For whatever reason, David Fincher’s adaptation of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo from 2011 didn’t win over American audiences despite being a very good film. The original Swedish adaptations of author Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Trilogy did quite well internationally when they were released in 2009, though. 2018 brought us an attempt to revive the series with Fede Alvarez’s adaptation of The Girl in the Spider’s Web. As series creator Larsson died before seeing his tales blow up into a worldwide phenomenon, this entry is based on a book by writer-for-hire David Lagercrantz. It’s fairly apparent that this attempt at continuing Swedish hacker and vigilante Lisbeth Salander’s story lacks some of the punch of Larsson’s work. Uneven and thematically hollow, Alvarez still manages some thrills and chills, but I’d say it’s the least of all the Dragon Tattoo films. Still, the fifth anniversary of its release is November 9th, so let’s take a look back.
The film opens with a bang, as we catch up with Salander (Claire Foy) as she’s performing one of her trademark acts of retribution against a vile misogynist. She’s soon contacted by Frans Balder (Stephen Merchant), a computer programmer who has written a program capable of accessing all of the world’s nuclear arsenal (read: a MacGuffin). He wants her to steal it back from the Americans and it’s not long before resourceful NSA agent Needham (LaKeith Stanfield) hops on a flight to Stockholm. We also catch up with flawed but righteous journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Sverrir Gudnason). The intrigue eventually draws in unexpected figures from Salander’s past. Sylvia Hoeks, Cameron Britton, and Synnøve Macody Lund do nice work in smaller supporting roles.
While lacking the star wattage of Fincher’s film, this is nevertheless a solid collection of performers. Foy is my least favorite Salander but she’s able to bring more vulnerability to the character than her predecessors. She’s also more grounded and less idiosyncratic. Though Stanfield is definitely an up-and-comer (see Get Out and Sorry to Bother You), his role here seems shoehorned in just to provide an American perspective. Blomkvist also seems like an afterthought so Gudnason isn’t given much to do, though he is pretty bland in the few scenes he gets. The always-welcome Merchant, on the other hand, demonstrates that he can do more than comedy with this smaller role.
Not nearly as concerned with gender politics as a subtext or battling with abusers and rapists as plot points as previous entries, Jay Basu, Steven Knight, and Alvarez’s script is more of an espionage potboiler. As such, it has a different flavor. That’s not necessarily a bad thing but it does make it feel inconsistent as those elements are integral to the purpose of the series. Additionally, while it’s still dark material, this piece is nowhere near as harrowing as previous outings. Mechanically, the script isn’t great either, feeling thin and undercooked. It presents more as an outline of plot points strung together by action sequences.
Speaking of the action, it’s actually expertly realized. The motorcycle dash across the frozen lake near the beginning and the car crash sequence from the end is particularly cool. This is also an interesting film from a visual standpoint. Alvarez and cinematographer Pedro Luque present some arresting images and utilize aerial photography and sweeping tracking shots to give the work a highly polished and slick ambiance. Shot on location in Sweden and Germany, it’s obvious that the filmmakers wanted an authentic European affectation. If nothing else, this is a good-looking flick.
I’m a fan of Stieg Larsson’s original books and all the previous adaptations and I’d say that Fede Alvarez’s The Girl in the Spider’s Web is the weakest of that bunch. Lisbeth Salander, the punk as fuck vigilante hacker who is obviously the most interesting character from those works, will always get my attention, though. With this film, it feels like Hollywood wanted to turn the character into a James Bond type and churn out new adventures every so often. While that divorces the character from her original intent, I’m not necessarily opposed to the general idea. That being said, Alvarez’s film is too light in content and plot. Bolstered by some slick visuals and a game-lead performance by Claire Foy, I’d be up for another entry from this team, as long as stronger scripting and thematic depth are employed. Considering its poor performance with critics and fans, I’m not sure how likely that is to happen. Here’s to hoping that this won’t be the last time we see Salander on the big screen.
Michael Cavender