When talking about Sweden, one might think about low-priced furniture and red-headed pig-tailed girls with a pet monkey.
For those interested in more than superficial associations, Tampa Theatre is offering quality Swedish cinema.
From Oct. 29 until Nov. 4, downtown Tampa’s only movie theatre is screening The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest.
After The Girl Who Played With Fire and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest is the third and final part of Stieg Larsson’s Millenium Trilogy.
Tara Schroeder, director of programming and marketing, has certain expectations for the picture’s opening.
“We did really well with the first two installments, so we’re looking forward to this one,” Schroeder said.
The series is based on Larsson’s novels of the same name, which were all published posthumously after his untimely death in 2004.
The trilogy revolves around Lisbeth Salander, a bisexual computer expert with a knack for profiling and a kickboxing girlfriend.
“The audiences for [The Girl With the] Dragon Tattoo were really interesting because there [were] a large number of book groups that came together. We saw a bit of the same with The Girl Who Played With Fire,” Schroeder said.
Cursed with a violent double agent father, the 12 year-old Salander longs to eradicate him and ultimately sets him on fire.
Naturally, the Swedish government isn’t very pleased with their employee’s actions and sends young Lisbeth to a psychiatric hospital.
After her release, Salander becomes a computer expert, making a living as an IT security expert.
Pairing her technical skills with her desire for justice, she fights the few bad apples that prevent society from prospering.
Like other writers, Larsson’s character development is based loosely on other characters.
The description of Lisbeth Salander is his version of a grown up Pippi Longstocking. The name Lisbeth originated from Larsson’s teenage years, during which he witnessed the rape of a girl by the same name.
This experience would shape his lifelong opposition towards domestic violence and provide him with abundant material for his novels.
Larsson’s premature death at age 50 prevented the author from witnessing his intellectual property ever being published.
The three aforementioned pictures were all based upon the books that were published the three years following his death.
The picture plays everyday at 7.30 p.m., with additional 1 p.m. and 4:15 p.m. screenings on Saturday.
The latter show time is also valid for Sunday.
Tickets cost $9 for adults and $7 for seniors, military ID holders and children age 2-12.
The 148 minute long picture is shown in Swedish with English subtitles.
JP Busche can be reached at jpbusche@spartans.ut.edu.