'The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest'

If you're unfamiliar with Stieg Larsson's best-selling "Millennium" novels, it's probably best not to start with the third and final film adaptation, "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest." Like a midseason episode of "Lost," it's for those already captivated by the story.

It picks up where the last film left off, almost in mid-scene, with goth-punk computer-hacker Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace) recovering from a gunshot wound while middle-aged journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) hunts for evidence to clear her of murder charges. He will uncover a rogue government cartel; she will face her evil half-brother, Ronald Niedermann (Mikael Spreitz).

Larsson, a journalist who wrote novels mostly for his own pleasure (he died before seeing them published) can be a clumsy plot mechanic, and "Hornet's Nest" sometimes plays out like a personal fantasy. Alter-ego Mikael saves the day before anyone even gets in trouble, while Lisbeth becomes a kind of teenage superhero, donning her choker-chains and mascara like a cape and mask. As for their age-inappropriate romance, it's more convincing now that it's over.

Still, the sheer novelty of the characters - and the jarring violence the movies are known for - make "Hornet's Nest" reasonably compelling. An American remake of the first film, "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," is planned for release next year.