Hanna [M]

In the frozen woods of Germany lives a teenage girl named Hanna and her father Erik. Being raised by her father, an ex CIA agent, Hanna has the strength and stamina of a soldier, and her upbringing and training has been to make her into the perfect assassin. The turning point in her adolescence is a sharp one, as her father sends her out into the world on a special mission. Stealthily, she makes her way across Europe, at the same time eluding agents dispatched to capture her by a ruthless Intelligence agent with secrets of her own. As Hanna gets closer to her target, she faces startling revelations and unexpected questions about her existence. 

I’ve had customers give this film a real bad wrap and apparently, in some newspaper, it made it onto the Worst Films list. WHAT? WHY? I will admit that there were some things that were a bit um and hmm, but ultimately, I really liked this movie. I found it intriguing, rollicking, dramatic, and heartfelt, all at the same time. 

In the frozen woods of Germany lives a teenage girl named Hanna and her father Erik. Being raised by her father, an ex CIA agent, Hanna has the strength and stamina of a soldier, and her upbringing and training has been to make her into the perfect assassin. The turning point in her adolescence is a sharp one, as her father sends her out into the world on a special mission. Stealthily, she makes her way across Europe, at the same time eluding agents dispatched to capture her by a ruthless Intelligence agent with secrets of her own. As Hanna gets closer to her ultimate target, she faces startling revelations and unexpected questions about her father and her own existence. 

I think, that there is much more to this film than initially meets peoples eye. On the surface, it’s an action film: agents chasing other agents and assassins and the like. But there is so much more to it than just that! There is the deeper story of Hanna growing up and, during her time abroad, discovering things that she has been denied for many years. The film touches on some very mature and relative themes such as isolation, sociality, and that awkward stage of adolescence, and I think it’s important to remember in this film that Hanna is not an adult, she is only a teenager, halfway through that dramatic gear-change, and for her entire life, she has lived in frozen solitude and isolation with only her father for company. She has strong wants and desires and needs, and it’s important to remember this before you slag off the film for whatever reason (I will say that I have not read the reviews as to why this film was so bad, so I am willing to accept that there may be some groundless arguments made here). 

I found this film incredibly interesting because it harbours no real climax. All its action and drama was at a consistent level the entire way through. The other thing that I found interesting, and that I liked, was the fact that it ends on a climactic note, but not closure, almost similar to the style of A Clockwork Orange. 

Not to mention that the film's soundtrack, done by The Chemical Brothers was equally as engaging. 

Special applause has to be given to Saoirse Ronin! She’s a great actress and I was completely transfixed by her from the very first frame. 

Starring Eric Bana, Tom Hollander, Paris Arrowsmith, Jessica Barden, Olivia Williams, Jason Flemying, and Cate Blanchett, Hanna was a great film packed with action, drama, murder, suspense, and underneath all that, heart. I thought it was really good and I would recommend it. 

I just missed your heart