Monday, August 16, 2010

The Girl Who Played With Fire (2009) - The Movie



Down here in Orlando, we are slightly deprived of culture, particularly in the indie movie category. (I've probably moaned about this before, so pardon my continued whining. My only escape is Netflix.) We have one theater that shows something other than blockbusters, and it is a small, limited-seating, one-screen deal. They generally show one movie a week, so it can take ages and some finger-crossing to get to see the lesser known movies of our choice.

With all that in mind, do I really need to tell you how loud I screamed when my friend Marianne called me and informed me that "The Girl Who Played With Fire" was now showing? This movie just released in the US recently, and I was shocked at how quickly our theater snatched it up. Apparently, the shows have been sold out, which makes my heart happy (except when I have to stand in line to fight for a seat). Right after this phone call, I received an e-mail from a local blogger, Zibilee (Heather) at Raging Bibliomania, giving me the same great news. I invited her to come along. So two highlights in one...more Lisbeth, and getting to meet my second-ever blogger in real life!



I'm not going to go through the plot of the second installment of the Millennium series here. What I will tell you is that the story stayed generally true to the book, but there were massive amounts of details left out. I recognize this is the way it must be, when the book is over 600 pages long. I was happy to see they didn't change small but critical details like they did in the first film.


In this movie, we find Lisbeth to be a tad bit more feminine (only a tad!) with longer hair and less piercings. I never noticed this until Heather mentioned it, but she says very few words in the film - it is all about her actions and facial expressions. We aren't privy to her internal thoughts, which is always the benefit of the printed word. Casting on the new characters (Zala and Neiderman specifically) were excellent, and really exactly what you would expect. I'm still finding the character of Erika to be a little creepy and worn-out looking.



Similar to The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, this is not a flick for the faint of heart. It re-lives some of the violence from the first movie (via the infamous DVD), plus adds some new violence with guns and an ax for good measure, and includes a lesbian sex scene. In other words, don't take the kids!




I will leave you with a picture of Heather and I, with our glasses in hand, waiting in our queue to get into the movie. She was so sweet...she brought me books and bookmarks! It was so nice to get to know her a little better. What I find amazing is how two people, who have never met before, can instantaneously jump into a conversation like they've known each other for years. The world is so small in that way, and is what makes the book blogging community so special. I'm hoping that we can get together again soon.
























28 comments:

Melody said...

How nice that you got to watch this movie with a blogger friend! :)

Jessica said...

I saw something about it on TV last night and although I havent read the books I will admit that the film looked really cool.

caite said...

anyone taking the kids to this must not have read the books..or seen the first movie.

Marg said...

I went and saw the first movie a while ago, but I don't think the second movie is out here for a while yet!

And I would love to meet up with Heather (Zibilee).

Nicole (Linus's Blanket) said...

It is so much fun meeting up with other bloggers! And don't tell me that there is wine at your theater! Seriously?!?!

Unknown said...

This is a movie theatre that serves wine?!? I love it.

I didn't make it into the first book, but I think I will give the movies a try. It sounds like they are something I'll enjoy.

JoAnn said...

Love that you got to meet a fellow blogger!! And I'll echo CB James comment.... a movie theater that serves wine? Why can't we have one of those around here??

rhapsodyinbooks said...

Our artsy theater serves wine too! Although with ours, you have to sit outside, and even wine won't convince us to sit out in the 109 degree heat!

I have been so impressed with the casting in these films. Niederman was absolutely perfect, and it would have been so easy to have him be some caricatured guy. The actor portrayed the "slowness" beautifully too.

I too noticed right away that Lisbeth wasn't wearing all the makeup she had in the first movie.

But don't you love these Swedish films? Not a bit shy! :--)

Zibilee said...

Yes, these are definitely movies that the kids won't be seeing, LOL! I am starting to wonder how much time I will have to read the second and third book before the final movie hits town. I am not going to put it off though, because I still have a lot of questions I need answered!! I had such a great time with you guys out there, and I do agree with you that we are parched for culture sometimes here in Orlando!

Ti said...

What a great movie poster! I still haven't seen the first movie. I have to see it when the kids are not around and let's face it, they are always around!

bermudaonion said...

What a fun event! We have no indie theater here. I so agree with you about bloggers - we feel like we already know each other, so there are no awkward moments when you fist meet. I'm hoping to meet you at SIBA next month.

Michele said...

oh geez....gotta see it, gotta see it, gotta see it!

Serena said...

Sounds like a great movie and a great time with Heather!

I want to see that movie, but Blockbuster never seems to have it! ARGH

Unknown said...

It's awesome that The Girl Who Played with Fire came to your movie theater! I'm so glad you and Heather were able to see it together! I cannot wait to see the movie but I haven't finished the trilogy yet. I cannot wait to see the movie, though. For that reason I'm not going to read all of your post! i'm glad you enjoyed the movie, though!

~ Amy

Alyce said...

Fun that you got to meet up with a blogger! I haven't read the books or made plans to see the movie. I'm not snooty - that violence just isn't my cup of tea. :)

Iliana said...

You guys like great! Oh man, I'm jealous - a great movie and meeting a blogging friend :)

Well I found out the movie is playing here too but it's clear across town and yesterday we were going to go but then the thought of getting back out in the heat kept us indoors. If it's still playing next weekend we will have to go - no excuses!

ds said...

Let's see: a great movie, a great friend and wine. Sounds like a perfect evening to me! What fun!

Kathleen said...

I've not read the books so I can't see the movies yet. How fun to meet another blogger! And the fact that you had glasses of wine before the movie, you are my kind of girls!

Jenners said...

How fun!! I wish I could have tagged along! I need to start checking here to see if it is playing here yet. I guess they realize that these books are a hit so they booked it early.

And did you hear? They cast Lisbeth for the U.S. movie. Here is the link:

http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/08/16/girl-with-dragon-tattoo-lisbeth-salander-rooney-mara/

Wallace said...

Oh my gosh, I started reading that review thinking it was for Tattoo, and then realized it was for Fire! Oops, haha! I read (and saw) Tattoo, and next up for me is Fire. I will come back and re-read this once I know the story (just in case there are any spoilers.. I didn't get far enough to tell). I LOVED Tattoo (both book and movie) so I hope Fire is just as good. I keep hearing it is better.

Ana S. said...

Aw, I love that photo of you and Heather :)

Becca said...

I loved the first movie (and book!) I just got the second book so I am going to read it first before I see the movie. I feel like where I live we never see indie or foreign films so I will have to wait for Netflix. Boo. I'm glad to hear it was good. It is hard to adapt a long book onto the screen. I just love the girl that plays Lisbeth. She nailed the part.

Darlene said...

How awesome that you two got to go to the movie together. I hope to read the book before I see this movie although I did see the first one. Definitely not for kids.

Pam said...

Oh I love love love that poster. I want to watch the movies but I have yet to read the books. I have them on my shelf!

Alice said...

I so want to watch this! I haven't read the book even though I've bought it ages ago. Sandy, I don't know how you do this, but you're mighty fast.

It's wonderful you met with a fellow blogger! I am heading to the US end of this year but not to Orlando... I'll be at CA, AL and MS. I hope to make a trip to Oregon, Texas and Orlando (where you're at). I hope to meet up with you one day too. :D

Dawn @ sheIsTooFondOfBooks said...

Hanging in line drinking wine with Raging Bibliophilia?! I'm surprised you two stopped chatting long enough to watch the film :)

Melissa (Avid Reader) said...

So glad you enjoyed the movie and got to meet a fellow blogger. I thought that the second film was even more intense than the first, but that girl just nails the role of Lisbeth.

Melissa said...

How cool that you and Heather got to meet up!! I really want to see these movies, but first I need to read the books....