Fincher has done it again, a brilliant new addition to his impressive resume

Rating: 8/10 (30 January 2012)

Review The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.
The English adaptation of the runaway success story of 'The girl with the Dragon Tattoo' was always going to be a large undertaking due to the 'best-selling' Stieg Larsson's Novel and the highly rated Swedish adaptation by Män som hatar kvinnor.
Even for a director such as David Fincher, who can boast a career built on many hugely popular titles such as 'Se7en', 'Fight club' and 'The Social Network', an undertaking of this magnitude and an inability to produce a film that was deemed worthy of its attachment to the novel would be disastrous. Although not doubting his ability, the undertaking of this project could be seen as a bold but exciting move. Fincher's adaptation is every bit exhilarating and in depth as the base material.
The intense intricacies of the novel are displayed well throughout the film. These are an essential foundation for the trilogy but are obviously detrimental the motion and speed of the picture. For a 2:40 hour film, these areas can slow the pace to a point where people around me were nearly nodding off. Combined with an inability of many English speakers to learn and follow the characters Swedish names, the opening of film can be challenging for those seeking easy gratification and not familiar with the characters.
The numerous side-by-side narratives that permeate into the main plot are very well constructed, shot and acted. It is through these vessels that Daniel Craig and in particular, Rooney Mata shine.
Mara's transformation into the 'cyberpunk-esque' hacker is flawless. I often completely forgot her as an actress, a true testament to her performance. I found that she breathed a greater sense of humanity into her version of the character which was a great loyalty to the novel.
Craig's performance is obviously integral to the film but it is all the better alongside the mesmerising Stellan Skarsgård as Martin. His performance is truly great and sits well alongside the strong acting casts' offerings.
The film displays the action and points of conflict in a heart racing trance, you cannot help but be consumed by the intensity and realism that's pouring out the screen. Brutal, unflinching but not prosaic in the slightest, these scenes bind the audience to the characters trails and battles in a very close and personal way. We feel their pain, think their thoughts and sympathise with their positions.
Throughout the viewing experience you are held by that feeling that the film you are watching is going to be something that not only will you watch again, but champion it to your friends and colleagues. I have already had discussions about this film with groups of people that some may regard as outside of the typical demographic. Like the novel and Swedish version this has the ability and power to mesmerise large portions of the population. An excellent adaptation expertly constructed and flawlessly acted.
8/10 The_Frase