THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO (2009)

[The Burgomaster]

I wanted to see this in the theater but it only had a brief limited release in a few art house theaters around here, so I never got around to it.  But I bought the DVD yesterday and I'm glad I did.

The story itself isn't anything new: an unlikely research team (an investigative reporter and a young computer hacker with a dragon tattooed on her back) try to solve a murder that occurred 40 years ago.  However, the characters, performances, and individual scenes (some would be very disturbing to certain audience members) make up for the run-of-the-mill main storyline.

The movie runs for 2 1/2 hours, but moves along at a quick pace.  IMDB says there's an extended version that runs 30 minutes longer.

I highly recommend this movie and wish I had read the best-selling, critically acclaimed novel before I saw it.  Of course, since it's a Swedish film (the DVD lets you choose between English dubbing and English subtitles), there is already an English-language remake in the works.  I just hope they don't "Americanize" it and ruin the whole thing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RL8LI-h2WFc

[3mnkids]

I love this movie. I would like to see more movies with her character. Im sure the remake will suck... they usually do.

[Rev. Powell]

There's already a sequel in the works---it may be completed already. 

I agree that it's good and worth a look for detective movie fans.

[hedgie]

The first sequel "The Girl Who Played With Fire" has already been released, limited here in the USA, the second sequel "The Girl Who Kicked The Hornets Nest" will be released soon.  They filmed all three movies one after the other without a major break in between.  I missed "The Girl Who Played with Fire" when it played at the independent theatre on the other side of town a couple weeks ago.  Hope I get a chance to see it on dvd before the final movie hits the same theatre soon.

[BeyondTheGrave]

My mom read the books and she said they did a good job trimming the fat from books to the movie. What odd is that this movie was playing at a small theater and right down the street the sequel was playing. So you could see both in one day if your will to pay almost $35-40.

[Rev. Powell]

I love this movie. I would like to see more movies with her character. Im sure the remake will suck... they usually do.

David Fincher is handling the remake, so it shouldn't be too bad.  But there's no point to it other than to bring in people who refuse to see subtitled movies. 

[3mnkids]

I love this movie. I would like to see more movies with her character. Im sure the remake will suck... they usually do.

David Fincher is handling the remake, so it shouldn't be too bad.  But there's no point to it other than to bring in people who refuse to see subtitled movies. 

Honestly, I just dont like remakes. If they do a shot for shot I think.. What the hell was the point and if they do change it I think.. dammit! leave it alone!     I cant be pleased.

I prefer foreign films, they account for probably 70% of what I watch, and I just cant understand people who say "I dont want to read while watching a movie".

[The Burgomaster]

I love this movie. I would like to see more movies with her character. Im sure the remake will suck... they usually do.

David Fincher is handling the remake, so it shouldn't be too bad.  But there's no point to it other than to bring in people who refuse to see subtitled movies. 

Honestly, I just dont like remakes. If they do a shot for shot I think.. What the hell was the point and if they do change it I think.. dammit! leave it alone!     I cant be pleased.

I prefer foreign films, they account for probably 70% of what I watch, and I just cant understand people who say "I dont want to read while watching a movie".

I agree.  I'm even willing to read subtitles on low budget Italian crime movies from the 1970s.   

[sumit]

This is murder mystery movie.The story of this movie is very complicated and interesting.I love very much to this type of movie.

[Sister Grace]

I've been wanting to watch this but I'm holding off till I've read the trilogy.

[Neville]

I've seen the three original films on theatres. The first one is very far-fetched, but nevertheless fascinating. It benefits from a convoluted plot, good character development and some great acting by the two leads. The following two are increasingly bad. The second has its moments, but the third one is a joke.

I'm told there are TV mini versions of them with more footage, but I don't plan to watch them anytime soon. As for Fincher, he could make 2-3 good films with this material, provided he is allowed to make changes, but I can't see the followers of the book accepting that easily.

[Flick James]

I finally got around to seeing this on NetFlix the other night. I really liked it. Very well shot and flowed nicely. The culmination of the exchanges between the girl and her guardian was both disturbing and appropriately retributive. Yes, not a particularly challenging storyline, but very well written and executed.

Given the setting in Sweden, the movie got me to thinking about the still unsolved Lake Bodom murders in Finland in 1960. I wonder if anyone has ever made a movie about that.