Swedish journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) is convicted of libel against powerful business tycoon Hans-Erik Wennerstrom, in his writings for the Millennium magazine. Before Mikael must serve his imprisonment verdict, the secluded, elderly Henrik Vanger (Sven-Bertil Taube) of the money-hungry, back-stabbing Vanger Group, hires Blomkvist to find out what happened to his brother’s daughter, 16-year-old Harriet, who he believes was murdered in 1965 by someone in his family. Mikael quits his job and moves in to the guest house at Vanger’s massive estate (in the freezing cold of Hedestad) to begin work on solving a 40-year-old mystery. He has a mere six months on the property before he must serve his time for the conviction. But it won’t be easy, as it’s revealed that several of Henrik’s brothers and relatives were Nazis, many still grudgingly living in houses neighboring the main property, and that few are on speaking terms with one another.

As Blomkvist slowly discovers new inklings about the case, the ferocious music clues us in as to when revelations could prove shocking. Meanwhile, odd but expert researcher and hacker Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace), who works for Milton Security and was hired to dig up dirt on the disgraced Millennium writer by Vanger’s lawyer Dirch Frode (Ingvar Hirdwall), continues to spy on Blomkvist (having uncovered nothing except what she suspects to be a setup by Wennerstrom). Through his computer, she’s able to track his progress in the case, including seeing his write-ups, reports and notes. She’s sidetracked by an abusive parole officer who trades liberties for sexual submissiveness, in a graphic, marginally exploitive subplot that reveals her strengths, snippets of her past, and a penchant for necessary violence and revenge. It’s ugly but bold. When Mikael discovers that his computer has been hacked, Frode gives him Salander, who unreluctantly aids in his research and provides groundbreaking leads.

Lisbeth is a particularly interesting character, an instant anti-heroine with a striking physical appearance (dark gothic clothing and accompanying hardware - such as a spiked choker - black makeup, ebony hair and numerous facial piercings), a troubled past, and a target for abuse. She’s bisexual, smokes, rides a motorcycle, has a photographic memory, bears a detailed dragon tattoo that stretches from the base of her neck down to her legs, and suffers from numerous mental disturbances (exhibiting some peculiar sexual tendencies). Rapace’s performance is daring and exceptional and the character is written with singular details that drastically separates her from typical Watson-like assistants or accidental-muse love interests.

Like many sharp thrillers, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo uses a few surefire storytelling techniques to intensify the content. As the investigators hunt for clues, so too does the audience, partly searching for answers to Lisbeth’s behavior, and largely to get to the bottom of the murders. As Blomkvist and Salander get closer to the truth, they’re targeted for ruin, continually prompted to give up and leave – which means they must be on the right track. Also included are a few scenes of snooping in the dark, characters having internal breakthroughs before revealing evidence to the audience, cameras sneaking up over shoulders, photographic hints and murder aftermath pictures. Flashbacks also reveal information, some of which is purposely misleading. The atmosphere, subject matter, and climax are appropriately gritty and edgy, painting a dark portrait of human grotesquerie, murder and morbid conclusions. But answers are still quite welcome, wrapping up a smartly complex mystery that is well paced and entertaining, even if it doesn’t offer up never-before-seen twists or completely original ideas that can compare to the outright uniqueness of Salander’s character.

- Mike Massie

Click HERE to read the review of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

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