Hanna

Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Eric Bana, Cate Blanchett, Vicky Krieps, Olivia Williams, Jason Flemyng
Directed by: Joe Wright
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action, Thriller
2011

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A young girl (Saoirse Ronan) is raised by her father (Eric Bana) to be the perfect assassin. She is hunted by a deadly agent (Cate Blanchett) determined to destroy her.

Review:

Tim: Hanna is an interesting movie that happens to be both impressive and disappointing at the same time. I am impressed a movie like this was made, and that it doesn't try to do too much. This is a film that has lots of action and suspense, but it feels small and contained. I liked that. However, the movie is also disappointing because it could have been a lot better. The movie makes some odd decisions, and the middle of the film feels like it meanders and gets completely lost. I wanted to like this movie more, but couldn't. So, with all this back-and-forth, in the end, the movie is good, but not much more than that.

I liked the basic premise of the story. We have a rogue agent, played by Eric Bana, who raises his girl to be a perfect assassin. The past comes back to haunt them, and the two go into action mode. It's a fun idea and an interesting story. However, I also felt like I was missing something in this film. There was a lot of talk of the back story- of events that occurred before the movie began. As the film moves forward, we learn more and more about the previous events. However, even by the end of the film, I felt like the back story was unsatisfactorily explained. It kind of made sense, but it felt a bit forced and silly. It felt a little disjointed from the tone and feel of the rest of the movie. I felt like the movie talked about things that weren't fully explored within the movie itself. I suppose they were keeping something for the sequel?

The cast is very good. I was very much impressed with Saoirse Ronan. She gives an incredible performance for such a young actress. I was surprised with how mature and tough she seemed in this film. There's certainly no limit for what she can do in her career if she reaches her full potential. I really like Eric Bana, and I have to say he did good work here. However, I never felt like this was the right part for him. He has a few terrific moments (the subway scene is spectacular), but I wanted him in more of a starring role and less of a supporting player. I also felt a bit confused as to why Cate Blanchett took this part. It certainly isn't her worst turn as a villain (I'm looking at you, Indiana Jones), but it wasn't overly impressive either. As with Bana, it felt like Blanchett was doing someone a favor by appearing here.

The story is good, but it's certainly not great. I thought it was bizarre how the movie seemed to get off track in the middle. The scenes with the family in the camper went on way too long, and it wasn't clearly explained how that all ended up. I understand that these scenes were important to develop the character of Hanna and help her connect with humanity, but they didn't do that good of a job. They were a bit boring, and felt like they were holding the movie back. The movie gets back on track near the end, thankfully.

Hanna is an interesting movie, and I appreciated how it tried to be a different, more thoughtful action film. It still had some pretty big plot holes (for as much as her father gets her ready, Hanna does some pretty stupid things) and the script needed to be tighter. However, I liked the movie, and overall, it's pretty good.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 7



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Atonement, Munich, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull