The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011) ***

An interesting tour of how to make a film look slightly more pretty is all that Fincher has offered us here and to be fair he has pulled off that prettiness astoundingly. Although in this case there seems very little point in making a new package for an already brilliant creation, I felt allot of the time that there was far more concentration on the style and appealing edginess of the whole thing and less effort in the creation of good story telling.

I found it less easy to consider Blomkvist (D.Craig) a weak man in the shadow of Lisbeth and personally, as attractive and ferocious as I found Rooney Marra her portrayal of Lisbeth comes off as a bit more fragile then her predecessors "don't f**k with me" vibe. The only justice with Finchers offering of the tale is maybe a touch more "Men are really shit" to his version, of which in comparison again is only seen yet not as much felt. There is also its appealing style, as it has some great flashy bits but this means it looses out on that original girth and heart that the story contains.

As I was not as merrily won over by the sequels to the previous version, my only hope is that we see a reversal of success and that the next in the series of these films proves that all the added flashy style fun makes a positive difference.

Even with all my complaining this film is at the very least entertaining and if not for its previous creation id have enjoyed it allot more but I could not help thinking all this film did was give me more reason to buy the first original trilogy.

The Woman (2011)

Harsh...F**** up...Nah they don't even come close, try totally damaging and beating the hell out of any perception I thought I had for the ideas of artistic gore ( I like to believe in the existence of such a thing). Id think this to be an easy "saw that coming" horror film as it starts that way a bit, but the air of something not being right is far deeper than it first makes you believe. Don't let the trailer or description fool you this is not just about the feral woman, (Pollyanna McIntosh, who is epic and I wanna see her more) this is more about an animal kingdom like role of dominance between male and female, both in day to day life and the family situation. I feel the title relates more to the entire female cast rather than just the centre character, its sort of as if Lucky McKee has taken on the directorial role of a documentary maker to study the human male and his need to be the alpha, and with that in contrast also show how clearly he is not.

The haunting art in this is the very uncomfortable family situation, of which I would gladly take my chances living in the wild over being a part of. From the very start you have this wrong, nasty feeling that this family has allot more wrong with it than just the eventual wrong element that your expecting.

Simply put, I love a good bit of gore and well made horror and I was caught off guard with this, so for anyone who loves this stuff its a great watch nothing entirely exiting but its better than the usual blockbuster horror disappointments like "Saw" and it will slap you around the jaw when you think you've got it pegged....for anyone who runs from the (soft) regular horror don't even bother, I expect you will cringe most the way through it the anyway.

Ne le Dis à Personne (Tell No One) (2006)

What I enjoy most about this film each time I’ve watch it, is how the thrill and curiosity keeping your attention obedient is made so much more convincing by the emotion the two lead characters have as lovers. Not to get all mushy, but its a brilliant thing when the acting and situation, in which its placed is so well played and paced that your heart bleeds for the couple. The action and tension as I see it is only doable because of how deeply you are made to feel for the poor sod (Alex Beck) that is being put through it all.

This has some heavy shades of Hitchcock classics and that gives good reason to re-watch it more and more. That’s partially why it grabs me actually, it reminds me of old films I enjoy and pulls off that mysterious "have you figured it out" vibe beautifully. Sadly that also means a mild amount of “haven’t I seen this film”. There is also some similarity to the Fugitive however for the reason I have already stated and it being a great reminder of the quality that some mysteries lack, I do feel myself thinking somewhat higher of Tell No One, I can at least say if you enjoy any of the mentioned film work then this film will easily please you.

Let the Right One In (2008)

I am Amazed that I have not already written any wild crazy screaming, along the lines of "YOU MUST SEE THIS FILM TO HAVE ANY IDEA OF WHAT AN ACTUAL GOOD VAMP FLICK REALLY LOOKS LIKE"

I guess that gives you a pretty good idea of where I'm going with this. LET THE RIGHT ONE IN was the best film in my opinion of 2008, it being the only film I went to see at the cinema twice in a very long time its visual elegance quite literally caused my eyelids to spasm from over widening each time I exited the theatre. This films flow of desolate scenery infused with a slight magical aura grants every shot the ability to fool you into making the horror for yourself. Every moment is designed beautifully, playing the seeming innocence of the characters in symmetry with the dramatic growth of the story.

What is truly brilliant about this film is its skill in using very little in forms of visual gore or actual, in your face Horror. The great trickery here is how director Tomas Alfredson feeds your eyes with rations of shock made unexpected by that curtain of childhood innocence, which is only pulled back by your own minds eye. This is a Horror film that really grasps the skill in using its audience to deliver its Horror, providing you with subtle yet artistic visuals to prompt your imagination into seeing what it knows is there whether its on the screen or not.

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (2011)

It's a meticulous and engulfing process that you get lured through with this film, Tomas Alfredson is brilliant at evoking the lead characters personas into the scenery and mood of a single screen shot. As with his previous film "Let The Right One In" you get this innocent yet fearful vibe at every scene even without the characters showing much in ways of emotion or words spoken, here you have that same quality but with more of a cunning trick being played. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is no average Spy film, evaluated as a living being, it could be described as an undercover agent of a film piece.

As with most genre identity's you cannot help having some tiny expectation being implied because of what work has come before it. But once brought into the comfort and mild camaraderie displayed with this story you have those perceptions of excitement and explosive tension eradicated. That's how this is so cunning, Alfredson manages to make this Spy film disguise itself much like the codeword's used through out (CIRCUS being the name used for MI-6). Part of the way through you could easily forget yourself and think with all its quaint slow melody that its identity is actually that of a Dramatic Romance. Its a real wolf in sheep's clothing, using mellow laid back scenery with very subtle hints of thrill to keep you aware that it does mean business. As opposed to the many that try to scream it at you, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy remains calm and patient.

My excitement was at an ultimate high after seeing "Let the Right One In" and now seeing him create this sinister film genre secret agent. I eagerly await Alfredson's future work.

Blue Valentine (2010)

A perfect example of everything to adore and fear about the concepts of love.

This is such a refreshing Romance that thankfully grants an example of the real and well made artistic level of a “chick flick” ruined genre. Blue Valentine is equal in some ways to the brilliance of "Before Sunrise" for its intricate portions of personality in an elegantly paced love story.

Although Blue Valentine acts out in two different times of the entire relationship on show, one being its bloom and the other an inevitable withering of love. I mentioned "Before Sunrise" as in some small ways Blue Valentine had made me think of "Before Sunrise" and its sequel being spliced and edited together in a Tarantino way but with many different, far more heartfelt outcomes.

Aside from the utterly poetic visual orgy that Blue Valentines cinematography displays, the thing that really makes this film stand out in a way most overly hyped Romance films seem to lack is an on screen relationship you find yourself being charmed by. Here you can truly understand the reason to love one or both of the relationships characters and despise them as the much as those involved.

Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams make these characters weave a romance with some real volume behind every miniature act and expression. And for a fair comparison Gosling even though always an actor I enjoy, has gained a romantic fame with "The Note Book" a film that to this date I still see no real aspect of a well-told or well-woven love story with any hint of the said volume to a relationship that Blue Valentine provides.

Hanna (2011)

Being dazzled by the cinematic juxtaposition of visual treats is one of my usual film geek goals when looking out for obscure and often under the radar art films so its always surprising when the spotlight of interest for these qualities falls on something much more up on the surface. HANNA, I can happily say is a great film, in my view it has managed what would have been more expected of an indie/art house film style but with a bit of a deceiving blanket of blockbuster hype. I am very willing to bet that had the cast been without Blanchet playing the role of a Cruella Deville like villain and Erik Bana as a somewhat more real version of Kickass' Big Daddy character that this film may have become a little more on the unknown and obscure borderline of film popularity. That perspective aside you cant not fall totally in love with the odd moments of melodic visuals darting around the screen, that paired with a sinister baddie selection and some beautifully organised scenery should be enough to hook anyone on re-watching this