Best of Foreign: The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (Män Hatar Som Kvinnor)

The Swedish Poster for the movie
Image courtesy of Obsessedwithfilm.com

The late Stieg Larsson's dark crime thriller had me gripped from start to finish. The film is the first installment in The Millenium Trilogy and is the story of Michael Blomvkist (Michael Nyqvist), a journalist for 'Millenium Magazine'. Renowned for his investigative skills, he is recruited by Henrik Vagner (Sven-Bertil Taube) the ex-CEO of a major capitalist corporation to track down a woman who vanished without a trace from her hometown Hedeby more than 40 years ago, who he believes was murdered by one of his family members. What follows is a mysterious and tense investigation into a web of deceit, religion and serial murder. During this time, Blomkvist meets the intriguing Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace), a skilled computer hacker and private investigator (hired to spy on Bolmkvist), with a background darker than the backroom of a soho strip club. They join forces and work together to solve the classic 'whodunnit' mystery of the missing woman, putting themselves in danger and growing closer along their journey deeper into the investigation. As Blomkvist becomes obsessed and isloated because of the case, they slowly unravel a series of clues, unearthing family secrets and solving a series of brutal murders along the way.

The film is atmospheric from the off, it's opening scene alone should be enough to keep you wanting more. The score has moments of beauty, and whilst it's played over some of the occasionally stunning, sometimes unsettling and eerie imagery, it makes for a powerhouse of an experience. It's directed by Niels Arden Oplev and he has definitely made his mark with the help of his talented cast Noomi Rapace (below) is particularly impressive as the titular Lisbeth. I should probably mention that the movie is in Swedish with English subtitles though they are no issue whatsoever, but if you are one of those people that somehow can't read subs and watch a film simultaneously (shame on you), the DVD release does come with an English audio dub, so you really don't have any excuse for not watching this one. Although I sampled the audio dub version, and simply couldn't bare it.

Manhandled: Noomi Rapace as the sexually abused Lisbeth
Image courtesy of beamesonfilm.blogspot.com

I only have a few real gripes with the film, one being that some scenes feel a little rushed and abrupt, in particular the final scenes after the investigation. But the rest of the film has clearly had so much care put into it, that I can excuse the final segment after the resolution for being a tad shallow. Plus at 180 minutes long and with so much covered in that time, the film can feel quite lengthy, much longer added and it could've potentially started to outstay it's welcome, but the timing was more or less just right in the end. The other gripe being the film's title, which I will explain in due course.

One of the things that intrigues me the most about this film is it's background. It's original Swedish title is  Män Hatar Som Kvinnor which literally translates into Men Who Hate Women, a title with a lot more relevance and history than it's much more marketable English version. Larsson was witness to a gang rape when he was just fifteen years old and he openly confessed that he didn't do anything to help. He pays homage to the victim in the story, naming his empowered female protagonist Lisbeth after her. This event in his life carries much more weight than just a name though, rape is a commonplace topic in the film, alongside Nazism, journalism and moral corruption in society (all issues occurring in Sweden which Larsson felt strongly about) and I think that going into the movie knowing this makes everything seem so much more true to life. The way he deals with the abusal of women throughout the story is crushingly brutal in places, but remains within reason and doesn't draw too much away from the story with shocking imagery (this is no Irreversible, but it isn't one for the naive either). That is why Män Hatar Som Kvinnor is for me, a far superior title. And thus comes my second issue with the film. The 'dragon tattoo' as mentioned in the title is an utterly irrelevant plot point in the film, I haven't read the book admittedly, so I don't know just how relevant it is to the original story, but in this adaption it's meaning is minimal, shown briefly in two scenes, with nothing more said on it, when I'm assuming it has more meaning than that. I also feel that this makes Lisbeth the focal point to the film, despite her coming across as more of a supporting role next to Mikael. This says one word to me... 'marketing', I mean, who'd want to see a movie with a foreign title? sigh.

Harriet, the missing woman, but who killed her?
Image courtesy of Guardian.co.uk

The Verdict

Title issues aside, the film is a treat to watch. With interesting characters and history and some very dark imagery, Män Hatar Som Kvinnor will have you gripped from the word go, and has a very strong impact, thus earning itself a solid 8/10. It has a fantastic mystery plot which will keep you guessing until it's climatic finish, but take heed, with brutal murders and sexual violence, this isn't your average episode of Murder She Wrote. Stieg Larsson's story is believable and with Oplev's directing it really comes to life, so if you're bored of Britain and have had enough of Hollywood, then I recommend you check out this Swedish thriller as soon as possible.

How It Should Have Ended: I Am Legend

Spoiler Alert: The following article contains detailed plot description which can and will spoil your viewing experience if you haven't already seen the film before. Don't say we didn't warn you.

Will Smith as Dr. Robert Neville alongside his faithful companion Sam
Image courtesy of slashfilm.com

Frances Lawrence's adaptation of the novel of the same name is a good film, I'm sure any one who sees it will happily agree, but it is of course not without it's flaws. It's the third film conversion of the book, alongside The Last Man on Earth (1964) and Omega Man (1971) which are both worth a watch too if the idea of a post-apocalyptic world is your bag.

The film follows Will Smith as Dr. Robert Neville, a man immune to a virus that has wiped out civilisation and it follows his lonely battle to survive and find a cure, it looks at how he deals with the trials and tribulations that are associated with being the apparent last man on earth. Smith's performance is powerful and emotional, the story is tense and exciting and the premise is quite interesting too. I won't go into too much detail, but after some very intense chase scenes and the saddening loss of his companion German Shepherd 'Sam', amongst some very artistic and beautiful cinematography, the film reaches a climax where Doctor Robert is confronted with the infected people he has been eluding all this time (also known as 'Darkseekers') and has to make some snap last minute decisions to determine the fate of the other surivivors he has met, and in turn that of the world.

This is all well and good, and the scene itself is fantastic. It climaxes with Smith's character extracting an effective serum from a woman that was used for experimenting on as the Alpha Male Darkseeker (below) is smashing the plexiglass window separating them from ending their lasting hunt for him, he hands the vial of blood to Anna and Ethan, his fellow survivors and buys them the time they need to escape by pulling the pin on a grenade, taking his own life and those of the Darkseekers in the building with him. Perfect. An example of legendary martyrdom in favour of humanity. Silence, fade to white. This is where the credits should have rolled and where I always hit the stop button on my DVD. But the credits don't come yet.

The Alpha Male Darkseeker
Image courtesy of Screenviewer.blogspot.com

What follows is an unnecessary additional scene, showing Anna and Ethan arriving at a very suburban survival colony, laden with American flags and soldiers. I don't mean to seem nationalist, but I have a major dislike for these 'God Bless America' type endings that come with certain films. I didn't feel nearly half as much empathy for the survival of Anna and Ethan as I did for Dr. Robert, and I feel that the film should have ended with his death, closing his legend. The image of someone continuing what he started straight afterwards felt unnecessary and was actually a bit of an anti-climax after his heroic death, and being force-fed this idea of survival was uncomfortable. I would have preferred it to be left to the imagination whether he managed to save the world or not, I really don't think the film needed a drastically short extra addition and a 'happily ever after' scene. 28 Days Later got right what I Am Legend did not, and unfortunately the alternate ending doesn't live up to much either, injecting the wild and feral Darkseekers with emotions and humanity was the same mistake that ruined Land of the Dead for me too. Call me a depressive but sometimes I don't want to see happily ever after, life isn't always that easy so films shouldn't have to be to compensate!

Do you have any suggestions or thoughts on the ending of this movie? Don't hesitate to comment with your opinions. And be sure to look out for our next 'How It Should Have Ended' coming soon!

One to Watch: This Is England '86

In 2007 we as a nation were treated to a fantastic piece of British cinema in the form of This Is England. An intimate look at 'Skinhead' culture in 1983, by none other than seminal Midland's director Shane Meadows. The film is a rites of passage story of Shaun (allegedly loosely based on Meadows himself), played by Thomas Turgoose (Somer's Town, Eden Lake). It was renowned for it's very close, realistic and intimate look at violence, racism, culture and the passionate, emotional lives of the people in Britain during the early 80's. The movie was a popular hit for the Brit-film scene and garnered a great reputation throughout the country, leaving lots of us eager for more. Well, now we won't have to wait much longer...

The Gang return 3 years on, just in time for the World Cup in Mexico '86
Image courtesy of shanemeadows.co.uk

3 years later comes 'This Is England '86'. It's a four part follow-up TV series to accompany the film, directed partially by Shane Meadows and partially by Tom Harper (MisFits) allowing us to once more look into the lives of Woody, Shaun, Lol (plus a few new additions) and all of the other wonderfully colourful and well written characters. There have also been promises made that the series will not be a carbon copy of the film, but it will in fact be quite different, with it's subject matter changing and moving on with the times- three years have passed, people have changed and I'm sure it will be absolutely riveting to watch. Hopefully with that should come promising new storylines and character backgrounds and hopefully plenty of laughs, tears and everything in between. (Plus the soundtrack should be pretty damn good too - Ed).

Though I for one can't wait to see the fantastic Stephen Graham (Snatch, The Damned United) reprising his role as National Front fanatic 'Combo', it'll be interesting to see how he has changed since the film, and I'm fairly confident he'll be responsible for causing his fair share of drama, which I'm incredibly excited about. So, UK viewers - look out for 'This Is England 86' coming sometime in September to Channel 4, it's definitely my one to watch for the coming month.

And if you're wanting more to keep you occupied until the series' release, then head on over to show's official webpage and check out trailers, information, behind-the-scenes footage and more! Just click the link to be taken straight there.

Best of British: The Waiting Room

The Waiting Room (2007)
Image courtesty of Amazon.co.uk

For the first of our reviews on British made movies, my girlfriend Sarah and I sat down and chose to watch 'one for the couples', and we both found love in 'The Waiting Room', the cinematic debut by television director Roger Goldby about the chance meeting of two people and the impact it has on their lives. Call me soft, but I thought the film was absolutely wonderful, at heart I'm a romantic, so a tale of love at first sight done well will do more than enough to keep my attention. The film follows the lives of Stephen and Anna and gives us an intimate look at what goes on behind closed doors. Anna is a single mother having having an affair with her next door neighbour's husband, he's infatuated with her but she is ultimately lonely in life. Stephen lives with his girlfriend and works at a care home for the elderly, everything seems sweet between them until his girlfriend suggests the idea of having children and with his uncertainty about the idea comes the cracks in their relationship. Then one otherwise normal day, Stephen and Anna are brought together in the waiting room of a train station and instantly make a powerful connection, from this moment onwards we are shown how this meeting effects their lives and the people involved with them. Still interested? I definitely was.

At approximately 101 minutes long, the film was an absolute treat to watch and didn't outstay it's welcome, although I couldn't shake the vibe it felt a little more like I was watching a TV series as opposed to film, but this wasn't a big problem and it shouldn't be for anyone else watching it either. Ralf Little (The Royle Family, 24 Hour Party People) plays the role of Stephen, the troubled  but loveable nice-guy, something which he does very well. There are some very touching scenes involving him and his care-patients, some of which, thanks to some beautifully 'real' writing, tugged at my heartstrings and admittedly I did shed a tear on a few occasions. For me though, the show was stolen by Anne-Marie Duff (Shameless, Nowhere Boy) in the role of Anna. She, in my opinion is an incredibly underrated British actress who I am yet to tire of watching. She's beautiful on screen, and always gives an incredibly natural and emotional performance. Her and Ralf form an excellent pairing, really aiding the film's sense of reality and even moreso, giving the viewer hope that the fabled 'love at first sight' really can happen in a world where life doesn't seem to deal you the best of hands all of the time.

Ralf Little and Anne-Marie Duff cross paths in 'The Waiting Room'
Image courtesy of Guardian.co.uk

The film has an incredibly warm feel to it, set under the bright skies and cool temperatures of the English Autumn, the colors on show are vivid and very comforting. When combined with stylish shots and a truly beautiful overlaying score written by Edmund Butt, the film's atmosphere is completely enveloping. With the right balance between subtle humour, heartwarming dialogue and thoroughly touching moments it's a must see for anybody who isn't afraid of love and it's many complexities. Plus it is proof that you don't have to turn to big budget hollywood hits filled with impossible gestures for romance, this is just as real if not moreso than some of the big RomCom names out there. Us Brits do romance very well, and this movie is all you'd need to convince anyone of that.

The Verdict

I'm giving 'The Waiting Room' a 6/10. It was a thoroughly pleasurable experience to watch, well written dialogue and fantastic acting all round, although more interaction between Little and Duff would've been much appreciated and that 'TV Show' vibe did niggle at me. The soundtrack is perfect for the film, and the setting is just right too, creating a really authentic 'feel-good' atmosphere. Definitely a must-see for any of you old romantics out there. So if you're interested in this delightful story of love, loss and everything in between then take my advice; Take a night off, buy a bottle of wine and a copy of 'The Waiting Room', then settle down on the sofa with your other half and simply enjoy this superb film, it has a much more general appeal to both genders unlike some of the key players in romance, so men needn't be afraid of watching this either. It's a perfect couple's retreat for the evening.