悬疑小说改编《直捣蜂窝的女孩》

Of Stieg Larsson’s three complicated, violent* “Millennium” novels, “The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest” is by far the knottiest*.

What started in “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” as a relatively simple story about two mismatched detectives investigating* family history in Sweden has grown, in the third and final novel, into a government conspiracy*, assassination* plots and several violent confrontations*.

At the center of it is the amazing Lisbeth Salander, but after being on the lam* in the second book, she’s in a hospital and jail cell this time, not even sporting her signature piercings* and eye makeup* until well into the third act.

If it has seemed all along that Lisbeth Salander was unfairly persecuted* by the rest of the world, in “Hornet’s Nest” we get a clear explanation why. Her father Zalachenko (Georgi Staykov), who she attempts to kill at the end of the second film, is a highly placed Soviet spy who is well-protected by a secret arm of the Swedish Government, called The Section.

They’ve spent decades covering up Zalachenko’s misdeeds*, including his vicious* treatment of Lisbeth’s mother, and Lisbeth herself is the biggest cover-up, locked away in a children’s asylum* at 12 when she attempted to kill her father with a Molotov cocktail*.

More interesting is Mikael’s plot, as he pieces together Lisbeth’s life story in time for both his magazine piece and her trial, which technically is trying her on murder charges but will wind up determining her sanity* and character instead.

Running at nearly two and a half hours, “Hornet’s Nest” is smooth and mostly entertaining*. But aside from some excellent casting choices and the still-remarkable Rapace as Lisbeth, it’s impossible to imagine choosing the shorter film version over Larsson’s novel, which is impressive in its dogged adherence* to its shambling* structure.

There is a tight, well-plotted movie yet to be made by changing the book. Good news: David Fincher, fresh from “The Social Network,” will direct a remake of the first movie of the series. (SD-Agencies)