Stars Michael Nyqvist, Noomi Rapace, Lena Endre, Peter Haber, Peter Andersson, Ingvar Hirdwall.

The novel of the same name by the late Swedish author Stieg Larsson – part of a trilogy – was a real bestseller. The ensuing film has turned out to be an unprecedented hit across Europe and has been much-talked about the world over.

While its title is movie-theatre friendly, the original Scandinavian title – which translates as Men Who Hate Women – more accurately sums up the themes of this story.

Michael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) is a journalist who has unjustly been found guilty of libel and faces a three-month prison sentence.

Just before he begins serving his time, wealthy businessman Henrik Vanger (Sven-Bertil Taube) employs him to investigate the mysterious disappearance of his niece Harriet – an unsolved case from 40 years ago.

In return, he’s promised documentary evidence against the corrupt industrialist to whom he lost his libel case that will help to clear his name.

When troubled professional computer hacker Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace) becomes involved, the pair work together to uncover a series of disturbing hate crimes that seem to be linked to Harriet’s disappearance. 

As they come ever closer to discovering the truth, so their lives are placed in danger. 

Determined to solve the mystery at whatever cost, Michael and Lisbeth eventually uncover some shocking secrets.

Despite the story’s compelling and involving central narrative strand, there are at least two other strands of interest that add complexity to the film.

As soon as Lisbeth is introduced, she immediately captures our interest. Rapace’s performance helps to draw you in to the

intriguing character and the film’s main plot quickly becomes something of a distraction from the business of finding out more about Lisbeth.

The film’s over-long running time exacerbates this. Too much time is spent focussing on The Da Vinci Code-style following of the clue trail, which quickly becomes tedious and feels contrived.

The Da Vinci Code isn’t the only film brought to mind when watching The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. There are parallels with John Sayles’s excellent Lone Star, which also spends time investigating an old crime and uncovering long-hidden secrets.

It’s also reminiscent of films such as the last X-Files movie and Seven, among others. 

Although it is derivative, it tackles themes as pertinent as hate crime, misogyny and criminal responsibility and also offers commentary on contemporary Swedish society, giving the viewer plenty to think about.

Hard-hitting scenes of brutality, rape and violence will be difficult to watch for some but you can be assured that this subtitled Swedish adaptation packs a more powerful punch than any proposed Hollywood remake is likely to do.

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