Millénium 2 : La Fille qui rêvait d'un bidon d'essence et d'une allumette

¨Now the girl with the dragon tattoo will play with fire.¨ The Girl Who Played with Fire is the second part of the Millennium trilogy from Stieg Larsson's novel which was a huge success in Sweden. The original title of this second installment is Flickan Som Lekte Med Elden, which has the same meaning in English (the other two novels had the title changed in the translation, the first part The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo actually was titled The Men who Hate Women). The trilogy is being made into a movie in Hollywood now (directed by David Fincher), but I still recommend the original Swedish versions which are great films. This sequel isn't nearly as good as the first movie, but it still is a smart thriller that works in most part thanks to the rich characters that Larsson has created. This film is missing some of the beautiful landscape that we got to see in the first movie, the mystery is not as intriguing either, and there aren't any new interesting characters. I think that the direction and the screenplay has a lot do with why this film didn't live up to the first one. This film was directed by Daniel Alfredson instead of Niels Arden Oplev, who had directed the first part, and the screenplay was also adapted by a different writer (Jonas Frykberg) so the dialogue doesn't flow as well as the first movie did. I am glad they didn't change the actors because that would have been a mess. Noomi Rapace has played one of the most interesting computer hackers I've seen on film. She had very difficult scenes, especially in the first one, but she still managed to give a great performance and in this movie we discover a lot more about her past. The success of the first movie keeps us interested in these characters and their story, so the movie still works although some of the original magic is missing.

The film picks up one year after the first one left us and Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) is back working at Millennium with his crew: Erika Berger (Lena Endre) and Malin Erikson (Sofia Ledarp). A young journalist named Dag (Hans Christian Thulin) is applying for a position at the magazine and tells the crew he is investigating a sex-trafficking ring. Dag gets the position and they guarantee him they will publish his work, but they have to have strong evidence before doing so. In the meantime, Lisbeth (Noomi Rapace) is living a luxurious life, but is still haunted by several things from her past. She has been living abroad, but returns to Sweden in order to keep track on her court appointed guardian, Nils Bjurman (Peter Andersson), who has to continue giving positive reports about her or else she will release the tape she made in the first movie. She hasn't been answering Blomqvist's calls and it has been nearly a year since they last spoke. Some people aren't very happy with the investigation of the sex-trafficking ring since it involves some high powers in government, so Dag is murdered along with his girlfriend. The prime suspect is Lisbeth since her fingerprints are on the murderous weapon that belonged to Bjurman who also is found murdered. Mikael knows Lisbeth is innocent and begins investigating some of the people involved in the ring, while she does some investigating of her own uncovering some dark secrets of her past while trying to stay hidden from the police.

It is hard to review this movie on its own, unlike the first one because that one had a decent ending in itself, but this second part serves more as a bridge to the third film then it does on its own. A lot of elements were left unconcluded and I am guessing they will address them in the third film. I really liked The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo much more than The Girl Who Played with Fire, but I can't complain too much because I was still entertained by this decent thriller since I wanted to know more about these characters. Lisbeth and Mikael are probably one of the most unlikely duos on film, but they just work so well together and we can't get enough of them. The villain in this film (played by Micke Spreitz) was kind of creepy and did a good job as well in his role. The producers wanted Dolph Lundgren to play this role, but Spreitz did a decent job. I guess I will have to wait and see how the third film turns out in order to better critique the trilogy, but for now I will just leave this to be continued. I want to see if they investigate more on the sex-trafficking ring because it was not touched very much in this second movie. I still recommend this movie, just don't expect it to be as good as the first one, and know that this is only a bridge to the third film.

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With a new director (Daniel Alfredson) taking charge of the second film in the Scandinavian version Millennium series, The Girl Whi Played with Fire is not at all a disappointment but is less striking and less memorable than the first film, who introduced the characters of the trilogy. The judgment may be more severe than the film really deserves because the it is certainly a well written and well built crime story, with solid characters brought to screen by a team of actors who each makes his job wonderfully, from the leads to the smaller parts. It is probably the surprise effect that is unavoidably gone and maybe also the more standard cinematography that replaces the frozen landscape that dominated The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo. Yes, the Swedish summer can be very pleasant but the winter films better.

There are more biographical details that we learned about The Girl in the title of the movies, and the action of the film turns around her family and her traumatic childhood we had a glimpse about already. Noomi Rapace is as good as in the first film, but she still keeps enough secrets to have us interested for her fate in the final film of the series. Michael Nyquist's character is slightly relegated to the role of the classical seeker of truth, but his acting is still so good that I continue to be concerned about Daniel Craig taking over his role in the Hollywood version in-making (although I like the actor and I believe he deserves and can make much better than a Bond).

Maybe the secret of the magnetic force of these films is that faced with the most sordid vice or violence or put under the darkest physical or psychological threats the heroes created by Stieg Larsson remain without doubt human. Too bad that these series un-naturally end in a trilogy. The quality of the dialog and the building of tension, the sophistication of the crime story and the human dimension of the characters ask for more. On the other side, the sonata is one of the most perfect pieces in music and it always is composed of three parts. There may be logic in fate sometimes.

This is the Swedish-language film adaptation of the second of the three "Millennium" crime novels by the Swedish journalist Stieg Larsson and it's really essential that one sees "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo" first because vital themes are continued. Most middle segments of trilogies lack the bright originality of the first and the satisfying denouement of the last, but this one will certainly hold your attention until the girl kicks the hornet's nest.

In this central segment, Lisbeth Salander (the mesmerising Noomi Rapace) is much more central to the narrative and indeed she and investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) are only physically together for moments, although often in electronic communication and always in emotional connection.

The criminality being investigated by the "Millennium" team is more woman-hating in the form of sex trafficking and again the plot contains some surprises but this time the villains are reminiscent of Bond baddies like Blofeld and Jaws. The violence is not quite as stomach-churning as in the first episode, yet there's still plenty of bone-crunching, blood-splattering action. Lisbeth here is the most death-defying female avenger since The Bride in "Kill Bill Part 2".

I decided to go all-out and give myself the full Millennium experience by watching the TV miniseries (9 hours in total) over the space of three nights. As a result, these reviews are of the extended, three-hour editions of each film rather than the condensed, theatrical two-hour versions.

THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE is a highly effective sequel that avoids the usual 'second film in a trilogy' syndrome. It's full of action and intriguing plot twists, and it takes hold of the original's storyline and builds and expands on it in a decent way.

I wouldn't say it's better than the first film - it lacks the novelty of THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO, and it's very slightly less emotionally fulfilling - but it's nevertheless a superior piece of filmmaking. Bring on the third!

There's an important detail about the film version of The Girl Who Played with Fire (in fact, of the whole Millennium trilogy) that needs to be known in order to understand why some (myself included) perceive this as the most flawed installment in the series: originally, all three adaptations were shot for Swedish television, with six 90-minute episodes condensing Stieg Larsson's remarkable prose. Late in the game, it was decided to give The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo a theatrical release, albeit in a shortened version (half an hour was chopped off), and when that became the highest-grossing Swedish film of all time, the other two chapters received the same treatment, with the uncut versions held in storage until spring 2010. In the case of the second film, 60 minutes went missing in the TV-to-cinema transition, and it shows.

Picking up from the first episode, we catch up with Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) enjoying his newfound freedom and restored reputation, while troubled hacker Lisbeth Salander keeps mostly to herself. That is, until Millennium magazine enlists the help of two new collaborators for a special issue about sex trade, and the two are found dead, much like Lisbeth's sadistic guardian, Nils Bjurman. Evidence points to Salander being the killer, and with no way to defend herself she ends up on the run, desperate to prove her innocence, while Mikael tries to help her as much as he can from the office, eventually realizing he's in much bigger trouble than last time.

Based on the summary alone, The Girl Who played with Fire should be as great a thriller as its predecessor. That it isn't is essentially up to a couple of factors: firstly, new director Daniel Alfredson (brother of Let the Right One In's Tomas), who replaced Niels Arden Oplev for the last two bits of the trilogy, occasionally fails to capture the same raw atmosphere as in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo; secondly, the aforementioned removal of one hour's worth of footage makes the whole thing feel a bit rushed, particularly in regards to new characters who are hastily introduced and then dispatched just as quickly. Additionally, the extended cameo of boxer Paolo Roberto, playing himself, will make little sense to non-Swedish viewers, though it is faithful to the book and allows for one kick-ass fight scene. As for the final twist, what came off as a shocking revelation on the written page loses a lot of its impact on screen, due in no small measure to Oplev virtually giving it away in the first film.

That the film manages to make any kind of impression is all thanks to one person: Noomi Rapace. Sure, Nyqvist's work is fun to watch, and the supporting players do their job well, but Rapace towers above all of them with her harried, mesmerizing portrayal of a rebellious yet strangely vulnerable woman who just won't take any crap from anyone. There are rumors of a possible Oscar campaign for her work in the trilogy (though if they had to single out a specific installment, the logical choice would be The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), and she really deserves it, not least for her ability to show off her dramatic skills even in a moment as irrelevant as a gratuitous girl-on-girl scene (again, faithful to the book) that has clearly been added to compensate for occasional shaky plot points.

In short, The Girl Who Played with Fire is a great acting lesson and a fun thriller, but little more. A shame, given the high standards set by Lisbeth's first cinematic adventure.

6,5/10