Review: The Girl in the Spider’s Web

A disappointing reboot to the American-produced Millennium film series. 

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​Swedish author Stieg Larsson’s Millennium book series (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest) is a dark, provocative, and fully engaging world that has seduced readers alike. Larsson was planning on making a 10-book series but sadly died in late 2004 due to a heart attack, at the age of 50. This sacred trilogy was quickly turned into a Swedish-language film trilogy after Larsson’s death. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Swedish: Män som hatar kvinnor, literally "Men who hate women") was released in February of 2009, followed by Fire (September of 2009) and Hornets’ Nest (November of 2009). The trilogy starred Michael Nyqvist and Noomi Rapace as Mikael Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander.

​A thrilling drama that focuses on tough social issues, including murder, sex, and morality. As a cinephile, the Swedish-language Millennium film series will always hold a special place in my heart. Of course, Hollywood decided to produce their own version of the classic trilogy. Director David Fincher (Fight Club and Gone Girl) helmed the picture along with actor's Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara as the respected title roles. While this entry was a solid film and faithful to the source of material, Fincher’s version failed to gain the attention at the box office. This failure left the fate of any sequels in limbo, until now. Swedish author and crime journalist David Lagercrantz decided to continue Larsson’s work and characters in writing. In 2015, Lagercrantz published The Girl in the Spider’s Web and in 2017, he published The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye.

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​So, Hollywood’s next attempt at keeping their American-produced series alive was to do a soft-reboot to Fincher’s work from 2011. That meant a new director and cast for our girl with the dragon tattoo. Instead of going the route of remaking Fire and Hornets’ Nest, Hollywood aimed to produce Spider’s Web first. The narrative to this Bond-style attempt became muddled and less complex than its 2011 predecessor. Actress Claire Foy took over the title role as Lisbeth Salander. Foy’s performance was the only good thing about this reboot. Foy gives her character guts, as she powers through the picture. Tough and vulnerable, Foy is a knockout for this picture. Sadly, the rest of the film doesn’t stand strong and ends up folding to action required elements. Director Fede Alvarez (Don't Breathe) is no match to Fincher’s keen since of craft and style. Thus, making The Girl in the Spider’s Web an incredibly disappointing picture. My advice, stick with the original Swedish trilogy because that series will always be superior to anything that Hollywood decides to produce, remake and or reboot again. As Ms. Salander once said, “that’s the way it is …” 

The Girl in the Spider’s Web is rated R (Restricted). For violence, language and some sexual content/nudity.