Nevertheless, particularly as time constraints have clearly forced the film to do away with much of the novel's corporate intrigues, a lot of woman-hating is what we get. Initially, it's against the person of Lisbeth Salander, a punky computer hacker who's very damaged goods, and then in a wider sense against a wider swathe of the Swedish female populace, as a serial killer story unfolds.
This might otherwise be another Von Trieresque piece, with a male Scandinavian director showing his empathy for women by having society shit mercilessly on them. What makes it more palatable is that Lisbeth refuses to be a victim, and the momentum for her revenge on her persecutors becomes inexorable. It helps a lot that Noomi Rapace proves a strong choice for the role, and that the location choices in particular are immaculate, and if Larsson's clear casting of himself as the middle-aged male lead Mikael Blomkvist, the writer thereby having his cake and eating it, survives through a tad too intact from the source, it's still an easy 2½ hours, boding well for the equally hefty sequels.
7/10
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