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PLEASE NOTE: Michael D's is currently in READ ONLY MODE. Anything submitted will simply not be written to the database.
Lots of stuff is still broken, but at least reviews can now be looked up and read.
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest (Luftslottet som sprängdes) (2009)

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest (Luftslottet som sprängdes) (2009)

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Released 20-Jul-2011

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Details At A Glance

General Extras
Category Crime Main Menu Audio
Interviews-Cast
Theatrical Trailer
Rating Rated MA
Year Of Production 2009
Running Time 141:55
RSDL / Flipper RSDL (61:01) Cast & Crew
Start Up Ads Then Menu
Region Coding 4 Directed By Daniel Alfredson
Studio
Distributor

Roadshow Home Entertainment
Starring Michael Nyqvist
Noomi Rapace
Lena Endre
Annika Hallin
Jacob Ericksson
Sofia Ledarp
Anders Ahlbom
Micke Spreitz
Georgi Staykov
Case ?
RPI $39.95 Music Jacob Groth


Video Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame None Swedish Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s)
Swedish dts 5.1
Widescreen Aspect Ratio 1.85:1
16x9 Enhancement
16x9 Enhanced
Video Format 576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio 1.85:1 Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures No
Subtitles English (Burned In) Smoking No
Annoying Product Placement No
Action In or After Credits No

NOTE: The Profanity Filter is ON. Turn it off here.

Plot Synopsis

     These days virtually any successful book is quickly made into a movie or TV show; sometimes the rights are sold even before the books hit the shelves. One of the biggest literary phenomenon of the last few years has been The Millennium Trilogy, Swedish mystery/thriller novels by Steig Larsson, who tragically died after completing the books but before they were published. He was completely unknown outside of Sweden before his death and is now a name known around the world. There have been the inevitable squabbles over his estate and now with the release of these Swedish language movies and the upcoming and seemingly inevitable US remake this can only get worse. Regardless, the original source materials are great reads. I reviewed the first and second films of the series on DVD here and here.

     Now, the third film in the series, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (Luftslottet som sprängdes) has been released to DVD and Blu-ray, after a theatrical run here in Australia and globally. Interestingly, these movies were originally planned and shot as a mini-series for Swedish television and with the international success of the novels it was re-cut (and shortened) to make three theatrical releases. The full television version which adds about half an hour per movie is currently available on DVD in the Netherlands; however it is not English friendly as the subtitles are only in Dutch. It may get released more widely after the movies run their course, both theatrically and on DVD.

     The story follows on from the previous instalment with the focus now moving from Lisbeth's family to the government conspiracy which put her in institutionalised care as a child. At the beginning of the film she has been charged with the attempted murder of her father, the Russian gangster Zalachenko. Both he and her are badly injured and in the same hospital in regional Sweden. Once she gets better she will be transferred to Stockholm for trial. Will the mysterious government officials who have destroyed her life get their final revenge or will she be able to triumph with the help of Mikael and the staff of Millennium?

     This is a gritty and tense film which is well acted and is a step back up to the quality of the first instalment after the slightly lesser second instalment. Like the second film there are some early sections which would be hard to follow if you haven't read the books, however it soon becomes clear. The court room scenes and the various dramatic and action sequences are all done well and the film is exciting and dramatic. Interestingly, the first film was shown theatrically at 2.35:1 whereas this one and the second one are 1.85:1 which I think gives it more of a television feel compared to the more theatrical first instalment. It is interesting that these three films (and the books) were quite different with the first being predominately a mystery, the second a thriller and the third a court room drama. The two leads, Noomi Rapace and Michael Nyqvist are perfect for their parts, very similar to what I imagined while reading the books. I suppose it is a fair warning if you have not read the books that this story and film feature themes and scenes of sexualised violence, so it may not be for everyone.

     An excellent finish to a very good series of films. It will be interesting to see if the Hollywood remakes come up to this standard.

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Transfer Quality

Video

     The video quality is good but grainy. The feature is presented in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio which is the original aspect ratio. As I noted above the first film was 2.35:1 which made it feel more theatrical even at home. It is 16x9 enhanced widescreen.

     The picture was reasonably clear and sharp throughout although was affected by light grain which was heavier in some scenes. Shadow detail is decent but not spectacular. There were some interlacing artefacts which were especially noticeable during fast motion. The colour was very good with no colour artefacts. There were no other noticeable artefacts.

     There are burned-in subtitles in English which are in a fairly large white text, making them an improvement over the previous instalment.

     There is a layer change at 61:03 which was not noticeable during playback.

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

Audio

     The audio quality is very good. This DVD contains two audio options, a Swedish Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack encoded at 448 Kb/s and a Swedish DTS 5.1 soundtrack (both are coded as English on the disc).Both options are very good but as usual the DTS has a slight edge in depth and surround activity.

     Dialogue seemed clear and easy to understand but my knowledge of Swedish is nothing special. The score by Danish composer Jacob Groth is suitably dramatic, adding to the film's atmosphere.

     The surround speakers were used mostly for music and some ambient noise like trains, cars and motorbikes. In a couple of sequences, such as a flashback, they were used for specific directional effects. The subwoofer was used for music support and adding bass to other effects.

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

Extras

     More than the previous films had, but nothing too exciting.

Menu

     The menu was simple including music and minor animation.

Interview with Noomi Rapace (19:38)

     In Swedish with subtitles. The footage is quite rough and badly shot and Noomi says some interesting things but this should have been edited better. She covers the diet she went on, physical training, the character, the books, the director and coping with the long production time.

Interview with Michael Nyqvist (13:08)

     In Swedish with subtitles. He is not as interesting and engaging as Noomi and this interview quickly becomes tedious. He discusses his career, the books and the films.

Trailer (1:49)

     Swedish theatrical trailer.

R4 vs R1

NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.

    The Region 1 version has an English dub option and the trailer. Our local version has the DTS track and the interviews in addition to Region 1. Region 4 is the best option I think. Also available on Blu-ray both here and in Region A.

Summary

     A very good Swedish thriller based on a high quality novel.

     The video quality is good but grainy. The audio quality is very good. The extras are better than the previous movies and than Region 1.

Ratings (out of 5)

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

© Daniel Bruce (Do you need a bio break?)
Monday, August 15, 2011
Review Equipment
DVDSONY BDP-S760 Blu-ray, using HDMI output
DisplayLG Scarlet 42LG61YD 106cm Full HD LCD. Calibrated with Ultimate DVD Platinum. This display device is 16x9 capable. This display device has a maximum native resolution of 1080p.
Audio DecoderBuilt into BD player. Calibrated with Ultimate DVD Platinum.
AmplificationPioneer VSX-511
SpeakersMonitor Audio Bronze 2 (Front), Bronze Centre & Bronze FX (Rears) + Sony SAW2500M Subwoofer

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