(Back 2 Back) THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO: Oplev's or Fincher's?

Journalist Mikael Blomkvist is aided in his search for a woman who has been missing for forty years by Lisbeth Salander, a young computer hacker.

          (2009) Directed by:  Niels Arden Oplev                              (2011) Directed by:  David Fincher
        Starring:  Michael Nyqvist, Noomi Rapace                        Starring:  Daniel Craig, Rooney Mara
                  Running Time: 152 mins.                                                         Running Time:  158 mins.

It's rare to find a movie adaptation that is as good as the book, or better. What's even rarer? A Hollywood remake that is as good as the original film, or better. I'm actually already partial to the film adaptations even before seeing them since I was mildly disappointed with Larsson's novel (or the translated one). While its plot was intriguing and the context & themes explored provocative, somehow the manner it was written was at times off-putting. Here's my book review, if anyone's interested.

Now let's talk about the movies! 


Michael Nyqvist vs. Daniel Craig:  Who's the real Millenium's Don Juan?  

Gravity (2013)

"Clear skies with a chance of satellite debris"

What makes Gravity one of the best in the history of space exploration-themed sci-fi movies? It pulls you in. The visuals will enrapture you, the score will mesmerize you, and aside from that, there's an emotional pull - you're not just feeling the action, but you're also feeling the terror & threat that Bullock is experiencing. At last, a space movie that deserves to be recognized for its grandeur alongside Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. I won't compare the two because that's not fair, all I'm saying is that after all these years, finally we have a movie in this era that has a vision pretty much like what Kubrick did in 1968. And I'm so happy I have witnessed this in the cinema (and in IMAX). I thought it's gonna be a sucky movie experience because behind me, there were three girls with foreigner boyfriends chatting non-stop, and passing the vinegar (yes! you heard me!) for their isaw (chicken intestines) or chicharon (I'm not even kidding), but when the movie started - complete silence. And not another word about the damn vinegar all throughout the film. That's how powerful the opening sequence was. It makes you forget about vinegar.

A medical engineer and an astronaut work together to survive after an accident leaves them adrift in space.

Directed by:  Alfonso Cuaron

Written by: Alfonso Cuaron and his son Jonas 

Music by:  Steven Price

Cinematography by:  Emmanuel Lubezki

Starring:  Sandra Bullock, George Clooney

Running Time:  91 minutes