More like the book

Rating: 8/10 (31 May 2012)

I have to say I preferred this film to the Swedish version, I had read the books first and then watched films.
The thing i liked about the books were the murder mystery aspect alongside the Lisbeth character. The Swedish version missed out so much of the murder mystery element that I enjoyed so much from the books. The American version had a lot more attention to detail and included a greater degree of suspense.
At first I found the fast pace of the American version slightly distracting but this passed after 5 or so minutes. I could understand the need for the faster pace and this was to include the details without it being an even longer film.
The American version kept more to the books true nature and the feelings of the story more so than the Swedish version which seemed to have a greater political agenda that was barely apparent in the books unless you looked for it ( and more so if you were Swedish ).
The opening of the American version was strange though, totally didn't fit with the film and was out of place but was still kind of cool. Would have suited a music video more or the opening of a bond movie ( possibly a marketing ploy because Daniel Craig was in it ).
Both movies got the character of Lisbeth right though, neither got the character of Blomkvist right though in my opinion. For me in the books he was a lot more charismatic and articulate but not so wise in his own life. I thought the Swedish film dealt with the relationship between Lisbeth and Blomkvist better however.
The book never made it seem like a love story which the American version seemed to imply.
Overall the American version was better which was to be expected with a bigger budget but the main thing was that it captured the essence of the books better.
The books are always going to be better but a film can translate well to film if it ands the important elements of film making and can suck you in for the 2 odd hours of your life. The Swedish version lacked the tension and mystery for me which was the driving force behind the books alongside the characters ( mainly how intriguing and kind of cool Lisbeth was ).
Overall a good film and well put together 8/10