David Fincher might never have actually entertained the thought of casting Yo-Landi Vi$$er of South African zef rap duo Die Antwoord as his Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (at most, she seems to have been a rabid pixie style icon for Rooney Mara's Oscar-nommed take on Lisbeth Salander), but how much more twisted and subversive might the diminutive Visser have been in the role, tasering old pervs and getting dirty in the "Feel-Bad Movie of the Year?" Watch the video for Die Antwoord's latest grime jam, "I Fink U Freeky," and let's brainstorm ways to make Yo-Landi's movie career happen, already.
more »
Since we've all watched The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo like good little people-who-are-trying-to-figure-out-why-the-hell-it's-is-such-a-phenomenon-because-even-my-parents-care-about-it-now, it's the perfect time to reflect on what would've happened if David Fincher ditched Rooney Mara and opted for another ingenue to play Lisbeth Salander. Carey Mulligan? Ellen Page? Anne Hathaway? If I had the MS Paint prowess, I'd whip up renderings of Barbara Stanwyck, Faye Dunaway, and 94-year-old Joan Fontaine in the nose studs and combat boots, but I'll leave that to your imagination. After the jump, check out a bunch of very accurate, wholly hypothetical Lisbeth portraits.
more »
Truth be told, I don't enjoy ranking films -- especially at the end of a year that disappointingly lacked a single title that moved me to tears, gut-busting laughter or some kind of profound existential realization. (However there were quite a few films that inspired hopelessness for the future of cinema. See Just Go With It and Bucky Larson: Born To Be a Star. Actually, don't see them.) But there were some titles I'd recommend and even some I wouldn't immediately regift if they found their way under my Christmas tree/menorah this season. Behold, my fave films of 2011. As always, let me know how much you disagree with this list in the space below.
more »
If Rooney Mara's fearless turn as Stieg Larsson's goth-punk hacker heroine Lisbeth Salander teaches us anything, it's that you should never, ever cross a woman with fire in her heart and vengeance on her mind. But the titular Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is just the latest in a long history of utterly human movie heroines who remind us how ferocious and unrelenting a woman wronged can be. Celebrate the fictional ladies who have helped teach society not to fuck with the so-called "fairer" sex, and let their righteous fury be a lesson to us all during this warm and fuzzy holiday season.
more »
Forget all that love for The Artist and Spielberg's Oscar-readyWar Horse; sometimes you need a jolt of pure Fincherian grime and menace to snap you out of the awards season doldrums. Enter these 30+ images from The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, here to remind us that the Rooney Mara-Daniel Craig starrer is the feel-bad movie of the year. Shudder and shiver your way through Movieline's gallery and count down the days to December 21.
more »
While at the Austin Film Festival to pimp this week's Hunter S. Thompson adaptation The Rum Diary, star Johnny Depp grabbed his guitar and took to the stage with Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top for a surprise rock show. Because that's how you get the kids to come to your new period movie, folks! Viral marketing meets rock 'n' roll! Johnny Depp can do no wrong! Watch the video and stick around for more Buzz Break.
more »
David Fincher on his search for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo's Lisbeth Salander: "Scarlett Johansson was great. It was a great audition, I'm telling you. But the thing with Scarlett is, you can't wait for her to take her clothes off... Salander should be like E.T. If you put E.T. dolls out before anyone had seen the movie, they would say, 'What is this little squishy thing?' Well, you know what? When he hides under the table and he grabs the Reese's Pieces, you love him! It has to be like that." He eventually cast the "great weirdo" Rooney Mara for his "pervy" Americanized adaptation; read the full profile here. [Vogue]
If you've seen Niels Arden Oplev's 2009 Swedish adaptation of Stieg Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, you already have faces attached to the cast of characters in the bestselling trilogy-starter. So Sony's smart to roll out 18 character profiles introducing you to the new Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara, managing to look simultaneously different and similar to Noomi Rapace), Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig in scruffy journalist-wear) and their fellow players in David Fincher's December English-language remake.
more »
