I don't want to say that right then and there it became an automatic must-see. However I sure was going to be very interested in his vision of the story. Then came the trailer with the hammering cover of Led Zepplin's "Immigrant Song" crafted by Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross and Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. At that point for me (and I'd like to think a few David Fincher fans) I was sold.
The big question about Fincher's "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo" is how is Rooney Mara's portrayal of Lisbeth Salander. Is it up there with Noomi Rapace's portrayal? My take is this. Both actresses did a fantastic job of bringing life to the computer hacker that is well, pretty lifeless. Over the course of reading the books and creating a picture of Salander, I've always had the idea that unless it was deliberate or otherwise provoked, Lisbeth's emotions were well hidden through very subtle facial expressions. Something that you'd have to look out for and really pay attention. Rapace did it in the Swedish films and Mara nailed it here as well. It was actually within the first ten minutes of the film, a scene in which she enters a conference room and as she shuffles towards a chair, she acknowledges in the slightest of movements her boss and a client at the far end of the table. It was deliberate that the camera shot Mara in a side profile as she enters, and it was close enough that you can spot her motion of recognizing the party in the room with the simple motion of her looking out of the corner of her eye. It was there that I knew that Mara had done her homework and invested in the little things about the Lisbeth Salander character, and as such she got recognized with a Golden Globe nomination for one damn good performance. I can't say if her portrayal was better than Rapace's or vice versa, in that I'd rather not. It is natural to make comparisons and try and pick one over the other. Many people will do that, but I just think both actresses did it great in their respective ways that it makes the Lisbeth Salander character just a bit more memorable.
Mara's opposite in the film is the already well-known Daniel Craig playing the role of Mikael Blomkvist. Then again, the focal point of the film, like the books were is Lisbeth Salander. That said, Craig does a good job of being something of a co-pilot to Mara. There are times where he pulls off fairly convincing that as good of researcher he is, he does not have all of the answer and Mara steps in one-ups him. The rest of the film's all-star cast (featuring Stellan Skarsgard, Christopher Plummer, and Robin Wright) play their roles well enough as supporting roles to the duo of Craig and Mara.
David Fincher's film is not a remake of the Swedish version. That is the common misconception about it. It is a retelling of the Steig Larsson book of the same name. For someone that has read all three books and seen the Swedish film adaptations, it was fun to see the differences between the two films. Fincher and screenwriter Steve Zaillian created a film that in some ways is more faithful to the book than the Swedish film. A friend of mine asked me where does this film rank on Fincher's resume. I think it's too early to even put it into discussion with his past works. I think if the second and third films are given the greenlight and he is directing them, then once the trilogy is complete, I will revisit the question. With the studios announcing today that the sequels will be filmed, I do hope he directs them. Should he choose to not direct the follow-ups, then a system where a different director for the next two films like the "Harry Potter" films could work; paging Alfonso Cuarón, paging Alejandro González Iñárritu.
Does the story of Lisbeth Salander warrant two movie adaptations? I think it's subjective to you if you've read the books, and/or seen the Swedish films, and/or are going into the whole universe that Steig Larsson created naked and watching Fincher's film first. Traditionally one can start with the books, then the Swedish films, and then Fincher's. Whichever way your curiosity will take you into seeing what the buzz is about this Lisbeth Salander, you have options, and David Fincher's take is definitely worth adding to the options.
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