I was extremely excited for the American remake of this fantastic Swedish film. With David Fincher behind the wheel of this project I thought it could only get better. The movie was good but a little bit of a let down for me. It is definitely geared towards an American audience used to going to blockbuster films. It opens as if it is the beginning of a James Bond film and then proceeds to follow the story that by now we know all so well. It really did not feel like a Fincher movie, by the way this film was advertised and talked about, I thought it was going to break all the rules on the mainstream violence and sex level. I thought this would be the same thing but sexier, more graphic, and violent. Yes, there was more nudity but it did not feel sexier nor more graphic. The scene everyone talks about is worse and longer but not to the extreme everyone was making it out to be. The emotional impact of all these things was not there for me as much as it was in the Swedish film. In the original I really hated the bad men, these evil men, and I wanted to jump into the screen and kill them myself. In this version I did not feel that way. I do not know if this is because I have already seen it or what but it just did not hit me as hard. Everything is prettier in this film, all the good characters are more attractive and all the bad characters are uglier. The main problem that I had with this movie is it was not as intense. The solving of the mystery was not done as well as it was in the original, there really was no solving at all. In this film it felt more like they set it up and then they just immediately found out. There was no intense build up and it felt sort of predictable to me. The film is very long and went on after the original film ended which gave it a little of a feeling of "are we done yet." There is also a change made from the books and original film which is totally unnecessary but that is not my big complaint. I just felt this movie lacked as much oomph. You feel less for the big "James Bond" character then a real once unknown actor, and Daniel Craig gives no accent which was weird. Rooney Mara gives a great performance as Lisbeth Salander but you cannot help but think she is just completely copying off of Noomi Rapace's performance. There is more insight given into her character added in this movie but it is not that this movie gives more or better insight then the previous film it just gives different insight. Fincher adds some flair with cool camera angles and a more experienced director's take when shooting the film but the rawness in the Swedish film seemed to go with the subject. I like both movies very much and I am anxious to sit and watch this version again, just make sure you go into it with no expectations. I do find the Swedish film far superior but that does not mean this is not a good movie. The acting is all around great, the characters and story extremely interesting, and it is a joy to watch a favorite story done with a slightly different take on it. I feel the American version of "The Girl Who Played With Fire" could be better then its Swedish version because it is more of an action film with less artistry and that is what Hollywood is good at.
4 out of 5 Stars (Please see my Re-Review)
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