The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2009) is a tautly paced thriller based off the first novel in the late Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Trilogy. Channeling a British detective style, this Swedish production digs through five generations of family secrets to investigate a decades old murder with a bit of corporate wrongdoing thrown in for extra flavor. The story, as interesting as it is, wouldn’t be as remarkable without the main characters Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) and Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace).
More specifically middle-aged magazine publisher Mikael, who with casual aplomb awaits incarceration for libel against a powerful industrialist, would fade into the intricacies of the narrative if not acting as foil against Lisbeth. 25 years old and sporting goth hair, black leather, piercings and tattoos (including the “dragon” on her back giving the movie its namesake), Lisbeth is antisocial to the point of mandating management by a guardian of the state (a violent crime from her past surfaces through flashbacks). This fact plays into perverse sexual blackmail by her ward in scenes that I found a bit hard to stomach but work in the context of character development.
Lisbeth also happens to be a brilliant private investigator and computer hacker. Her skills are called upon when Mikael, lured by the promise of evidence that will clear his name, agrees to spend the time before his jail term investigating a murder that happened over 40 years prior. Rapace’s depiction of the misanthropic, emotionally damaged yet strangely alluring character is what cements this film in my memory. The tight plotting, gritty texture and themes of sex, violence and crime all support one of the more intriguing cinematic portrayals in years.
Of course Hollywood is rushing to milk the fear of foreign flicks and subtitles with the American remake hitting theaters next year. David Fincher (Seven, Zodiac) directing gives me some hope that he’ll put his quality stamp on the new adaptation (though I suspect it will be toned down to get a PG-13 rating), but cinema lovers owe it to themselves to check out the outstanding Swedish original. Nyqvist and Rapace reprise their roles in the remaining entries (the Girl Who Played With Fire and the Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest), already released in Europe. I cannot wait for them to hit Blu-ray.
High-Def Presentation
Music Box Films make an early foray into high-def home video with a BD that sports a technically proficient 1080p transfer. The video quality never particularly wows you but more importantly does not offend with obnoxious digital manipulation. Naturalistic colors show equally well in bleak winter days and subdued interior lighting, yet contrast can be a bit off with faded blacks and blooming whites that I construe as purposeful stylistic touches. I assume this presentation is faithful to the filmmakers’ intent with well maintained film grain, decent detail in close-ups and slightly soft long range shots. Overall it is a nice image that supports the intriguing story.
Swedish 5.1 Dolby Digital is the main audio offering (with optional English subtitles) pristinely reproducing the integral dialog through the center channel while environmental effects mix well with the music score in the fronts. The moody theme bleeding into the rears is the most noticeable surround use, and your underutilized subwoofer may get a bit lonely. I suspect the jump to lossless audio would have packed more punch in the violent exchanges and given the score better depth but, as is, this is a competent soundtrack. An English dub is also included.
Beyond the Feature
Supplemental material is slim including Trailers for Dragon Tattoo (1:43, HD) and The Girl Who Played With Fire (1:22, HD) along with a visual Family Tree of the five generations of the Vanger family being investigated. The best extra is Interview With Noomi (12:31, HD) where the lead appears as a normal looking female (surprising after you get accustomed to her goth look in the film). She espouses on what it was like to play Lisbeth in three films over one and a half years.
Going into Girl With The Dragon Tattoo peripherally aware of the surrounding hype and having no knowledge of plot details paid off well. Some may find the well told story to be your average murder mystery/thriller, but the consummate acting of Michael Nyqvist and, more notably, Noomi Rapace imbue the Swedish flick with an exemplary degree of character development and interaction that makes me impatient for the sequels in high-def.
Music Box Films don’t knock this Blu-ray offering out of the park but turn in a decent effort. The high-def video appears to be a faithful rendering, but the Dolby Digital audio might have benefited from a lossless boost and extras are definitely sparse. Still you owe it to yourself to at least give this great Swedish flick a rental before the American remake hits next year.
– Robert Searle
Shop for The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo on Blu-ray for a discounted price at Amazon.com.
