To start off, the score/soundtrack is fantastic. Just as I expected. Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross collaborate yet again to create beautiful music that suits and creates the mood so well. It made me quite excited. The theme/introduction to the film includes a cover of Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" by Reznor, Ross, and Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, which I've put off hearing until I saw the film today. There's a whole video, much like a music video [as the director David Fincher has done before], that seems unrelated and kind of surprising but if you know the story you'll notice a ton of symbolism that is represented throughout the whole introduction. Below is the video of the "Immigrant Song" that was posted on the Dragon Tattoo site, Mouth Taped Shut. The site is wonderful for intimate updates, if you're interested. The visuals in this video resemble another version of what you'll see in the movie, remember it IS NOT THE SAME.
My reaction to this little intro was at first a little unenthusiastic. I thought it was kind of silly, granted sharing the theater with only 2-3 other groups of much older individuals probably tainted that reaction more so. But as the song and the effects continued on, I started to lose myself in it. I thought it was severely gorgeous, crazy, and highly symbolic. In fact, I'd like to see it again.
To cut to some chase, they definitely cut out some stuff in the movie, especially compared to the Swedish film. Which is interesting because both movies are just about the same length, the American one being 6 minutes longer. I'm guessing this was done due to differences in style, other reasons obvious and not, but also to pick up the pace for our ADD ridden American population.That's my opinion, of course. This goes to say that the Swedish film is a bit slow, as is the first book. There is a ton of information and background history that must be known. The author delved deeper than any I've ever read before. Of the handful of cut outs, I will say I'm most disappointed that they didn't dive much into the relationship between Mikael Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander. I don't necessarily mean this in a love story way, but it is significant to the story. Particularly to getting to know Lisbeth's character as well as Mikael. It is significant also because this is something that pertains to the next 2 books/films.
Above is a photo of the character Plague. The added some little hints of Nine Inch Nails which made me happy. I'm sure, with it being a David Fincher film that there are tons of subtle hints that have either left my mind and even those I haven't caught. But I will say, the actor [Tony Way] pictured above has had a couple small roles in some British sitcoms, 2 of which I've seen recently such as Black Books and Spaced.
In the handful of instances, the film was realistically gory. The first film doesn't have nearly as much action or blood as the others, but so far I am pleased with the blood, bruises, and cuts they've created. Also the homicide evidence photos were great too. I'm also glad the injuries stayed with the individual for a realistic time frame. I realize this could sound minor, but it's one of those things that often comes into films that may or may not irritate you throughout the entire duration. This is definitely one of those things that irritates me.
So, the rape scene. Done really well, despite the fact that I was wholly expecting it, it still made me tense. There was, however, something more morbid about the original version though. Regardless, I definitely give praise for everyone involved in that scene on and off camera for both of the films. That's pretty rough.
Yes, Rooney Mara is a great actress and I absolutely loved her in the 2010 Nightmare on Elm Street. But I will be stubborn and honest to admit that I absolutely loved Noomi Rapace in the Swedish version. I don't know if it was because she's an 'unknown' and foreign, but she intrigues the hell out of me. I also most definitely feel that she embodies Lisbeth's character so completely. I should remind you that I saw all three Swedish films in a couple days and then read all the books. Once Lisbeth started to become more and more introduced to the story I couldn't get it out of my mind how perfect Noomi was for the part. [Speaking of which, her 33rd birthday is tomorrow] To illustrate a minor, more external example would be their eyes. Rooney has these beautiful green/blue eyes, while Noomi has light brown eyes that are sometimes very dark. Just the color seems to make a difference to me. The dark eyes of Noomi give her a darker feel, there's more depth to her that is hidden from you, it could even scare you. For Rooney, in comparison to Noomi, she showed far more emotion, particularly in her eyes. This isn't usually a bad thing, but I really liked the restraint that Noomi portrayed so well. I feel like you can reach into Rooney's Lisbeth more, which shouldn't be the case, you should technically be afraid of her while she is utterly detached from you. I also almost feel like she was too pretty, Rooney, but I'm not saying Noomi is ugly. In fact I think Noomi more gorgeous and I found her more and more attractive through the films. Noomi had a harder edge that worked for the character. Plus, I hated that they bleached Rooney's eyebrows. However, I'm glad they still included all the piercings, nipple included. After all this writing, I still would like to let you know that I actually wasn't as hard or critical on Rooney as I expected to be. I still think she did a good job, it's not like I can think of a better person for the role off the top of my head.
Now to a minor thing that luckily wasn't too big a deal this time. Since I've seen the original version twice and read the book, I already knew what was going on and what was going to happen. However, because of the fake accents and some of the low voices, I actually couldn't catch a lot of what was said, mostly the words of Rooney. I could also say that the music and visuals were enchanting that it distracted me [which can happen often to me with good films].
I'm done with this for now. I wanted to get it all out before the experience would fade. After all has been said, I do plan to watch both versions [2009 and 2011] for many more times to come. Surely, when I think of more to say, I will.
Oh! And that reminds me! If my hair is still black towards the end of next year, I may dress up as Lisbeth for Halloween. May be a little difficult considering I have the opposite body type...but it'll be fun!
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