Watching David Fincher's adaptation of Stieg Larsson's
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo was almost just like reading the book. It was lengthy and slow, but compelling nonetheless. There were a few differences, though. If I remember correctly, Martin Vanger's house is not as modern as it is in the movie. They also tweaked the ending in a big way, but not so big that it would implicate subplots in the second movie. What was impressive, though, was how they stuck with the location. I thought they would drop Sweden and make it U.S. I'd expected that Mikhael Blomkvist would be a New Yorker and the Vangers Alaskan. Something to that effect.
If I were asked which was better, the book or the movie, I would say I don't care, but do watch the movie still because of Rooney Mara's performance. The Best Actress trophy at the Oscars would probably go to Meryl Streep or Michelle Williams this year, but hell, Rooney Mara's performance, in my opinion, makes her a leading contender. Her take on Lisbeth Salander was just spot on. She would still have probably nailed it even if she was dressed like a Malibu Barbie instead of the signature S&M look of Lisbeth. Daniel Craig didn't shine much in this movie. He was effortless, yes, but it was hard to outshine the Lisbeth Salander character. He did have the raw sexual magnetism, though, of a dancing Channing Tatum.
One huge disappointment: the post-movie dinner at Brown Cup. Their pesto butter pork chop was dry and seemed hurried. It wasn't raw or anything, it just didn't seem well-marinated. But that didn't have anything to do with the movie, so... hehe.
