Film #8

In which Ruth lets you know that she's keeping a film diary this year and that the eight film she's seen is the American remake of 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'.




The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, 2011. Daniel Craig, Rooney Mara, Christopher Plummer. (Dir. David Fincher)
So, I think that this is a first for me, I can't remember the last time I watched a re-make having not previously seen the original film and I had a major case of the skeptics about this one. This uncertainty was not just because it was a re-make a film that is less than five years old, but also because it was an adaptation of a book that is less than ten years old, I am a bit overwhelmed by the lack of original material within the film industry, since when do you write books to make films?

However, saying all that, I am just little ol' me after all, this film was a bloody cracker. Perhaps I was also unsure because although I am a fan of many of David Fincher's films, I have not enjoyed his most recent previous efforts, The Social Network or The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, they just weren't my cup of tea.
However, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, contains the key elements that fundamentally make up a good film; stunning visuals, brilliant casting and a great soundtrack.
I have not read the book either, but have heard that both versions, despite already being well-received, vary greatly from the original story.

For most of the film, there are two separate narratives, seeing disgraced journalist, Mikael Blomkvist (Craig) working towards uncovering a forty-year family secret of wealthy entrepreneur Henrik Vanger (Plummer) and troubled, highly intelligent ward of the state, Lisbeth Salander (Mara) struggle with money and her newly instated power-mad social worker. The two come together due to a Lisbeth's work as a private investigator and her involvement vetting Mikael before he began work for Henrik. The film is a thrill and delight to watch, with twists and action throughout.

Mara is excellent as Lisbeth, and committed entirely to the role by getting real piercings specifically for this character. A very different role to those she had done previously; Mara made her debut as a teen victim in the 2010 re-make of A Nightmare of Elm Street, hardly empowering. Lisbeth is incredibly different, anti-social and aggressive, but some how vulnerable and sexy, added to her genius, she is, in my opinion, a perfect (if there is such a thing) female lead. Daniel Craig also adds a depth to this film and very much not James Bond, which is brilliant, I read he even put on weight to make sure we remember he's an actor, in case we forgot...




I loved it and would recommend to anyone, maybe the trailer doesn't give enough away but something about it didn't inspire me to see it, but I'm glad I did, it's probably my favourite film I've seen so far this year.

If it had been bad, at least Moon and I wouldn't have paid to see it, thanks to the Cineworld voucher my Gran got him for Christmas. It's a weird place, Cineworld, at least the Crawley one is, the biggest building yet practically all balcony with everything hidden in the walls.

Anyway, get on this film if you can, I'm usually right about this kind of thing.