6. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo falls somewhere between the last two entries on this list. It has an excellent structure and tone to it, is full of mystery and suspense, and yet, somehow falls short in completely engaging us on an emotional level (although it does a far better job than Benjamin Button). Perhaps the problem is the size of the story Fincher is telling. Here is a nearly three hour movie, yet it still feels like it needs more details and space in certain areas, especially concerning the amount of suspects under suspicion from Daniel Craigs investigator. We only meet a few, and its fairly obvious early on who the perpetrator is. That doesnt kill the films momentum, however. A completely immersive performance by Rooney Mara as Lisbeth Salander proves impossible to look away from, even during the nastier bits. She throws herself at the role with such reckless abandon that we forget at times that shes acting. Its a complete transformation, and her chemistry with Craig gives the procedural scenes and extra jolt of life. The tone, as mentioned above, is also perfect, creeping along and creating a steadily mounting feeling of dread. Fincher uses the bleak, cold landscape of the film's setting to create a natural sort of noir that works perfectly with the story. And yet, there is still a feeling of emotional detachment between ourselves and the characters. Obviously, Salander is a detached character to begin with, but we should be more invested in her struggle (including her struggles with herself) throughout the film. For all the work that went into creating that performance, it feels as if Fincher is holding us back just a bit from fulling letting us dig into her mind. A very solid film, especially once the case gets rolling, but slightly unsatisfying in the end.