The "Millennium" crime trilogy by the late Swedish author Stieg Larsson has become a cult hit worldwide, selling more than 10 million copies, and the first novel's long-awaited movie adaptation hits screens Friday.
The film opening in Swedish and Danish movie theatres Friday is based on the first book, "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo."
It follows Mikael Blomkvist, an investigative reporter, and Lisbeth Salander, a feisty rebel hacker-turned-detective, as they search for Harriet Vanger, the niece of a business tycoon who disappeared at the age of 16 four decades earlier in northern Sweden.
Swedish media have unanimously hailed the muscular, raven-haired Rapace, covered in piercings and a large dragon tattoo on her back for the shoot, for her convincing performance, especially in the most violent scenes including one in which she is brutally raped.
Some critics have said Rapace is physically too big and muscular to faithfully play Salander, described in the trilogy as a small, androgynous girl who is so skinny she looks anorexic.
After seeing an early screening of the nearly two-and-a-half-hour-long movie, however, most viewers said the physical differences were easily forgotten thanks to Rapace's convincing performance.
It is also expected to hit the big screen in Belgium and the Netherlands soon.
