New at BOP: Review: Matrix Resurrections Movie Review: Moonfall Movie Reviews: Scream The #1 Movie in America November Forecast The Many Saints of Newark October Forecast New Trivia Question All site updates Share & Save   Tweet Print this column

1. The First Meeting:

Lisbeth meets with her boss at Milton Security, Dragan Armansky (badass name, by the way) and a representative of Henrik Vanger, to give her report on Michael Blomkvist. This is the first time that we get a good look at her in either film, and first impressions are important.

In the Swedish version, Lisbeth is an intimidating presence, very tall, partially because she is wearing monstrous boots. Her hair is spiked and her multiple ear and facial rings are distinct and attention-grabbing. This is a woman who, anywhere except a goth club, would stick out like a sore thumb. By comparison, Mara's Lisbeth is much less ostentatious. She is a quieter woman, who seems content to fade into the background, although anyone who noticed her would take in quite a few piercings and an odd hair style.

She is also tiny! The first two adjectives that Larson use to describe Lisbeth in the novel are “pale” and “anorexic,” and both of those words perfectly describe Mara. And just as Mara's appearance is different from Rapace's, so is her attitude. Rapace gives off a “fuck you, this is who I am so take it or leave it” with every glare and movement. Mara is, in her way, much more inconspicuous; she comes off as an observer, someone who does not draw attention to herself but who sees everything. Both are antisocial and unfriendly, but Rapace gets in your face, daring you to piss her off, while Mara retreats into her own space, unwilling to let anyone in.

2. Showdown with Bjurman

After her computer breaks, Lisbeth has to go to her newly appointed legal guardian, Nils Bjurman, to ask for money. Bjurman had already shown up in both films before this scene and gave off major creepy vibes, but here he goes beyond what anyone would expect of him. Abusing his position of power over a woman declared incompetent by the courts, Bjurman only agrees to give Lisbeth the money if she blows him.

This is the scene when we see Lisbeth at her weakest. She is completely powerless, dependent on this man for not just the money that she needs, but also for her freedom, as one word from him would have her institutionalized. Without saying anything, we see the gears in Lisbeth's head working, and there is a clear distinction between the way Rapace plays this scene and the way Mara does. Mara gives in almost immediately; this is a woman who has lived her life in the system, and understands that it is set up to beat her down and destroy her. Mara's Salander hates what she is going through, but knows that this is what she has to put up with to survive. She has learned by bending she can avoid being broken.

Rapace has a very different interpretation of this moment. Her version of Salander is fiercely defiant, and the fire in her eyes makes it clear that she is doing this because she has to, but she still despises Bjurman with every fiber of her being. While Mara put up almost no struggle, Rapace resists so that Bjurman has to grab her by the hair and pull her forward. If Mara is dealing with a quiet despair as she fellates Bjurman, Rapace's emotion would be better described as a silent rage.

Continued:       1       2       3