Hanna

Progressive, superb work by the director, an excellent soundtrack by The Chemical Brothers and a goodlooking cast meet a mediocre B-movie script. Hanna could have been the most intriguing action blockbuster of the year, if someone had bothered to back it up with a correspondingly interesting story. The story that it does have is no better than that of Salt, for example. Nevertheless, it remains a cool, dynamic experience. If Tom Cruise wished to truly revive the M:I series, he should have entrusted Ghost Protocol to Joe Wright! (07/09/2011)

This action B-movie/Grimm fairytale cross about a girl assassin in the hands of Joe Wright turns into a visual gem. His direction is perfect and when I say perfect, I mean precise in all ways. In places he raises Hanna into an art form. Such a pleasure to watch. The story suffers from imbalance. The sequence with the “normal" family should have ended up packed in a container at the port together with a couple of other things. Saoirse Ronan’s acting is flawless, as always. Eric Bana as her slugger dad manages to show his best moves even in the little room he get (the one-shot scene after getting of the bus is genius). I hated that whistling bad guy from the moment that he began to whistle that revolting melody, and Cate Blanchett didn’t do anything special in this movie. The action scenes were a joy to watch. Adapt or die. (06/18/2011)

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. (07/14/2011)

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. (10/29/2011)

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. (03/24/2013)