The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo (Sweden, Denmark, etc.)
Director: Niels Arden Oplev
With: Michael Nyqvist, Noomi Rapace, Lena Endre, Peter Haber
Based on the late Stieg Larson’s book. A Swedish journalist, Mikael Blomkvist (Nyqvist) is convicted of slandering an industrialist, and must serve time. In the meanwhile, an old and wealthy man (Haber) wants Blomkvist to investigate the murder of his niece 40 years earlier. He suspects another family member did it.
The old man vetted Blomkvist through the work of Lisbeth Salander (Rapace), an anti-social and angry young woman who is also a brilliant hacker and researcher. Eventually, Blomkvist and Salander are brought together and team up to find the killer.
In a major sub-plot, Salander is under the control of a court-appointed guardian because she had once been found incompetent. He uses his power to extort brutal sex, and she must free herself from his clutches. (The Swedish title is Men Who Hate Women.)
The movie runs nearly 3 hours, and I can honestly say I was not bored for one minute. For me, it was perfectly paced and the suspense, and revelations, built at the right levels.
Very close to the book, and an above-average thriller. Acting is terrific, and Rapace could be an international star.
B+
Kick-Ass
Director: Matthew Vaughn
With: Aaron Johnson, Chloe Moretz, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Nicolas Cage, Mark Strong, etc.
This movie has a ridiculous plot, is excessively violent and foul-mouthed and I haven’t had so much fun in a long time. I have about had it with movies based on comic books (Sin City was an exception), but this one rocks.
Okay, it’s not a great movie by any standards other than those for violent action films, but there it is.
Dave Liszewski (Johnson) is a dorky high school kid who dreams of being a super-hero. So, he gets a green and yellow wet suit, puts it on, and roams the streets calling himself Kick-Ass. Naturally, he gets the crap beat out of him. Then, he meets Big Daddy (Cage) and Hit Girl (Moretz) a father-daughter team who are really out there doing it. Their motive is revenge against a gangster, Frank D’Amico (Strong) and his empire.
Hit Girl is 11 years old, and a martial-arts and weapons expert. Big Daddy is an ex-cop who was screwed by D’Amico and wound up in jail. He has trained his little girl to help him do the job. Now, this will be a problem for some people. It is very disquieting to see a child kill many people with glee, and spew vile obscenities while she does it.
If this will bother you, do not see this movie. I thought it was hysterical.
Eventually,
This movie is in the tradition of the Hong Kong school, and Tarentino’s Kill Bill. I have no excuses for liking this movie. It’s atavistic and appeals to the vigilante deep inside many of us. I just like to see bad guys get what they deserve.
This is not social philosophy, it’s just a damn movie. I had a great time.
B