Vanger family tree in order to keep things straight, so I walked into The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo with a strong working knowledge of the mystery…unfortunately, the narrative does not do enough to help those who walked into the theater without this foreknowledge. I realize that the film was already running close to three hours, but more time should have been spent clarifying some of the clue-discovery scenes rather than inexplicably elaborating on some parts of the book that were originally relegated to the book’s epilogue. Another BIG error is that the film completely ignores one of the main hooks of the book and the early trailers that were released; the result is a gaping plot hole that could have been resolved with thirty seconds of dialogue. The final comment I feel compelled to make is less of a criticism and more of a warning: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo more than earns an R-rating, with shocking depictions of violence and an insanely graphic rape scene…children absolutely do not belong in the theater, I wouldn’t recommend taking the grandparents either, even if they are fans of Law & Order: SVU. Don’t get me wrong, this newest drama/thriller is by no means a bad film, but I wish that it didn’t mildly necessitate having read the book beforehand, or at least accompanying someone who has a key understanding of the story.
Now, normally book-to-film adaptations of highly popular novels make an absolute killing at the box office, but anyone who was expecting anything close to Harry Potter or The Lord of the Rings was clearly in a state of severe denial. That being said though, a third place run with $12.75 million against family entries like The Adventure of TinTin, War Horse, and We Bought a Zoo, or teenage-demographic grabbers like Ghost Protocol or Game of Shadows is impressive. There is absolutely nothing else in theaters even close to the type of mature mystery that The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo provides, and I know that there are still fans waiting to see if the adaptation is worth their money, so ticket sales will undoubtedly continue to chip-away at the $90 million production budget. Given the film’s Swedish roots, I am surprised by the film’s current lack of an international presence, but perhaps it just hasn’t hit the appropriate market yet. Plain and simple, David Fincher’s newest entry isn’t perfect, but it is still an incredibly well-made drama that is worth seeing, especially if you have taken the time to read and understand the book.
Overall Recommendation: High
