Monday, December 26, 2011

the girl with the dragon tattoo (2011). directed by david fincher.


the film is nicely done but it doesn't pull me in. i like the cinematography that depicts a desolate place where everyone has a secret of their own. rooney mara portrays the anti-social lisbeth salander to a t - she has a hard life, constantly being taken advantage by men of authority. a better film for daniel craig this year, his mikael blomkvist works with salander to catch a serial killer who gets his inspiration from leviticus. i find this movie not as engaging as fincher's other films (like seven (1995), fight club (1999), zodiac (2007), the curious case of benjamin button (2008) and the recent the social network (2010)). underneath the gothic characters and place, it is an essence a simple story of whodunnit. i guess i missed the layers and complexity that fincher is especially skillful at weaving.  

5 comments:

  1. this movie is done quite well. the build up of the characters along with the storyline make a enjoyable experience. Like the release of this movie during times of the holidays, it is breaking with traditional and goes for the shocker because it can.

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  2. Heh. I like the Scandinavian version better. :p

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  3. i think banking on hacker-goth-anti-social-bisexual girl as the vehicle to story-telling is risky, for one i dont identify with her...the story is good but i don't find it spectacular.

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  4. The Scandinavian version is very close to the books ... the focus in the first book was primarily on the investigation, the sex and rape was mostly about laying the foundation for the subsequent books. So, I am often cynical about Hollywood treatment when it comes to book adaptation (of books that I actually read only, hehehe).

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  5. i think the story works if its raw and in your face. fincher (or is it juz hollywood?) makes it glossy..that i dont find characters like that believable.

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