Introducing your new Lisbeth Salander...

The latest issue of W magazine has actress Rooney Mara in full Lisbeth Salander mode on the cover, as part of a large feature on the upcoming David Fincher English-language adaptation of Stieg Larsson's worldwide phenomena of a book/series. As W magazine says in the introduction to its "exclusive first look from the set of the year's most anticipated film", Fincher, "the darkly obsessive director" of Fight Club and The Social Network - perhaps last years biggest or best film - has now taken on "the biggest franchise since Harry Potter".

Internationally, Rooney may be facing something of an uphill battle as Salander (given that Noomi Rapace was so pitch-perfect brilliant in the role in the Swedish-language films), but for American audiences (in particular) who may not have bothered with the subtitled films, the photos from the latest issue of W show that there is perhaps quite some potential there. And with David Fincher (FIGHT CLUB, THE SOCIAL NETWORK, etc) at the helm, things may not be so bleak for the film as those in the anti-remake camp may have it.

You can see a 9-picture slideshow of Mara in Salander mode on the W magazine website here. You can also read the interesting full article by W magazine's Lynn Hirschberg here.

Hat tip to Jeff Pierce of the excellent The Rap Sheet for the heads-up.

What do you think? Are you looking forward to the English-language version?

Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up

There have been some more great crime fiction stories on the Web this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and fellow bloggers. Hopefully you will all like finding an interesting article or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

Before we dive in however, I'll just quickly mention that those of you who don't live in the North Island of New Zealand, and so couldn't get the print version of the Weekend Herald last week, can now read my full review of Donna Malane's debut crime novel SURRENDER here.

Thanks again to Linda Herrick and the NZ Herald for allowing me to republish my reviews and features for them here on Crime Watch, for all of you to read (if you want). And of course you can go into the draw to win yourself a brand new copy of Malane's NZSA-Pindar Publishing Prize-winning debut, here.

Onto the round-up.

Crime Watch Weekly Round-Up: In the News and on the 'Net

• The Hollywood Reporter has, well, reported, that Swedish production company (makers of thriller 'Easy Money') have announced a wide-ranging film and TV deal with bestselling crime author Camilla Lackberg. Lackberg and Tre Vanner will develop a 10 x 90 minute television series based on the characters in her crime novels. The series, called "The Fjallbacka Murders" will be set in the small Swedish town of Fjallbacka, where Lackberg was born and where all her novels take place. Read more here.
• In an interesting article, Stieg Larsson's friend Kurdo Baksi reveals to Vit Wagner of The Star how Larsson would have reacted, dealt with and coped (or not) with the phenomenal success of his Millennium trilogy, what his friend would have thought of his 'celebrity', and how a Larsson memoir has enabled Baksi to move on with his life.
• The first episode of the TV adaptation of Peter Robinson's Inspector Banks novels screened in the UK this week, proving a hit in the ratings.
• The creator of the terrific TV crime series The Wire, David Simon, has won a prestigious MacArthur 'genius' Award, which carries with it a $500,000 no-strings-attached grant over five years. Read more here.
• Holly Colmes of the Gwinnett Daily Post takes a look at mystery author Lee Martin, who grew up amongst the West Virginia coal fields before a career as a highly-decorated soldier.
• Margot Kinberg of Confessions of a Mystery Novelist takes a closer look at the use of 'leaps of faith' by characters in a wide variety of mystery novels over the decades, ranging from the Golden Age cosy queenpins like Christies, Sayers and Marsh to gritty modern masters like Michael Connelly.

What do you think of this week's round-up? Which articles or posts did you find most interesting? Are you pleased by the thought of more Swedish crime hitting the screen? Are you a Lackberg fan? What did you think of DCI Banks: Aftermath? Were you a fan of The Wire? How much do you think a writer's background influences their crime fiction? What are some of your favourite 'leaps of faith' by crime fiction characters?

The Girl...

Next month the English-subtitled version of the film adaptation of the third and final book in Stieg Larsson's publishing juggernaut Millennium Trilogy, THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNETS' NEST hits cinemas at film festivals in the United States.

The always-excellent The Rap Sheet has pointed readers to a new trailer for the film, which you can watch here. For some reason I can't get that trailer to play, so I went looking on YouTube, and sure enough I found both a teaser trailer and a longer trailer for the film, uploaded in late 2009 (I'm not sure how this new trailer differs from either of these older trailers), which you can view below.

On a related point, it seems that the excellent actress behind the pitch perfect portrayal of Lisbeth Salander (The Girl...) has secured her first major English-language role, playing a villain in the sequel to the Robert Downey Jr-starring Sherlock Holmes.

But for now, here is the longer trailer of the third Millennium film, as available on YouTube:



I really enjoyed the first film (see review here), and am looking forward to seeing the other two big-screen versions (I've had a couple of aborted attempts to get to The Girl Who Played with Fire, unfortunately).

What do you think of the trailer(s) for the third film? Have you read the books, or watched either of the first two films? Are you looking forward, or not, to the Hollywood versions? Thoughts and comments welcome.

'The Girl' who won an Oscar?

Reports are filtering out of Hollywood that there is some growing talk of Swedish actress Noomi Rapace, who expertly plays Lisbeth Salander in the Swedish-language films of Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy books (pictured in character, right), being put forward for an Oscar nomination.

As reported by Deadline and Hollywood News, the first film - Män som hatar kvinnor (aka the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) - is apparently eligible for next year's Oscars as it was released for a qualifying run in a Los Angeles County theater in March. You can read my review of the film here.

As I said last December, "In terms of acting, I thought Noomi Rapace was brilliant as Lisbeth Salander. She conveyed the computer hacker’s conflict, confusion, anger, and uniqueness (amongst other things) exceptionally well through glances, gestures, and other non-speaking moments – not just scripted dialogue. Like the best performances, I never saw it as someone acting as Lisbeth Salander, rather Rapace was Lisbeth Salander. "

Honestly, I can't think of a female acting performance in a film in the past year, that I've seen, that comes close to Rapace as Salander. If she is indeed eligible, it would be absolute travesty if the Academy overlooked her for a nomination.

However, already there is all sorts of online chatter about whether some Hollywood power brokers and big studio Sony Pictures might try to quash such a move (or ensure Rapace wouldn't win, even if she was nominated), as it could potentially undermine their own attempts to bring their English-language versions of the films to the big screen. All fun and games eh?

Rapace (pictured left, in her real life 'non-Lisbeth' mode) has already won the Swedish equivalent of the Oscar for playing Salander, and is quite the up and coming young actress in general.

She is reportedly currently in Hollywood, and having talks with various studios about her film career. She is rumoured to be in the running for roles in films such as Mission Impossible 4, and the Sherlock Holmes sequel.

Whether she is (deservedly) nominated for the Oscar or not, Rapace has certainly left some pretty big shoes to fill for the actress that takes on the Lisbeth role in David Fincher's remake - which as of this week is reportedly Rooney Mara, "a virtually unknown actress whose profile is so low that even her age is being hotly debated (she is, depending on who you believe, either 24 or 25)".

"In landing top billing in the film, which will open next Christmas, Mara beat off competition from an extraordinary array of stars. Everyone from Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman to Carey Mulligan and Emma Watson has featured on the list of names being tipped for the job," reported the New Zealand Herald two days ago. "Mia Wasikowska, the protagonist in Tim Burton's recent Alice in Wonderland, was among the final half-dozen contenders, though she did not sign a test-screening deal. Four finalists are understood to have spent recent weeks in auditions with the film's director, David Fincher, who will begin shooting on location in Sweden next month."

So, what do you think of Noomi Rapace being talked about for an Oscar nomination? Of young Rooney Mara taking on the role for Fincher's version? Of the Hollywood remake in general? Thoughts and comments welcome.

Stieg Larsson's Longtime Partner on Rumoured Fourth Book

In an exclusive interview with ABC News for its 'Nightline' programme, Eva Gabrielsson talked today (NZT) about her longtime partner Stieg Larsson and her fight with the Larsson family (his father and brother who inherited his estate) over his legacy.

"You can view them as this family he wasn't particularly close to, didn't have much in common with, taking his money," James Savage, editor of The Local, an English-language publication based in Sweden, is quoted as saying by ABC reporter Gloria Riveria in an ABC News online article publicising the Nightline segment. "On the other hand you've got these people who say they were close to Stieg, doing what they think is right. Like [with] any infected family feud, taking sides is a very dangerous thing to do."

Importantly for Millennium Trilogy fans, in the interview Eva Gabrielsson also talks a little about rumours of a fourth unpublished Stieg Larsson book, and that she may have co-written the novels, or could write the fourth.

So, are you a 'Girl' fan? Do you enjoy Larsson's (Gabrielsson's?) crime thrillers? Would you be interested in a fourth in the series? What do you think of the family feud? Thoughts and comments welcome.

Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up

There's been some more great crime fiction stories on the Web this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and fellow bloggers. Hopefully you will all like finding an interesting article or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

Crime Watch Weekly Round-Up: In the News and on the 'Net

• Justine Gerardy of the AFP takes a look at how truth meets fiction for South African crime writers like Deon Meyer and Margie Orford.
• In the Irish Times, Tony Clayton-Lea interviews Irish crime writer Alex Barclay, saying her crime fiction career has "clearly benefitted from her former role as a journalist."
• Dave Walker of the New Orleans The Times-Picayne reports on actor Kenneth Branagh, who plays the lead in Wallander, talking about the 'Swedish crime fiction boom'.
• Rosie Kusunoki Jones of the Wall Street Journal online asks whether now English-language publishers have been awoken to translating foreign-language crime fiction bestsellers, Shuichi Yoshida could end up being the Japanese Stieg Larsson?
• Australian schoolteacher John Tognolini launches his debut crime novel THE MOUNTAIN CITY MURDERS at a wine-fuelled event in Wellington (NSW, not the NZ capital), this Sunday.
• The always-excellent Sarah Weinman of the Los Angeles Times takes a look at Justin Peacock's thriller, "Blind Man's Alley", in her regular Dark Passages column.
• Michael Janairo of the Times Union looks at the benefits of the Bouchercon festival to the towns where it is held.
• Examiner.com takes a look at how international thriller writers are set to tour the Persian Gulf during Fall 2010 as part of USO's 'Operation Thriller'.
• The NPR publishes its audience-voted list of the top 100 thrillers of all time, with Thomas Harris's THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS taking the #1 spot.

What do you think of the round-up? Which articles do you find interesting? Is THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS really the best thriller of all time? What do you think of South African crime? Scandinavian crime? I'd love to read what you think.