A much more confident and realized vision than the original. If you have seen the original then there is definitely a sense that you've seen this all before, albeit much more handsomely produced and acted. Rooney Mara gives us a different take on Lisbeth, and it's much more humane and sympathetic than Noomi Rapace. They are two completely different takes on the character and I don't know that one is particularly better than the other because of the different styles of the films, but both served their individual movies incredibly well. I prefer Rooney Mara because I like emotional characters, but I can see why someone would like Rapace more considering she is alot more fierce and psychotic at times (although because Mara is so much more innocent and sweet looking, it makes it even more shocking when she does the horrific things she does). The comparison between Daniel Craig and the original actor for Blomkvist is no contest for me, though. Craig makes him much more interesting and assured in his ways and because this version spends more more time letting us get to know the characters apart before it brings them together, this is much needed. Blomkvist still isn't as interesting as Lisbeth, but he doesn't fade into the background everytime she shares the screen anymore thanks to Craig. Both versions of this story work for different reasons, but I like this one just slightly more I think. If I want a sophisticated and great looking thriller with good characters, I'd watch this. If I want a B movie thriller that's a little trashy, but great entertainment, then I'd watch the original.
