Hanna

[elski]

was this supposed to be a comedy? .. possibly a black comedy, although I didn't find it funny in a black comedy way except for a few of the intentional moments.

I tried to take it seriously for the first 5 mins and after that I gave up, I just started to find everything incredibly cheesey and funny (and so did the women sat in front of me going by their giggles). It's all style and no substance where you don't care about who lives or dies as they haven't done anything to make you care. The only people I did care a little about were the travelling family. It reminded me of films which have come from video games... and again surprisingly get's a 12A rating even thought there's loads of violence & killing.

I was a bit disappointed as I was expecting something like Leon.

5.5/10

[Preston1990]

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Directed by Joe Wright.
Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Cate Blanchett, Eric Bana, Jason Flemyng, Tom Hollander, Olivia Williams.

Plot: Hanna (Ronan) is a teenage girl. Uniquely, she has the strength, the stamina, and the smarts of a soldier; these come from being raised by her father (Bana), an ex-CIA man, in the wilds of Finland. Living a life unlike any other teenager, her upbringing and training have been one and the same, all geared to making her the perfect assassin. The turning point in her adolescence is a sharp one; sent into the world by her father on a mission, Hanna journeys stealthily across Europe while eluding agents dispatched after her by a ruthless intelligence operative with secrets of her own (Ms. Blanchett). As she nears her ultimate target, Hanna faces startling revelations about her existence and unexpected questions about her humanity.

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[kevinknapman]

Really loved this. A bold imaginative action thriller/fairytale with a fantastic central performance from Saoirse Ronan.

Brilliantly directed by Joe Wright, it's a strikingly and often beautifully shot film. Wright is very good at making a virtue out of a lower budget than is usual for an action film by filming in an almost loose improvisational style. Admittedly this makes the narrative a little scrappier than is expected for a thriller but Wright's ability to make the best of any situation is clearly apparent.
The action sequences themselves were exciting, tense and efficiently shot. From Hanna's escape from imprisonment, to the brief but effective scene where Erik (Bana) first catches up with Marissa (Blanchett) and Hanna being chased around and over shipping containers, Wright rarely puts a foot wrong. The best sequence however and one that will be remembered for years to come is the scene done in one take where Erik gets off a bus, walks through the bus station and enters the subway before being attacked and defeating several CIA heavies. It's also a brilliant example of Wright's knack for using the low-budget and time constraints to his advantage. Unable to shoot coverage, Wright had to do it one take out of necessity. It may look like a film-maker showing off but it isn't.

I really enjoyed the fairytale/story book allusions littered throughout too. From Red Riding Hood to The Wizard of Oz via Pinocchio, for the most part these are nicely done and not over-played. Only in the abandoned Brother's Grimm amusement park set climax is it overdone a little too much with Blanchett emerging from a tunnel in the shape of a wolf's head and a gingerbread house gift shop.
Thankfully, though all this could have been a bit too grim (no pun intended), there's some great comic relief along the way. Things pick up when Hanna meets motormouth teen Sophie. Celebrity and sex obsessed, she gives a glimpse of the life Hanna could have had which leads to some quite touching scenes between the two. Plus you get the added bonus of Olivia Williams amusingly trendy progressive mother and Jason Flemyng's long suffering father.

As for the acting, Saoirse Ronan is outstanding, dominating each scene she's in and managing to make a teenager trained to kill a surprisingly sympathetic figure. Eric Bana is fairly low-key but very good as the father. Cate Blanchett veers a little towards caricature but makes an effectively hissable villain, the big bad wolf to Hanna's Red Riding Hood (or even Wicked Witch to Hanna's Dorothy). Admittedly Tom Hollander's tracksuit wearing hired killer is perhaps an odd quirk too far but it sort of fits in with the surreal fairytale quality of the film. Jessica Barden, Williams and Flemying are very good too.

Oh and The Chemical Brothers soundtrack is fantastic as well.

Admittedly Hanna won't be too everyone's tastes. It's odd touches and quirks may well put a lot of people off. Personally I thought it gave the film an interesting and unique feel. Oddly dreamlike and not entirely logical perhaps but it's not often you see a mainstream studio-financed movie that's willing to take as many risks as this does. It doesn't always pull it off but it's fascinating to watch. That somebody was willing to give Wright the opportunity to make a film such as this (especially after the disappointing and compromised The Soloist) is something to celebrate. Imperfections and all.

[hopeprince]

Saw this at Croydon Grants today, the screen was almost full. Simple story embellished with great acting, thrilling action and art direction and pulled beautifully together by the original soundtrack. Expectations were high, the performances were very good, but the story does wear thin at the end, and I found myself wanting to experience a bit more of the social ineptness of the title character, but all in all a really fun thriller that plays it's cards well. 5/10

[Celini]

Saw this yesterday... I did not find it funny
Nicely shot and edited; the soundtrack is literally driving the movie -I loved this very much-

Kate Blanchett as a despicable character did not do it for me though and I was a little bored/disappointed by the slower pace at the end; I did not like the ending very much either!

But still, I will give it a good 7.5/10

[Mesa7719]

Went to see this yesterday at The O2 with boyf. He actually thought it was a good film. I myself enjoyed it, but felt too that the story wasnt strong enough, I can see what they were getting at, but thought perhaps a higher rating would have allowed for a few more gritty moments. I thought Saoirse Ronan was excellent as Hanna and it made me giggle to see Tom Hollander as the baddie. I just kept thinking of him in his position as Rev. Cate Blanchett great as always.

[soonforgotten]

This really did seem like a long music video. Usually a film's score underscores what is happening on-screen. Here the reverse is often true. It was enjoyable in ways, but less so in others. More often than not, the music didn't work for me and that's going to reduce how much I like this type of film. Saoirse Ronan was brilliant as always. I really look forward to seeing how her career progresses. The rest of it was hit & miss. The story itself is pretty thin and I didn't feel there was a lot of effort put into concealing that fact. I do wonder if the goal was to make a sort of modern day fairytale. The viewer is essentially left to simply b*y into the premises presented by the film, or not. There isn't much done by the filmmaker to convince the viewer to suspend their disbelief, which could either be taken as a stroke of brilliance or as laziness. If making a fairytale was the goal, I think the tone should have been clearer and instead of going over the top in small measures here and there, it should have been stronger throughout the film.

This is definitely an interesting film to watch and I'd see it again just to study it a bit more, but I wouldn't feel compelled to go out of my way for that or b*y it on blu-ray. Most likely, I'll have forgotten about it within a week. 7/10

[mandmc10]

was this supposed to be a comedy? .. possibly a black comedy, although I didn't find it funny in a black comedy way except for a few of the intentional moments.

I tried to take it seriously for the first 5 mins and after that I gave up, I just started to find everything incredibly cheesey and funny (and so did the women sat in front of me going by their giggles). It's all style and no substance where you don't care about who lives or dies as they haven't done anything to make you care. The only people I did care a little about were the travelling family. It reminded me of films which have come from video games... and again surprisingly get's a 12A rating even thought there's loads of violence & killing.
I was a bit disappointed as I was expecting something like Leon.

5.5/10

I was also very surprised by the 12A rating , right from the very beginning!!! I was SO glad my child decided not to go at the last moment and I invited a friend instead. Kids under 12 may well end up with the nightmares Less blood, etc would actually make this film better and more enjoyable for most people, I think. BTW the trailer for Hanna was really misleading, I saw the trailer in the cinema couple times recently before 12A films! and thought it's an action film OK for older kids...(8+?) IT'S SO NOT! Also 5/10 for me....

[zoerobertson]

I saw Hanna last night at Croydon Grants. Haven't been to a preview there for a while and was surprised to see the cinema full. My son loved the action and Tom Hollander as the over-the-top baddie with the wardrobe full of stylish tracksuits and white shorts, even to the extent his new catchphrase of the day is "Run little piggy". He thought the film was more deserving of a 15 certificate (he's 13....). I loved the fast paced action and the soundtrack complemented well, though I did worry about my eardrums at times. Must be getting old!

8/10 from me for the great acting and the travelling family who provided some excellent comic relief.

[hdaniel82]

Saw this at the BFI last night in their big NFT1 screen. OH and I really enjoyed it, very pacy and tense - Saoirse Ronan is really a fantastic actress!

8.5/10 from us