HANNA
CAROLINE: Hanna is a new action-thriller that re-teams Saoirse Ronan and director Joe Wright, who made Atonement.
RYAN: I’m so bummed I couldn’t make this screening with you!! I love Saoirse and even more, I love me some Cate Blanchett.
CAROLINE: Yes, I think you would have liked it. I liked it a lot – didn’t love it – but thoroughly enjoyed myself.
RYAN: It’s not often we see a movie about a teenage girl trained to be a killer.
CAROLINE: Seriously! And I wouldn’t have necessarily thought of Saoirse Ronan for this role, even though she’s such a good actress. But she’s totally awesome at the badass stuff, and even speaks multiple languages in the movie.
RYAN: And her dad is played by Eric Bana?
CAROLINE: Yes; him and his very large sticky-outie ears. He’s not in the movie as much though. Cate Blanchett is fab, of course.
RYAN: I worship her. She can do no wrong in my eyes.
CAROLINE: It’s an interesting movie because so much more goes on than they show in the trailer. There are tons of scenes of Hanna outside the woods where she lives, but they barely show any of that in the ads. She winds up trekking across Europe and meets up with this other young girl, who’s totally hilarious. You’ll recognize her mom as Olivia Williams, who was so great in An Education.
RYAN: I didn’t realize there was anything beyond Cate Blanchett, Eric Bana and Saoirse.
CAROLINE: Exactly my point. No need to give away the plot but there’s some fun and almost creepy stuff beyond what you know from the trailer. One dude is Clockwork Orange scary, and his track suits reminded me of Uma Thurman in Kill Bill.
RYAN: I feel like it’s the kind of movie that has a big twist at the end.
CAROLINE: Honestly, not so much. I was kind of expecting one, but the payoff wasn’t quite as great as I’d hoped. And I didn’t love the ending. It’s fine, but a little silly.
RYAN: Hmm… maybe that’s why it’s an April release instead of a summer blockbuster or a fall movie.
CAROLINE: Could be. It’s certainly no Atonement in terms of quality, but it’s very well shot and highly entertaining. And the music is beyond perfect! The score is by The Chemical Brothers, and it couldn’t be better suited for the movie. You notice it in every scene, and sometimes it’s jarring; but in a good way.
RYAN: Well, I don’t know that I’ll rush out to see it in the theater, but I definitely want to see it at some point.
CAROLINE: I guess it’s not a total must-see on the big screen, especially if you’re not into violence, but I really liked it and think you would too. My jaw was dropped during many scenes. You just can’t believe what this little girl is capable of. It’s pretty amazing.
— BOTTOM LINE —
CAROLINE: I dug this movie. It’s not perfect, and I was hoping for a bigger reveal, but it’s still very entertaining, fast paced and exciting. The action is great and the scenery is really cool, especially at the beginning when they show how she lives in the Arctic wilderness. Saorise Ronan is just phenomenal. It’s not a movie you’ve seen before, which is nice since so much of what we see today is derivative. If you can handle seeing a young girl play a trained assassin, you will no doubt like this movie.
— RATING —
