"You can't try anyone for what they did 35 years ago"
or can you?
or can you?
For all the fans of the Stieg Larsson's trilogy, known as the "Millenium Series", this was a must-see film since the announcement of its direction by David Fincher. (you know him for "Fight club", "Zodiac", "The curious case of Bemjamin Burton" ect- if you don't check him!) The screenplay is based on the first novel of the trilogy, with the original title in Swedish: "Man som hatar kvinnor" (Men that hate women). The main character of the novels is named after Lisbeth, a girl that Larsson witnessed being gang-raped in his teens.
Let's have a non-spoiler review of the film. Lisbeth Salan, is a young-asocial- woman, with a very bizarre character, a hacker with an amazing brain for investigation and a peculiar appearance, all surrounded by some kind of a dark past. Mikael Blomkvist, is a publisher and journalist for the political magazine Millenium, a clever man that loses a libel case involving claims about a billionaire. They meet each other-the sexual attraction towards them is not obvious in the beginning- when H. Vagner, the retired CEO of the Vagner Corporation, asks Blomkvist to write his family history, and make a research for the weird loss of his niece Hariet about 40 years ago. Vagners seem to be a family full of secrets. When Blokmkvits asks for an assistant Lisbeth is hired in order to help him arrest a killer of women. So Salan and Blomkvits enter deeply and deeply during the movie, into a labyrinth of obsessions, sexual crimes, fear and murders, where everybody could be guilty.
Fincher captures the dark intensity of the story with such natural way; naked skins, pure blood, quick shots, "normal" bahavior that you almost forget you are watching an american mainstream movie. It reminded me of the good european cinema, if I'm allowed to say that.
But it's not only about the direction. Rooney Mara-who I must say is my new favourite-embodies the stark and haunted Lisbeth with a seducing performance. It is amazing how she manages to make you love this dark character, and feel each and every emotion-fear,anger,pain,love-that is reflected in her face. Now when it comes to Daniel Craig (Mikael Blomkvist) although I cannot but admire his british strict look, I have to say that he reminded me a lot of a"James Bont's film", even if he is more like a normal person and he is the one to be saved in this film. In general, the couple is more than satisfying, with the tribute going to Mrs Mara.
This movie is not a love story-oh no the boy does not get the girl..for now- nor a drama nor a thriller. It is all these and much more. It is a puzzle for the complexity of human soul and seems to scream to your face that "you must not judge a book by its cover". Brutal, yet captivating, certainly a 4,5/5 for me.
(plus, the cover version of Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" is great)
xx
P.S. Sorry for any possible mistake in my English! It is my first post and oh I'm a bit anxious!
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