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But I think this trailer, and the posters released with it, are not designed for fanboys who burned through all three books twice in one weekend. It's designed to appeal to more casual moviegoers who may not know what this story is about but perhaps are fans of Daniel Craig and/or Rooney Mara. And, it probably appeals to fans of Led Zeppelin, Nine Inch Nails and super fast music video edits. For a first fleeting taste, I think it was effective. It hits you viscerally and leaves you wondering when there will be more. Welcome back to the dark, Mr. Fincher.

Edwin Davies: It's very effective, both as a trailer in and of itself and as a way for Fincher to set out his stall and show how visually different his vision of the story will be compared to the Swedish films. His take seems to be more dynamic and visceral, which makes for a really impactful trailer that appeals to newbies and old-hands equally. Top it off with that great cover of Immigrant Song and one of the ballsiest taglines in an age, and you have a pretty exciting first glimpse.

David Mumpower: I am a huge fan of the books, perhaps not as much as Bruce's friend but I did import The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest rather than wait six months for its North American release. I felt that the problem with the Swedish films is the unavoidable one; these books are simply too dense to adapt into two hour movies. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo has the strongest concerns in this regard since it has a cast of 20+ characters who may all be involved with a murder. The Swedish film dropped that number down to four and one could be ruled out immediately if the viewer knew the original title of the first novel. Surprisingly, the third film was the one wherein any attempt at faithful adaptation was dropped in favor of action, something I expected to be more of a problem with an American adaptation than a Swedish one. If they made that determination, I have little hope for respectful American versions of these stories.

Keeping the above in mind, I was not engaged by the trailer the way the rest of you were. I understand the creative decision to discard dialogue in favor of Trent Reznor's musical accompaniment to a series of lightning quick movie edits. Most consumers will have no ability to distinguish the story from a series of stray comments from the various characters. The difficulty of such encapsulation led to this choice to focus on David Fincher's visuals, emphasizing the style over the substance. This is a marketing ploy to create interest for the franchise from consumers who are only vaguely aware of the gripping title, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

I'm sure a later trailer will explicitly define Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist, identifying why people should want to go to a movie about them. In the interim, this is like a trailer in need of a Ritalin treatment. Yes, I'm sure that there are diehards out there cutting every frame to see the key sequences such as the making of the blackmail tape, some of Lisbeth and Marian Wu's makeout sessions, and the forced tattoo. For my money, though, this trailer is agitating more than anything else. This what The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo would look like if Michael Bay directed. I expect a different vibe watching a trailer for a David Fincher film. I'm sure I'll enjoy the final product (at least somewhat), but I did not enjoy the first teaser.

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