Film Review: Reviewed By Terry Staunton; 4 out of 5

The film version of Stieg Larsson's bestselling mystery is a dark-hearted tale full of twists and turns that stays faithful to the book's bleak and murky atmosphere. Disgraced investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) is hired by the patriarch of a family of wealthy industrialists to solve the mystery of his niece's disappearance 40 years earlier, and uncovers a complex series of brutal slayings that may or may not involve other relatives. Blomkvist receives some unexpected help from misfit computer hacker Lisbeth (Noomi Rapace, the tattooed girl of the film's title) whose own past is equally mysterious and violent. Director Niels Arden Oplev builds the tension masterfully, the chilling subplots delivering shock after shock, while Rapace has an enigmatic presence that burns through the screen.

Plot Summary

Crime thriller based on Stieg Larsson's bestseller, starring Michael Nyqvist and Noomi Rapace. Convicted of libel, investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist agrees to take on one last job before beginning his prison sentence. The assignment brings him into contact with troubled computer hacker Lisbeth Salander and as the pair join forces, he soon discovers she is battling demons of her own.