3. Production
• The film is adapted from the Swedish novel of the
same name, written by Steig Larsson. It is the
beginning of the ‘Millennium’ Trilogy and was a best-
seller in the US and in Europe.
• The film has a pre-requisite form as a Swedish
film, which itself made over $100,000,000 worldwide
• Larsson’s idea for the story came when as a 15 year old
he witnessed the rape of a girl called Lisbeth. The
Swedish title for the story translates as ‘Men who hate
Women.’
• It is based on an adapted screen-play by David Zaillian.
5. Genre/Overview
• The film is described as a ‘thriller’, meaning that the
director focuses on creating suspense, tension and
excitement for the reader.
• The protagonist for the film is disgraced journalist
Mikael Blomquist, recently found guilty of libel, who
takes on a case from elderly millionaire Henrik Vanger
to discover what happened to his favourite niece
Harriet, who disappeared in unknown circumstances40
years previously. Blomquist must then emerge himself
in the dark nature of the Vanger families past, with the
help of the mysterious investigator Lisbeth Salander.
6. Finance
• The film was originally financed by Sony
Pictures, with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
announcing in May 2011 they will finance 20%
of the film. In this agreement, MGM and Sony
have decided to also co-finance the other two
films in the ‘Millennium’ Trilogy as well as a
co-effort on the next two James Bond films.
7. Cast
• The film was directed by David Fincher, who has had
notable success with films such as Seven, Fight Club and
The Social Network. A realistic scene was important to
Fincher, who decided to film the majority of the film in
Sweden to improve realism.
• Daniel Craig plays Mikael Blomquist. Craig originally turned
down the part because of his commitments to
Skyfall, however when production halted he was able to
take up the role of Blomquist.
• The role of Salander interested many young, famous
actresses in Hollywood, including Scarlett Johansson, Carey
Mulligan and Emma Watson, however it was eventually
given to Rooney Mara.
8. Distribution
• The film was jointly distributed by both
Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Releasing
• The film premiered in London on the 12th
December 2011, and opened in cinemas
nationwide on Boxing Day.
• The film was advertised before other films in
the similar with a more conservative age
rating than the film itself, which is an 18.
9. Problems with Distribution
• US newspaper ‘The New Yorker’ was supposed
to release a favourable article a week before
the film was released, however it failed to do
so as if they printed the article they would
‘miss a deadline’. This angered producer Scott
Rudin, who claimed ‘an agreement was an
agreement’ and used his influence to have
other newspapers print positive reviews
instead.
10. Exhibition
• The film made $102.5million in the US, including
$12.5m in the first weekend
• The film won an Oscar for Best Editing
• It was released on DVD/Blu-Ray, with the CD itself
having been designed to look like an illegally-
burned CD. This attention to detail was used to
distinguish this DVD from others. This was
distributed by Sony Pictures Home
Entertainment.
• The DVD also features an Ultraviolet code for
‘instant streaming’
