The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

Rooney Mara is Lisbeth Salander in the new version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

***1/2 out of ****

It is no surprise to me that I just saw a very well directed and produced movie. David Fincher is called one of today's greatest directors and I have no argument with that. I was disappointed when I first found out he was making a movie that had already been made. Sure, he's perfect for the material, but it just sounds too easy to look at a film that already works and see how it might be better. Frankly I think Fincher could assemble a team to do a remake of Citizen Kane and I wouldn't be terribly bothered. Well maybe I would. The point is that he's too good an artist to be improving the works of others. 

This movie looks and sounds gorgeous, it's perfectly cast, intense, Trent Reznor's score is no-surprise fitting as hell, and there is a part that uses the music of Enya in the most unexpected way.

 

There are minor changes in the story that don't bother me, when comparing films. The films running time of 158 minutes could have been shortened a bit by tightening up the subplot of Blomkvist's reputation and it's repair. This section made what felt like an unnecessary extra act tacked onto the end of the film.