Took in the 5:45 p.m. screening of "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest.," and I was surprised at how many people were in the Magic Lantern's larger house. There may have been 60-65 people there, which is a lot better than usual.

As for the film, well, it's a fitting end to the series, which includes "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" and "The Girl Who Played With Fire" (all three of which were released in the U.S. in 2009). Based on Stieg Larsson's trilogy, the three films are a set. Unlike many trilogies, though, the only one of these films that stands alone is the first one.

I don't say this as criticism. I enjoyed "Hornet's Nest," even if it was abridged to the point of being almost a Cliff's Notes version of what Larsson put on the page. It's just that I can't imagine anyone understanding what is going on without having seen the first two films.

In short, Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace) is in the hospital, recovering from bullet wounds to her brain, shoulder and hip. Meanwhile, her father -- the ex-KGB agent -- is down the hall, threatening to spill all his secrets to the media. Bad move.

A second later, he's sporting a hole in his forehead, Salander and Mikael Blomkvist's sister are crouching in a bathroom, and the investigation into the past -- both Salander's and Sweden's -- is about to begin.

Unlike the first film, and much of the second, "Hornet's Nest" doesn't feature a whole lot of action. Director Daniel Alfredson (who also directed "Fire"; Niels Arden Opley directed "Dragon Tattoo") keeps the film going, even though most of it involves Salander in the hospital, Blomkvist running from his apartment to the office and the Swedish authorities trying to cover everything up.

As in the other films, Rapace is riveting as a young, abused woman who doesn't trust easily and for whom the simple act of giving thanks is harder than figuing trigonometry. Michael Nyqvist, who plays Blomkvist, is a little tattered around the edges -- of course, he is supposed to be running himself ragged by trying to prove Salander's innocence.

The best way to see "Hornet's Nest," of course, is just after having seen the others. That would be my suggestion.

It'll be playing for at least the next week. You'll have lots of chances.

Below: The trailer for "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest."