(Swedish Film)
Starring: Michael Nyqvist, Noomi Rapace
Rated: R for disturbing violent content including rape, grisly images, sexual material, nudity and language
An old proverb says “two wrongs never make a right.” Obviously Stieg Larsson never read that proverb, or else his novel (and the subsequent movie adaptation) The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo would have been drastically different. This book, the first in his posthumous series, has taken the world by storm, already been converted into a Swedish film, and has led to an American adaptation, which is to be directed by David Fincher. The Swedish film (which was recently released on DVD here) is a brutally harsh and grim look at the world and how depraved mankind can fall. It follows Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) a reporter who has fallen from grace, who is hired to investigate a murder, even though it took place more than forty years earlier. To do this, Mikael teams up with the pierced and tattooed punk Lisbeth Salander (an excellent performance by Noomi Rapace) a fascinating female character, who is one of the best researchers and hackers in the world, and harbors no love for rapists and murderers. The movie is an exciting, heart-pounding mystery film, filled with plenty of twists and turns. However, it’s so blatantly heavy and harsh, one becomes familiar with their fast-forward button. It’s a heavy rated R film (like Gone Baby Gone or Last King of Scotland) and you can’t push that aside. This isn’t always bad, since (without spoiling anything) the film deals with people who have become enslaved to grotesque and monstrous sins, some of which are problems in today’s world that, I believe, need to be addressed in films and art. However, that doesn’t mean we have to see everything, either.
The film also fails in its response to this evil. Lisbeth has a key moment where, in a discussion with Mikael, says that not everyone is a victim; some people are just evil. A wise sentiment, especially in today’s society where no one is responsible for their actions. However, Lisbeth’s response to that is to make these evil men suffer, outside the law, channeling her own wickedness to hurt, mutilate, and kill them. While one can understand her actions, it’s incredibly hypocritical; she is not a victim, either; she’s a rapist and murderer, too. And, although her victims are individuals who are far more evil than her, it can’t be separated from the fact that what she is doing is wrong. In a movie that depicts such profound, disgusting wickedness, one is left dissatisfied at calling those who are less-evil as heroes; I would rather have someone good.
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