The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
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A journalist and a hacker join forces to solve a decades-old mystery involving a missing woman.
The story
In Stockholm, journalist Mikael Blomkvist is dealing with the fallout of a lawsuit when he is hired by wealthy Henrik Vanger to investigate the disappearance of Vanger's grandniece, Harriet, who vanished 40 years ago. To assist in the investigation, Blomkvist recruits Lisbeth Salander, an asocial computer hacker. Together, they begin to uncover a web of secrets involving the Vanger family and a series of historical crimes. As they delve deeper into the mystery, they find themselves facing dangerous obstacles and uncovering a chilling connection to a string of murders that occurred decades prior.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Mikael Blomkvist, a journalist, is hired by Henrik Vanger to investigate the disappearance of Vanger's grandniece, Harriet, who vanished 40 years ago. Blomkvist teams up with Lisbeth Salander, a skilled but antisocial hacker. Their investigation leads them to a list of names and numbers that correlate to a series of murders committed between 1947 and 1967. They discover that the crimes were committed by Harriet's father, Gottfried, and later by her brother, Martin. After a series of dangerous encounters, including a confrontation with Martin, they discover that Harriet is alive and in hiding in London. They eventually find her, and she returns to Sweden to reunite with Henrik. Simultaneously, Salander uncovers financial crimes committed by a businessman, Hans-Erik Wennerström, and provides Blomkvist with evidence to expose him. Salander also steals millions from Wennerström's accounts before he is eventually murdered. The film concludes with Salander and Blomkvist having successfully exposed the truth of the past while navigating their growing personal connection.
- First release year
- 2011
- Runtime (minutes)
- 158
- Production countries
- Sweden; United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- David Fincher
- Writers
- Steven Zaillian · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Daniel Craig · Mikael Blomkvist; Rooney Mara · Lisbeth Salander; Christopher Plummer · Henrik Vanger; Stellan Skarsgård · Martin Vanger; Steven Berkoff · Dirch Frode; Robin Wright · Erika Berger; Yorick van Wageningen · Nils Bjurman; Joely Richardson · Harriet Vanger
- Genres
- thriller; crime
- Themes
- violence against women; misogyny; corruption
- Tone and mood
- foreboding; austere; menacing
- Premise and plot tags
- mystery; investigation; serial killer; hacking
- Source material / true-story basis
- 2005 novel of the same name by Stieg Larsson
- Franchise connections
- Millennium
- Content notes
- violence
- Reception
- The film received widespread critical acclaim, particularly for the performances of Rooney Mara and Daniel Craig, as well as the direction, score, and visual style.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 71 · scale: 100 · review count: 41; CinemaScore · score: A · scale: A+ to F
- Awards and nominations
- Academy Award · Best Film Editing · win; Academy Award · Best Actress · 84th Academy Awards · nomination
- Production trivia
- The film's production budget was $90 million, and it grossed $233 million.; The character of Lisbeth Salander was described as a 'vulnerable victim-turned-vigilante'.; The film was based on a novel that was part of the Millennium series.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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