The action film “Hanna” tells the story of a 16-year-old girl, Hanna (played by Saoirse Ronan), who lives in hiding with her rouge government operative father (played by Eric Bana.) Together, the two live off the grid in a harsh Finland arctic environment where Bana teaches his daughter to speak several languages, hunt with a bow and arrow, and to defend herself when that inevitable day comes when her growing curiosity about the world (informed largely by an encyclopedia and some Grimm fairy tales) finally inspires her to leave home. When she finally does leave, she discovers that the real world can be a bit harsher than her fairy tale version of it led her to believe as she finds herself being pursued by other government operatives (led by Cate Blanchett) who will stop at nothing to apprehend her (for reasons she will learn later.) In order to survive, she becomes a full-on killing machine who proceeds to decimate any operative scum who threatens to get in her way.
If the plot feels like a familiar mash-up of “Leon: The Professional”, “La Femme Nikita”, the “Bourne” movies, and “Kick-Ass”, it is, but only on a surface level; but it is not what a movie is about, it is about how it goes about it. Joe Wright’s “Hanna” goes about it in all of the exciting ways. It has a surprising amount of sophistication, particularly in how it reflects the Grimm fairy tales into aspects of its plot. But at its heart, the film is really a coming-of-age story about a young woman who must rely on her wits, and her ability to adapt to changing environments ("adapt or die" her father instructs her), in order for her to, not only survive, but to continue to grow and invent herself as a young adult (to survive the sometimes harsh realities of life, in general.) It's not exactly John Hughes, but the movie is thematically much richer than it's mash-up plot would lead one to believe.
“Hanna” was directed by Joe Wright (director of “Pride & Prejudice” & Atonement”) and this time he leaves his period costumes at home in favor of a big bucket of buttered popcorn genre movie excess! In “Pride” & “Atonement” he displayed a beautiful visual style (there is an awesome long continuous take camera shot that explores a post D-Day battle field in “Atonement”!); now, he takes that visual style and uses it to energize his action sequences with a tremendous amount of style. He also finds a way to employ more of those long-continuous takes in the action scenes (a great example is Bana’s fight with several men in an underground parking garage.) In addition to his great visual style, Wright also brings a warm human touch into how he handles the complexities of a character like Hanna. Unlike a lot of modern action directors who would've had her in a skimpy outfit firing machine guns before the end of the first reel, Wright seems to have far more respect for his character than that. Yes, she does kill a lot of people in various ways, but she is also allowed to possess real intelligence, particularly in her curiosity for the brand new world she is inhabiting.
"Hanna" also boasts an impressive cast: Saoirse Ronan does a terrific job balancing a starry eyed innocence for the world around her with a savage ability to dispense brutal violence without any sign of remorse (disturbingly, she has probably been sheltered from this emotion as part of her training.) She also has some very nice scenes in which she discovers electricity, boys, and friendship. Eric Bana also does a good job balancing the sweet, caring father with a penchant for dispatching anyone who might threaten his daughters life. Cate Blanchett continues her streak of great character performances by playing a truly cold villain; one with a smooth southern charm and a frightening lack of humanity. At times her performance seems to be chewing the scenery. However, it is such tasty looking scenery!
On the heels of two amazing musical scores from fellow industrial/electronic artists Trent Reznor and Daft Punk (“Social Network” & “Tron: Legacy”), the Chemical Brothers bring their own unique musical style to their original score of “Hanna”, and it is quiet brilliant! Their music works wonderfully with the amped up visuals and even brings a surprisingly playful tone to some of the non-action scenes. I downloaded it last week and it has continued to play in heavy rotation on my IPod.
Overall, I really liked “Hanna”! Like Kevin Smith’s “Red State”, this is a genre film that took me by complete surprise. It proves that a solid action movie can still be made without it having to be completely mindless. Also, like Hailee Steinfeld showed just a few months ago in the Coen Brothers' "True Grit, Ronan proves that a young actress can still hold her own in a genre typically dominated by male action heroes. Not that there is anything wrong with showing off the physical assets of very attractive people, but it is nice to see an action movie starring a young woman whose sole function is not objectified as just eye-candy with a hand gun.
Movie Theater Experience:
I saw “Hanna” at a 2pm show at the AMC in the Eden Prairie Mall. This would have to be one of my favorite movie theaters! It includes a long, long hallway full of beautiful illustrations of movie icons, and also crisp and clear digital sound & projection. I highly recommend a visit to this theater!
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