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Director Joe Wright has made a name for himself by directing big-name dramas with an undeniably art-house feel. His features have included two literary period pieces, Pride & Prejudice and Atonement, as well as an adaptation of the the challenging real-life drama, The Soloist. Obviously, Wright knows his way around dramatic adaptations—so it would probably be pretty safe to assume that he’d continue making them. But, instead of directing yet another artsy drama, he’s completely switched gears for his latest film, Hanna—a fast-moving spy thriller that’s both gripping and gorgeous.
Hanna stars Saoirse Ronan (who received an Oscar nod for her role in Wright’s Atonement) in the title role, as a teenage girl who’s spent her life in hiding, trained by her father, Erik (Eric Bana), to be a deadly assassin. After years of training, Hanna has decided that she’s ready to leave her home in the forest—knowing that it’ll mean being tracked by an American intelligence agent (Cate Blanchett), who will stop at nothing to capture her.
As Hanna’s father leaves her behind at their cabin, waiting for a team of intelligence operatives to come looking for her, he sets their well-rehearsed plan in motion. Even as they go their separate ways, though, the audience is kept almost completely in the dark about who they are and why anyone would be searching for them. Erik was once an American intelligence contact—until he went rogue and disappeared over a decade ago. The rest, however, is a mystery—both to the audience and, it seems, even to Hanna herself. And that mystery gives the story something for audiences to think about as its young heroine sets off on her deadly mission.
The rest of the film, then, is as fast-paced as a Jason Bourne chase movie. It’s also as gritty as a David Fincher thriller from the ‘90s (with a driving Chemical Brothers score to match)—yet it’s still as strikingly beautiful as Wright’s peaceful period dramas. The opening scenes, which take place in the snowy forests surrounding Hanna’s hidden home, are simply stunning—providing a pure white backdrop for the pair’s almost medieval living conditions. But it doesn’t end there. Hanna races through wonderfully diverse and distinctive settings—from dark, industrial bunkers to barren deserts and from Moroccan city streets to a run-down German tourist attraction. And, mixed with Wright’s clever camera work, these stunning visual delights alone make Hanna a captivating thriller.
Though it isn’t without a few nagging plot holes, there’s just so much to love about Hanna: its heavy, electronic soundtrack, its nearly non-stop action, its gorgeous cinematography—and, of course, its remarkable young star. At just 16 years old, Ronan already has one Oscar nod under her belt—and, with her show-stealing performance in Hanna, she makes it quite clear that her first won’t be her last. She’s simply stunning (not to mention seriously bad-ass) as Hanna—and she even manages to show up Oscar winner Blanchett, who seems surprisingly awkward in comparison.
Helmed by a deliberately dramatic director like Wright, Hanna could have been a beautiful but languid thriller—but the pacing is perfect, with plenty of action and mystery to keep audiences captivated. It may look like an award season drama, but it has all the action and thrills of a summer blockbuster.
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