Dragon fire

Rating: 8/10 (15 July 2012)

Haven't read the book or seen the Hollywood remake, but having recently enjoyed the likes of "Borgen" on TV I wanted to experience the Swedish original adaptation of the Stiegg Larssen best-seller (subtitled version). I wasn't disappointed. An ingeniously plotted whodunnit thriller, it cleverly sets out its stall, clues, suspects and all and weaves them all together before tying up every loose end by the final scene. It also gives us the unforgettable character of Lisbeth, the punk-ish computer hacker whose distrust and resentment against patrician older men is explained much later in the piece, at the same time completing her identification with the missing girl at the heart of the story.
Probably the most unforgettable scenes are those where she is firstly forcibly raped by her appointed guardian and even more so in the graphic scene where she takes her revenge. I was however unconvinced by her trysts with the investigative middle-aged journalist with whom she forms an unlikely alliance to crack the case, not least as we had previously seen her in bed with another female much earlier.
I enjoyed the Morse-like attention to detail in the 40 year-old mystery, based on the intense scrutiny of snap-shot photography at a town parade and the "Se7en"-like use of themed murders, where the key to the killer's motives are referenced in Biblical quotations. I can forgive this plagiarism when it's as skilfully managed as it is here. Yes, it is asking a lot to swallow that a witness on the same day so long ago would retain an insignificant picture which unwittingly contains the killer's image, but I'll give it the dramatic licence it needs, as it was still an intriguing plot device.
There's a terrific, heart-stopping climax at the killer's lair when Lisbeth comes to reporter Nvqvisst's nick-of-time's rescue immediately followed by an arresting scene where she presumably at last expunges her own demons by refusing to spare the by now helpless killer. The acting throughout is superb by the whole cast and the photography marvellously evocative of the appropriately cold desolate Swedish landscape, the setting for the horrendous crimes. The background music too was apposite and unobtrusive. I look forward to the two successors with relish even if it seems unlikely, given Lisbeth's transformation and migration to sunnier climes in the final moments.