The Millennium Trilogy

Uneven, often slow, yet still eminently watchable, the final chapter in the Millennium Trilogy plays out with almost constructed style, and although once more I lament the lack of pairing of the two key leads on screen until the very end, this is a satisfying, if altogether unfinished, conclusion to the saga. Those who enjoyed the previous two films will find a lot to enjoy – and a lot to be frustrated at – with this grand finale.

Well crafted detective sequel isn’t as well crafted as the original, nor is it as absorbing from a character point of view, although the broadening of Lisbeth’s history and the disturbing revelations about her past keeps the story ticking along nicely. Fire is well shot, well acted and is effective in its better moments, although unlike its predecessor there’s not as many of them. The secondary cast get a larger cut of the screen-time here, even if they’re often shunted aside by the story’s demand for action. But the focus is on Lisbeth, and she’s the glue that holds this film, and the entire franchise, together. And when she’s not on screen, a lot of the fire goes out of this one.

Astonishingly good crime thriller from Sweden, with Rapace and Nyqvist holding it all together through the wonderful direction of Neils Arden Oplev. As unfamiliar as I am with the source material this film is based on, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is as close to a perfect adaptation of a book as I’ve ever seen. The film is tense, mysterious, occasionally creepy, and altogether sublime in its execution, and I cannot recommend it more highly for those willing to give it a shot.