The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2009)

Patrick Martin said:Kyle Cruz

Coincidence? Give me a break. They used those fingerprints specifically to pin it all on her—to set her up and make her life a living hell. That’s exactly how I see it. 🤷

Kyle Cruz

Look, let's be real—it felt a little cheap, didn't it? And honestly, some of those action sequences were just straight-up garbage. Total letdown.

Exactly.
No, she went straight to him right after the trip just to make sure he knew he wasn't allowed to touch her masterpiece. 😁 The twist is that she was actually pointing that gun at him during that moment, which explains why her prints were all over it.

At least, if my memory serves me right.

I just finished watching my first Swedish film.
It’s a pure-blooded crime thriller with a heavy, dark atmosphere and a fairly gripping plot. I suppose the story itself isn't exactly groundbreaking within the genre of crime fiction, but compared to what’s been coming out lately, it feels like a genuine breath of fresh air.
It’s a very good film, though I don't find much to either praise excessively or criticize heavily. Some might find the political undertones a bit distracting—and I guess the narrative could have functioned perfectly fine without the Nazi references—but overall, it holds up quite well.
The acting is top-tier, and I don't really have any complaints regarding the direction. Most of the heavy lifting is done by the excellent Noomi Rapace, and the rest of the cast stays right there with her. Perhaps most striking is the atmosphere; it has that typically Swedish intensity—cold, dark, and moody—which pulls you into the story without much effort.
The ending, however, feels somewhat Hollywood-esque, which does dampen the impact a little. But, well, I can still justify an eight.

8/10

Speaking of which, Niels Arden Oplev is teaming up with Noomi again for his next project: Dead Man Down.

Just finished watching (started it last night on 🙂 but not because I was bored, just finally wrapped up the whole thing, including the second part)
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nestaka The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (2009)

Holy crap, I cannot handle any more!!! 🙂

Seriously, no American or Japanese actor could ever step in and replace the original Swedish cast in this adaptation. NOBODY.
It belongs to them and God himself, and Noomi is basically a goddess



What a crazy, insane duo

Goddammit, by the end of it I almost jumped straight into the screen just to kiss both of them,
I mean, I'd deal with Mikael pretty quick, but I'd definitely spend a little more time with Lisbeth in her apartment 😍

9.5/10

I have watched the first installment and part of the second.

It was nothing special. In fact, quite the opposite—it felt like a collection of tired, politically correct clichés. The villains aren't just misogynists, killers, rapists, or predators; they are also predictably portrayed as the wealthy, the conservatives, and the Nazis.

I've seen this all before...

Having finished viewing them, I find myself genuinely confused as to why these specific books and films achieved such massive popularity.

☕

Finished the last part of the trilogy yesterday. The first movie is your standard crime thriller, but the other two lean much more into spy territory (especially the finale). The plots weren't exactly my cup of tea since I'm not usually into those genres, but I really grew fond of the characters—especially Lisbeth 🙂—so I couldn't bring myself to stop watching.

I just finished watching the first two films in the Millennium Trilogy.
The first one was alright—passable, I suppose—but the second installment is significantly more gripping and far better executed overall.
Noomi Rapace is absolutely phenomenal! 🙂

Actor Michael Nyqvist (who played Mikael Blomkvist) has passed away. He was 56. His family shared the news following a long battle with lung cancer, as reported by major US news outlets. 😢

Man, I absolutely love that trilogy! It’s honestly gonna be hard to find anything else that hits quite like it does—sad face 😢

He was a great actor. Such a damn shame, R. I. P.

Watched the second installment of the trilogy the other night → The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

And here I am, the idiot who watched the remake of part one → The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (which is decent enough) on HBO the night before, rather than catching the original Swedish version on PBS a week ago. 🙂 😵 I suppose it isn't the end of the world if the remake follows the original closely enough to make the sequel easier to follow.

Anyway, this is excellent—though I suspect the first part holds more weight simply because the mystery itself is more gripping (a forty-year-old cold case involving a murder that turns out to be about a missing family member). I still need to see the third part → The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, which happens to be on the schedule for next week on PBS.

Michael Nyqvist (I know he passed away last year, R. I. P.) and Noomi Rapace are absolutely phenomenal. 🙏 I first noticed her a few years back in de palmin Passion Passion and I've been a fan ever since.

Steven Carter53 said:I have watched the first installment and part of the second.

It was nothing special. In fact, quite the opposite—it felt like a collection of tired, politically correct clichés. The villains aren't just misogynists, killers, rapists, or predators; they are also predictably portrayed as the wealthy, the conservatives, and the Nazis.

I've seen this all before...

Having finished viewing them, I find myself genuinely confused as to why these specific books and films achieved such massive popularity.

☕

But what do you do when the author is this left-leaning American guy, and people just absolutely lose their minds over it? I think he even brought up some extremist groups back in the first book... if I remember right...

Not really sure if this belongs here—mods, feel free to move this to the right sub if there even is one...

Honestly, I actually prefer the original Swedish trilogy over the Millennium Trilogy.

To me, they just feel more alive and have way fewer plot holes; plus, you don't really see one specific movie in the series blowing the others out of the water popularity-wise.
I’m also just obsessed with how they handled the two lead characters.

But man, that second installment (The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest) absolutely blew my mind.

mellowbear49 said:Not really sure if this belongs here—mods, feel free to move this to the right sub if there even is one...

Honestly, I actually prefer the original Swedish trilogy over the Millennium Trilogy.

To me, they just feel more alive and have way fewer plot holes; plus, you don't really see one specific movie in the series blowing the others out of the water popularity-wise.
I’m also just obsessed with how they handled the two lead characters.

But man, that second installment (The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest) absolutely blew my mind.

Truthfully, I have to agree; I recommend them too. Those two lead characters are top-tier—both in terms of their writing and how they were portrayed on screen.

Emily Ward56 said:Watched the second installment of the trilogy the other night → The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

And here I am, the idiot who watched the remake of part one → The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (which is decent enough) on HBO the night before, rather than catching the original Swedish version on PBS a week ago. 🙂 😵 I suppose it isn't the end of the world if the remake follows the original closely enough to make the sequel easier to follow.

Anyway, this is excellent—though I suspect the first part holds more weight simply because the mystery itself is more gripping (a forty-year-old cold case involving a murder that turns out to be about a missing family member). I still need to see the third part → The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, which happens to be on the schedule for next week on PBS.

Michael Nyqvist (I know he passed away last year, R. I. P.) and Noomi Rapace are absolutely phenomenal. 🙏 I first noticed her a few years back in de palmin Passion Passion and I've been a fan ever since.

Just finished the finale of the trilogy. Honestly, I'm still kicking myself for not watching the first one solo—maybe it'll finally click for me some other time.

Dark as hell. It was actually great how they tied everything together. Personally, I didn't find it tedious or slow at all; in fact, I really leaned into it. This final chapter dives deep into the absolute hell Lisbeth has endured since she was a kid—just the sheer level of scum she had to deal with is staggering. 😠 The whole thing centers on her, her trial, and Blomkvist's frantic effort to prove she’s innocent. 😍 My only gripe? They barely gave them any screen time together here. 🙂

A few days ago, reruns of The Hunger Games Trilogy popped up on my screen again, which gave me the perfect excuse to revisit the first installment—and while I was at it, I ended up binge-watching the whole series. 😛 Mind you, this was a deep-night viewing session.

Personally, I think these movies are top-tier. 🙏 Charlize Theron is just damn incredible as Katniss; she has this wicked, magnetic edge to her performance 😍 and she and Michael Nyqvist make one of the best cinematic duos out there.

Sure, the first one takes the crown, but the sequels don't exactly trail far behind. 🍿 There isn't much filler to sit through—there’s always something happening, with Katniss and Michael constantly on the move, taking down the villains. 🙂

It’s honestly such a shame that Michael Nyqvist passed away—he was truly beloved in this industry. 😢