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THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE (FLICKAN SOM LEKTE MED ELDEN)Movie Reviews
Swedish language thriller and sequel to "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" about a young woman who must clear her name after being fingered for the murder of a journalist who was on the verge of publishing an expose of Swedish sex trafficking. Cast:Noomi Rapace, Michael Nyqvist, Alexandra EisensteinDirector:Daniel AlfredsonRelease Date:July 9, 2010DVD Release:October 26, 2010From:Music Box FilmsRating:RLength:2 hr. 9 min.
OCTOBER 26, 2010
The Girl Who Played With Fire (Flickan som lekte med elden), Good Reviews Key Cities
The Girl Who Played With Fire (Flickan som lekte med elden) played in key cities to good reviews. • Tom Long wrote in the Detroit News, "When Salander is on screen you're riveted; when she's not you wish she were.... this girl truly is on fire." • And Andrew O'Hehir wrote for Salon, "...lean, mean and workmanlike... [but] there's way too much plot here getting in the way of the story..." More Reviews Below...
The Girl Who Played With Fire (Flickan som lekte med elden) Positive Reviews (46 Reviews, reviews below)
Richard Corliss, Time: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "No part of the picture measures up to the book's chilling prologue... [but] in Rapace, it has an actress who brings a memorable literary character to indelible movie life..."(See all of Richard Corliss's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,203 words, 07/11/10
David Germain, Associated Press: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...the secrets revealed about its heroine's dark and violent past are not exactly earthshaking. Yet it's hard to go wrong with a psycho-genius such as Salander..."(See all of David Germain's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 606 words, 07/08/10
James Berardinelli, Reel Views: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...a firecracker of a story - sharply written, superbly acted, and fast-paced... As good as Rapace was in 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,' she's better here."(See all of James Berardinelli's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,103 words, 07/06/10
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: VERY GOOD(cg) "...lacks the stylistic flair and driving energy that Niels Arden Oplev brought to the film rendition of the first book. But Noomi Rapace is back in action, and she's spectacular."(See all of Peter Travers's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 432 words, 06/25/10
Claudia Puig, USA Today: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "While this second installment in the series is mostly taut and suspenseful, it grows repetitive and drags in the final third.... well-constructed, if occasionally flat..."(See all of Claudia Puig's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 453 words, 07/09/10
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...very good, but a step down from 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,' if only because that film and its casting were so fresh and unexpected."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 697 words, 07/07/10
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (12 Reviews)
A.O. Scott, New York Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Ms. Rapace makes this movie good enough, but also makes you wish it were much better. Without her, it would be a not bad procedural..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 837 words, 07/09/10
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Lisbeth and Mikael are frustratingly separated for most of the movie.... the dragging pace picks up halfway through, as Mikael uncovers Lisbeth's tragic past."(See all of Elizabeth Weitzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 136 words, 07/09/10
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "...the franchise's secret weapon is back with brilliant young Swedish actress Noomi Rapace again channeling the alienated, unwilling to be broken tough chick..."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 789 words, 07/09/10
Kyle Smith, New York Post: POOR(cg) "This series, to be charitable, is aimed at the non-ironic mind-set, utterly self-serious as it lays out the mini-mysteries leading to a 'big reveal.' "(See all of Kyle Smith's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 579 words, 07/09/10
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...very good, but a step down from 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,' if only because that film and its casting were so fresh and unexpected."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 697 words, 07/07/10
Geoff Pevere, Toronto Star: MODERATE(cg) "...a much more sober, scaled-down and businesslike affair than its predecessor. Not any less compelling or occasionally ridiculous, just rather less flamboyantly so."(See all of Geoff Pevere's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 561 words, 07/09/10
Rick Groen, Toronto Globe & Mail: MODERATE(cg) "Tepid and downright confusing... It's refreshing to have a movie assume that its viewers are also readers, yet this one takes that assumption to testing lengths."(See all of Rick Groen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 460 words, 07/09/10
Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...good but not great.... merely attention-grabbing. It's just as violent and darkly creepy as the first film, but the richly satisfying payoff isn't there."(See all of Michael O'Sullivan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 665 words, 07/09/10
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "This is no-nonsense, let's-get-to-it business, and will probably be less satisfying, and less clear, to viewers unfamiliar with the source material."(See all of Steven Rea's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 435 words, 07/09/10
Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle/San Francisco Chronicle: VERY GOOD(cg) "Daniel Alfredson directs with a perceptive eye and a roving camera.... The stars help.... Too bad they spend most of the film apart."(See all of Amy Biancolli's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 586 words, 07/09/10
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...a jumble of nonessential supporting players and story-choking clots of personal history.... Blomkvist and Salander are kept apart for almost the entire running time."(See all of Colin Covert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 607 words, 07/09/10
Kerry Lengel, Arizona Republic: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...more baroque and less convincing than 'Dragon Tattoo,' whose earnest message about Sweden's extremist past felt entirely organic."(See all of Kerry Lengel's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 312 words, 07/09/10
Tom Maurstad, Dallas Morning News: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a movie that leaves too many blanks unfilled and is a much less satisfying experience than the first film... But Rapace's Lisbeth Salander is worth the trouble..."(See all of Tom Maurstad's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 442 words, 07/08/10
Ty Burr, Boston Globe: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...exists to get us from the stand-alone (and superior) Part One to the epic climax of Part Three, where All Will Be Made Clear. It's a bit of a cheat, but rewards are there."(See all of Ty Burr's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 764 words, 07/09/10
Laura DeMarco, Cleveland Plain-Dealer: EXCELLENT(cg) "Noomi Rapace is brilliant... From start to finish, it's a classy, very well-made and -acted, gorgeously shot, big-budget thriller..."(See all of Laura DeMarco's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 558 words, 07/30/10
Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...a meticulous police procedural as we watch the murder investigation unfold... The movie is never less than compelling, particularly when Rapace is on screen..."(See all of Moira Macdonald's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 499 words, 07/09/10
Marc Mohan, Portland Oregonian: GOOD(cg) "...solid, twisting, well-acted... but it strains credulity at times, and its ultimate revelations are unsurprising and, when you think back on the whole film, confusing."(See all of Marc Mohan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 219 words, 07/09/10
Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...a passable popcorn movie, but fans of the first film who expect lightning to strike twice are liable to get burned."(See all of Joe Williams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 306 words, 07/09/10
Steve Persall, St. Petersburg Times: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a welcome chance to learn more about Lisbeth Salander, the kinky, punk hacker and pop culture phenom played by Noomi Rapace."(See all of Steve Persall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 400 words, 07/29/10
Tom Long, Detroit News: EXCELLENT(cg) "When Salander is on screen you're riveted; when she's not you wish she were.... [but] you know the camera will turn to Salander soon enough. And this girl truly is on fire."(See all of Tom Long's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 537 words, 07/09/10
Connie Ogle, Miami Herald: VERY GOOD(cg) "...lacks the first film's ominous atmosphere and pervasive sense of evil... yet the twists and turns turn out to be rewarding anyway, especially for fans of the series..."(See all of Connie Ogle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 524 words, 07/09/10
Peter Keough, Boston Phoenix: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Noomi Rapace blossoms as Lisbeth Salander, the asocial savant of the title, and Michael Nyqvist remains dull as her pal, journalist Mikael Blomkvist."(See all of Peter Keough's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 154 words, 07/08/10
Curt Holman, Atlanta Creative Loafing: WEAK(cg) "...no better than competent television... Any successful film would have to live up to Salander's image as the avenging angel... It's elementary, my dear Blomkvist."(See all of Curt Holman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,083 words, 07/07/10
Bob Mondello, NPR All Things Considered: GOOD "...ends a bit inconclusively... But the first picture's ferocity remains intact here, as do its fetishes regarding political corruption, sexual violence and the riveting Rapace..."(See all of Bob Mondello's reviews...)(Listen to the full review...) 180 seconds, 07/11/10
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: VERY GOOD "Noomi Rapace continues to redefine our notions of a contemporary heroine.... I confess to enjoying the lurid stuff just as much as the dramatic intricacies..."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 390 words, 07/09/10
A.O. Scott, New York Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Ms. Rapace makes this movie good enough, but also makes you wish it were much better. Without her, it would be a not bad procedural..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 837 words, 07/09/10
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "...the franchise's secret weapon is back with brilliant young Swedish actress Noomi Rapace again channeling the alienated, unwilling to be broken tough chick..."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 789 words, 07/09/10
Boyd Van Hoeij, Daily Variety: WEAK "...originally conceived solely for television, and it shows. Never comes close to the comparative slickness and smooth direction of actors in the first seg..."(See all of Boyd Van Hoeij's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 657 words, 03/29/10
Kirk Honeycutt, Hollywood Reporter: EXCELLENT "...ably collapses story lines and characters down to manageable size to achieve a coherent, breathtaking race against time to solve horrific crimes."(See all of Kirk Honeycutt's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 815 words, 06/30/10
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "...the franchise's secret weapon is back with brilliant young Swedish actress Noomi Rapace again channeling the alienated, unwilling to be broken tough chick..."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 789 words, 07/09/10
Emanuel Levy, Cinema 24/7: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Sharply uneven.... Hampered by a semi-engaging narrative... the movie is at least two notches below the first, terrific picture..."(See all of Emanuel Levy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 570 words, 07/25/10
A.O. Scott, New York Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Ms. Rapace makes this movie good enough, but also makes you wish it were much better. Without her, it would be a not bad procedural..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 837 words, 07/09/10
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: VERY GOOD "Noomi Rapace continues to redefine our notions of a contemporary heroine.... I confess to enjoying the lurid stuff just as much as the dramatic intricacies..."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 390 words, 07/09/10
16.4 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
The Girl Who Played With Fire (Flickan som lekte med elden)'s reviews are separated by an average 16.4 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
The Girl Who Played With Fire (Flickan som lekte med elden) (46 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:The Girl Who Played With Fire (Flickan som lekte med elden)'s reviews cover 73.5% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 25,059 words involume (average is 20,172 words). Length:The film's reviews average 545 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
The Girl Who Played With Fire (Flickan som lekte med elden) Coverage, Volume & Length (46 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 18.5 Hours Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
The Girl Who Played With Fire (Flickan som lekte med elden)'s reviews on average broke 18.5 hours before opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is The Girl Who Played With Fire (Flickan som lekte med elden)'s opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
The Girl Who Played With Fire (Flickan som lekte med elden) (46 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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