The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo Had A Big Clue To Its Killer Twist In Its First 39 Minutes

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo has two big twists about Harriet Vanger and her killer, and a big clue to the identity of the killer is in the first 39 minutes of the movie. Based on the 2005 novel of the same name by Stieg Larsson, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is a mystery thriller directed by David Fincher. It takes viewers to Stockholm, Sweden, to meet journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig), who, after a scandal that threatens to end his career, takes a strange but intriguing job offered to him by millionaire Henrik Vanger (Christopher Plummer).

To the public, Blomkvist is hired to write Vanger’s memoirs, but what he really wants Blomkvist to do is help him solve the mystery of the disappearance and possible murder of his grandniece Harriet, who disappeared without a trace 40 years prior. Blomkvist later enlists the help of highly-skilled hacker Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara) as his investigation gets more complex and more dark secrets of the Vanger family come to light. Harriet’s case takes a turn with two twist reveals, one of them hinted at in the first 39 minutes of the movie.

Martin’s Chamber Was Opened While Having Dinner With Mikael In The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

Harriet’s Brother Was A Serial Killer

For Blomkvist to do his job, he had to meet all the surviving members of the Vanger family, and because they thought he was writing Henrik’s memoirs, they saw nothing weird in Blomkvist asking about Harriet. Henrik described his family as the most despicable people Blomkvist would meet, and he wasn’t wrong, as there were a variety of crimes in the family. For starters, Henrik’s brothers, Harald and Richard, and the latter’s son, Gottfried, were Nazis and Nazi sympathizers, which further affected their relationships with other family members.

Many Vanger family members didn’t speak to each other and refused to talk to Blomkvist about Harriet and the family, but there was one who was always cooperative: Martin (Stellan Skarsgård), Gottfried’s son and Harriet’s brother. At the time of the events of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, Martin was the President of the Vanger Corporation and thus worked closely with Henrik. During the first act of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, Martin invites Blomkvist to his house for dinner, where they talk about Harriet and how her disappearance affected the family.

As Martin’s partner speaks to Blomkvist, a noise alerts Martin, who stands up saying something has been left open and leaves to take care of it. The noise can be heard far away, but when paying close attention to it, it’s clear the noise is female screams. In the first twist in The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, it’s revealed that Gottfried and Martin kidnapped, tortured, sexually abused, and killed many young women for years, and Martin continued doing so after Gottfried’s death. Martin took Blomkvist to his torture chamber in the basement, and it was a very hidden place – hence why the screams sounded so far away.

Martin confessed his crimes to a restrained Blomkvist and told him he had a woman locked in a cage while they had dinner with his partner. The question that remains is how the chamber was suddenly opened during dinner, but it’s a subtle but important (and disturbing) clue to one of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo’s twist reveals.

Anita Gave Her True Identity Away When She Met Mikael

Anita Let One Detail Slip While Talking To Mikael

Luckily for Blomkvist, Lisbeth also discovers Gottfried and Martin’s past and arrives right on time to save him. Lisbeth chases Martin on her motorcycle as he flees in his car, but he runs his car off the road and hits a propane tank, causing an explosion and killing him. Although Martin was guilty of many deaths, he didn’t kill his sister, and the second twist in The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo was that Harriet was alive, and Blomkvist actually met her while interviewing the members of the Vanger family.

Blomkvist was told by Cecilia, Henrik’s niece, that her sister, Anita, lived in London, but she never spoke to her. Blomkvist traveled to London to talk to Anita, who told her about Harriet and what she was like. Anita spoke about Harriet’s father calling him a drunk, and Blomkvist asked if he was abusive. Anita said “mine?” and Blomkvist corrected her as they were talking about Gottfried. It’s revealed in the third act of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, after Martin’s death, that Anita was actually Harriet, so she subtly and unintentionally let it slip during that first conversation with Blomkvist.

Anita Vanger was Harriet’s confidante and she helped her escape, as she knew all the abuse she had gone through with Gottfried and later Martin. Anita smuggled her off the island and let her use her identity (as she married in secret) in London while she continued using her birth name. Anita and her husband died years later in a car accident, and Harriet continued using her identity.

What Happened To Harriet Vanger After The Girl In The Dragon Tattoo

Harriet Vanger Went Through A Lot

Martin’s death allowed Harriet to return to Sweden and reunite with Henrik after decades of hiding from her abusive brother. Fincher’s The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo ends Harriet’s story with her tearful reunion with Henrik, but the book expands a bit on what she did next. Following her return to Sweden and Henrik learning the truth, Harriet was brought in as the CEO of the Vanger Corporation, replacing her brother, and later took over Henrik’s duties as co-owner of Millennium.

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

Based on the award-winning novel by Stieg Larsson, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo follows journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) as he searches for a woman who has been missing for 40 years. Along the way, he makes an unexpected ally in Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara), who is a computer hacker and survivor of a traumatic childhood. The film is directed by David Fincher and won an Oscar in 2012 for Best Achievement in Film Editing.

Release Date

December 21, 2011

Runtime

158 minutes