Film Review: ‘The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest’ Underlines Franchise Limitations

CHICAGO – Now that the third and final installment of Stieg Larsson’s posthumously published, phenomenally popular book series has been turned into a feature film, the questions emerges: ‘Was it worth it?’ To the worldwide box office and the creatively bankrupt Hollywood, of course it was. But were moviegoers truly satisfied by the experience?

Rating: 3.0/5.0

I wasn’t, but that’s not to say I didn’t admire aspects of the pictures, particularly the mesmerizing, star-making performance from Noomi Rapace as the titular “Girl.” Her magnetic presence elevates each film whenever she’s onscreen, which is not nearly long enough. After the enticing first tale, “Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,” developed the relationship between two fascinating characters who teamed up to solve crimes, the next two installments frustrate on multiple levels. The characters that audiences loved to see work together are kept apart the entire time at stagnant ends of an exposition-laden puzzle.

Read Matt Fagerholm’s full review of “The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest” in our reviews section. [13]

Whereas Larsson’s novels were potent page-turners, their cinematic counterparts are both too long and not long enough. Too many scenes consist of extraneous characters commenting on the significance of events that are in the process of unfolding. In the aftermath of a potentially affecting plot twist, one character self-consciously observes, “It’s like a classic Greek tragedy!” Yet the filmmakers never allow the material to acquire that level of dramatic weight. That’s because they’re too busy trying to cram in every last detail from the books that can possibly fit into a feature length running time. There’s simply too much plot here for moviegoers to digest on an emotionally resonant level. At their worst, the films are the equivalent of cinematic SparkNotes, moving too fast to truly engage. It comes as no surprise to learn that the films were originally aired as a TV miniseries, which is unquestionably their ideal format.

Continue reading for Matt Fagerholm’s full “The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest” review. [13]

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest opened Oct. 29 at local theaters.
Photo credit: Music Box Films