Review: The Girl Who Played With Fire

Review: The Girl Who Played With Fire

Rating: ***

Nonna's Rating: $$$

Rotten Tomatoes: 66%

The second installment of the Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy manages to distill a sprawling novel into its essential narrative. That said, I'm not sure if someone who has not read the book would be able to follow the story. There is that proliferation of characters which is confusing enough to those who have read the book: in the movie many central players are not even identified. We are left to deduce who they are and how they function in the film's narrative. In addition, the ending, a true cliffhanger, will likely dissatisfy those who have not read the second and final books.

So, why care about this movie? Easy. Noomi Rapace. She embodies the character of Lisbeth Salandar as convincingly as Vivien Leigh did Scarlett O'Hara. And that makes up for lots of cinematic sins. In this film, Salandar finds herself accused of a triple murder. She uses her preternatural computer and survival skills to escape the long arm of the Swedish police. While evading the law, she contends with the real murderers using her own brand of vigilante justice.

You may have trouble finding the film. It has not been released as widely in the Chicago area as the first movie. Its box office does seem to be on pace with the first film, however, in spite of its limited release. You just may have to wait for the rental market. This is unfortunate because the final film, sure to be an art film blockbuster, will be released in October.

Nonna's Ratings:

$$$$ = Worth paying the Friday evening price
$$$= Worth paying the Matinee price

$$= Worth a rental
$ = Wait for cable
# = Skip it