Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The (US) (Blu-ray) (2011)

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General		Extras
Category	Drama	Audio Commentary-Director David Fincher Featurette-Behind The Scenes-Numerous (over 2 hours worth) on the second disc Theatrical Trailer TV Spots
Rating
Year Of Production	2011
Running Time	158:08
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	David Fincher
Studio Distributor	Universal Pictures Home Video	Starring	Daniel Craig Rooney Mara Christopher Plummer Stellan Skarsgård Steven Berkoff Robin Wright
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	Trent Reznor Atticus Ross

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 French DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 English Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s) English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s) English Descriptive Audio Dolby Digital 5.1 (640Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	2.40:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	1080p
Original Aspect Ratio	2.35:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	English English for the Hearing Impaired Arabic French Hebrew Hindi Spanish	Smoking	Yes, constantly
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

     Disgraced journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) is hired by retired industrialist Henrik Vanger (Christopher Plummer) to investigate the forty year old unsolved murder of his then 16 year old grandniece Harriet on the family island. Henrik believes that the murder could only have been committed by one of the other members of the Vanger family. Unknown to Blomkvist, Henrik also hires an agency to look into Blomkvist’s background. The task is allocated to Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara), a disturbed young woman who is an incomparable computer hacker as well as a ward of the state. As well as dealing with her other demons, Lisbeth is being sexually abused by her state appointed guardian.

     As Blomkvist digs deeper into the Vanger family’s past and meets other members of the family, including Harriet’s brother Martin (Stellan Skarsgard) who now runs the Vanger group of companies, he joins forces with Salander to uncover a terrible evil involving sexual abuse, rape, torture and murder, knowledge that can only have deadly consequences.

     The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is based on the first book of Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Trilogy. The books are international best sellers, and of course there was a Swedish TV version, cut into three films for theatrical release. This is dark material, featuring violence against women, rape, torture, mutilation, serial killers, betrayal, racism and corruption, so when it was announced that David Fincher was directing an English language version it made perfect sense; his own Se7en and Fight Club contain some of the disturbing material committed to mainstream cinema in recent times.

     This film must have been a challenge for Fincher, not to mention his main actors. Daniel Craig as Mikael Blomkvist had perhaps the easier job; Michael Nyqvist, who played Blomkvist in the Swedish version, had been criticised as being bland and dull. I can see why this view is held, but I don’t quite agree because most male actors would be overshadowed by the character of Lisbeth Salander. She is possibly one of the most compelling female figures in modern literature, memorably played in the Swedish films by a brilliant Noomi Rapace, who was hard act to follow for Rooney Mara in the Fincher version. It is to Mara’s credit that she becomes a powerful presence in her own right but to my mind without quite the same hard edge of Rapace, although perhaps others will disagree.

     That said, however, the Fincher The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo must be considered on its own merits and Fincher, Craig and Mara have indeed delivered a well-crafted, compelling, dark film, certainly more polished than the Swedish films. From the nightmarish opening credits, a disorienting mostly black and white montage of disturbing images accompanied by a raucous version of Led Zeppelin’s Immigrant Song, Fincher keeps the pace fast and the colour palate bleak, with interiors having a burnt amber tone and exteriors with a predominance of grey and white, courtesy of cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth. The music also remains discordant, with an atonal electric score dominating, although there is the use of an Enya track that is reminiscent of the use by Tarantino of Stealers Wheel in Reservoir Dogs.

     Yet, for all its sadistic and unsavoury elements, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is never voyeuristic and delivers a powerful condemnation of those who abuse power, be it power over women or power in society. And perhaps this latter aspect is where my only reservation lays, in the secondary story of the industrialist Wennerstrom and corruption. It is true that Blomkvist’s conviction by the court sets off the Vanger approach, but after the resolution of the Vanger mystery the film spends another ten minutes or so as Lisbeth brings down Wennerstrom. In his commentary David Fincher admits that there was no real reason to care about Wennerstrom, but then goes on to explain why it was included, not all that convincingly! It was something the Swedish version did more succinctly.

     This English language version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a well-crafted, powerful, compelling and disturbing film in its own right, well worth watching.

Video

     The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is presented in an aspect ratio of 2.40:1 in MPEG-4 AVC. The original ratio was 2.35:1.

     The film was shot using the RED One digital camera and looks wonderful. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a bleak film and the dark colour palate reflects the film. Interiors are in shadow or have a burnt amber tone and exteriors are dull with a predominance of grey and white, be it Stockholm or the Vanger island, where even the summer colours look subdued. This is however an extremely sharp print and detail is exceptional, blacks rock solid and shadow detail wonderful. Brightness and contrast are consistent. I did not notice any film or film to video artefacts.

     Subtitles are available in English, English for the Hearing Impaired, Arabic, French, Hebrew, Hindi and Spanish.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     Audio is a choice of English 5.1 DTS-HD MA, English Dolby Digital 2.0 surround, English Audio Description, French 5.1 DTS-HD MA and the English Audio Commentary.

     The English DTS-HD MA is a seriously aggressive audio track, so much so that dialogue can occasionally be hard to understand (when the subtitles come in handy). The surrounds are regularly in use for the atonal music score plus the effects; train, weather and vehicle effects are frequent, including panning between the rears when Salander’s motorbike is on screen. The sub-woofer provides regular support to the music and effects, especially the crash and fire effect near the end of the film.

     Lip synchronisation appeared to be slightly off in the beginning of the film but I did not notice any issues after that.

     The original music by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is a discordant, atonal electric score that disconcerts, thus matching some of the evil events on screen. This music is contrasted with some additional classical, including choral, works and pop songs that provide contrast. The score is an effective support for the themes and tone of the film.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

     There are a wealth of extras. A David Fincher commentary is on disc 1; all other extras are on disc 2, adding up to just on two and a half hours of genuinely interesting featurettes. The extras menus are nicely themed but some sections, especially the “On Location”, are difficult to read. There are also a lot of small sections that must each be selected individually – a “play all” would have been useful.

Audio Commentary

     Director David Fincher is a humorous and engaging speaker, although there are some gaps in his commentary. He talks about the actors, the motivations of the characters, casting, locations, the weather and while interesting there is a bit too much of “I love that / this . . .” and there is not a great deal of information about the process of making the film. Worth a listen through.

Disc 2

Men Who Hate Women (6:40)

     Daniel Craig, David Fincher, Joely Richardson, Steven Berkoff, Rooney Mara, Stellan Skarsgard and Steve Zaillian (screenwriter) reflect upon the books that gave rise to the film.

Characters

     There are three sections, one each for Salander, Blomkvist and Martin Vanger. They consist of interviews and behind the scenes footage.

     Salander, Lisbeth

• Casting Salander (15:42): Rooney Mara, David Fincher, Daniel Craig, Trish Summerville (costume designer) on the casting of Mara.
• Different in Every Way (5:32): Trish Summerville, Joely Richardson, Daniel Craig, Rooney Mara, Steve Zaillian on the character of Salander.
• The Look of Salander (14:06): Trish Summerville, Rooney Mara on the hair styles, clothes, piercings, make-up and tattoos of Salander.
• Mara / Fincher (4:09): Rooney Mara, David Fincher on working together.
• Irene Nesser (6:25): Steve Zaillian, Trish Summerville, Rooney Mara on the creation of the character of Nesser.
• Salander Test Footage (2:53): Mara in costume as Salander on the streets and subway of Los Angeles filmed by Fincher with a mini camera

     Blomkvist, Mikael

• Casting Blomkvist (6:44): Daniel Craig, David Fincher, Steve Zaillian, Trish Summerville on Blomkvist, and Craig.
• Daniel Craig on Film Acting (3:31): Daniel Craig on scripts and acting.
• Dressing Blomkvist (2:56): Daniel Craig, Trish Summerville, Rooney Mara on Blomkvist’s wardrobe.
• Investigation: approximately 90 stills in four sections. Silent, use the remote to advance the stills.

     Vanger, Martin

• Stellan Skarsgard on Film Acting (3:13): Skarsgard on preparation and acting.
• Psychopathy (6:11): Stellan Skarsgard, Steve Zaillian on psychopaths and the character of Martin Vanger.
• Bondage (5:29): working out and testing the equipment used to bind Blomkvist in the basement scene.
• Torture (4:09): testing and behind the scenes in the basement torture sequence.
• Wrapped in Plastic (4:37): testing and rigging a plastic bag on the camera lens for a POV scene in the basement – comments by Stellan Skarsgard and Jeff Cronenweth (director of photography).
• Set Design: approximately 90 stills in four sections. Silent, use the remote to advance the stills.

On Location (17:54)

     This consists of two sections, Sweden and Hollywood.

     Sweden

     Five sections of behind the scenes footage from various locations from the film shoot in Sweden, interspersed with interview snippets including David Fincher, Daniel Craig, Rooney Mara, Stellan Skarsgard, Steve Zaillian, Jeff Cronenweth, Goran Visnjic (cast), Malte Forssell (line producer). The sections are:

• Stockholm Syndrome (17:54): various locations in Stockholm and in the countryside.
• Stockholm’s Tunnelbana (6:24): shooting the scene in the subway.
• F*** These People (6:03): this is absolutely hilarious; shooting a scene that is destroyed by the weather and later reshot in a different location.
• The End (11:58): shooting the film’s final scenes.
• Picture Wrap (6:53): the final day’s shooting (day 144!) and the picture’s wrap.

     Hollywood

     The sections are:

• Casting Armansky (4:44): interview with Goran Visnjic and audition footage.
• Visnjic Audition (6:42): extended audition footage.
• Thinking Evil S*** (5:09): setting up and shooting one complicated motion control camera move – behind the scenes and Jeff Cronenweth.
• Rape / Revenge (16:52): deconstruction and shooting of some of the most disturbing sequences in the film; behind the scenes plus David Fincher, Rooney Mara, Jeff Cronenweth, Trish Summerville, Steve Zaillian, Yorick van Wageningen (Bjurman).
• Int. Blomkvist’s Cottage (5:42): behind the scenes plus David Fincher, Daniel Craig, Jeff Cronenweth.
• Int. Martin’s House (7:39): behind the scenes footage of shooting the lead up to the climax in Martin’s basement plus David Fincher, Daniel Craig, Jeff Cronenweth, Stellan Skarsgard.
• Int. Salander’s House (2:40): Salander prepares for her revenge.

Post Production

     Four sections:

• In the Cutting Room (14:23): Much more interesting than deleted scenes, this is actually about the editing process of selecting alternatives with comments by Angus Wall, Kirk Baxter (editors).
• ADR (6:37): behind the scenes in ADR sessions with Rooney Mara and Stellan Skarsgard.
• Main Titles (2:33): comparing the title sequence in a three way composite with optional commentary by Tim Miller of Blur Studio.
• Visual Effects Montage (8:01): an interesting montage of before, during and after effects shots sets to music. Good to see how they placed Mara’s head into the motorbike chase!

Promotion

• Hard Copy (8:59): mock episode of a 80s-90s era tabloid show, including ads and tape artefacts, created as part of the internet promotion for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Optional commentary by director David Prior.
• Trailers: Theatrical Trailer and 3 other trailers for the film (1:41, 3:47, 1:10, 2:08).
• TV Spots: 7 TV spots, 0:32 each.
• Metal One Sheet (4:00): the creation of the metal master of the advertising poster.

Disc Production Credits

     Six pages of credits for the production of the extra features disc.

Subtitles

     the option to turn English subtitles on for the extra features.

     The Region A US Blu-ray includes an additional DVD version of the film on a third disc. Their second disc contains all the same extras, but may be organised differently. Our version is Region Free; there is no reason to look elsewhere.

     This English language version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is dark material, featuring violence against women, rape, torture, mutilation, serial murders, betrayal, racism and corruption. This Fincher take on the material is powerful and compelling, and well worth watching in its own right.

    The video and audio are excellent, the extras extensive, genuine and interesting, although they could have been easier to navigate. An exceptional package.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall