Hanna

I admire Joe Wright's work and I think that, despite his last two mediocre films, he's the greatest British talent of our time, but I just don't give a damn about delicate little girls who can beat up a guy a head taller and 50 kg heavier in hand combat. Such stupidly naive screenplays probably don't even belong in contemporary cinema (I hereby salute the 80s). (27/07/2011)

Insane. Fans of the American grand style and posing can watch Bourne or Mission Impossible 3. They are similarly “kinetic” films, but they are clear, linear, and much easier to grasp. Hanna’s problem is that it is sometimes on the verge of a paranoid thriller, which often turns into a hard-hitting action film interspersed with sci-fi elements. It has a British feeling, which I don't really like deep down. (28/10/2011)

The initial showcase of hunting in the style of native hunters built up my expectations, but the following scenes, where Hanna first demonstrates her murderous abilities, hit me like a cold shower. Then, after Hanna massacred the numerous inhabitants of the super-secret military base full of elite agents, my interest fell similarly to the mercury in a thermometer placed in a freezer. This film is not artsy or at least alternative-looking by intent or through its casting. Yes, Saoirse Ronan and Cate Blanchett belong to the top league within their generation of actors. But then what? The content is just as foolish as countless other action films produced purely for commercial reasons. I don't find anything original or intelligent in the film, the point feels like it's from a sci-fi C-movie, and some of the characters, such as the albino killer, relegate Hanna to the realm of pure trash. It takes itself too seriously to be a parody, and if Wright attempted to deviate from the usual genre paths, he desperately failed. Soderbergh went much further in Haywire, and yet he, too, only remained halfway. For me to take a film seriously, it must have a solid foundation and a plot - and in that aspect, Hanna loses on all accounts and only confirms my biases towards the action genre. So I categorically discard it. I'm sorry, Ronan, maybe next time. Overall impression: 10% for both actresses. (04/10/2015)

As a fan of Joe Wright, a huge weight has been lifted from my heart. After the surprisingly average Atonement, he finally proves that he doesn't have to have British history on his side and that he can also bring a "made-to-order" script to the screen with elegance and powerful impact. Hanna can be cold and distant like the Finnish wilderness, but within seconds can switch and suddenly become completely personal and filled with tension. When combined with the teenage perfectionist Saoirse Ronan and the rhythm of the Chemical Brothers soundtrack, he creates an experience that is hard to replicate. (13/07/2011)

So it seems to me that what attracted Joe Wright to Hanna was not so much the opportunity to film action scenes (not that he couldn't, not by a long shot), but rather the chance to plunge a girl with perfect encyclopedic, yet theoretical knowledge into the maelstrom of civilization and see whether she would make it or not. And that's what I liked most about the film. In the end, it wasn't so much about revenge, spies or super soldiers. I was most interested in the main character, played by the devilishly likable Saoirse Ronan, her getting to know the real world, getting close to people and so on. The music, I must say, was not great, but the visuals with long shots and many excellent scenes (both the fight scenes and human scenes, like the conversation under the duvet) trumped everything. (24/03/2013)