Lest the title bring to mind a certain blonde bewigged alter ego of an oft-troubled Southern siren, don’t let the name fool you. This ain’t no Disney princess. This Hanna is a one-woman army, trained to fight and kill a man- or woman, as the case may be- in plenty of impressive ways.
The pre-naturally mature and evocatively-named Saoirse Ronan (“The Lovely Bones”) plays the titular girl, who has been raised by ex-C.I.A. agent Erik (Eric Bana, of “Hulk” fame), who may or may not be her actual father. In addition to teaching her hand-to-hand combat and weapons training, Erik has home-schooled Hanna in all manners of subjects and taught her to speak any number of different languages.
After a certain point, Hanna begins to ask questions, and Erik isn’t very forthcoming, but does let her know what her main objective will be: to avenge her mother’s wrongful death at the hands of C.I.A. agent Marissa (Cate Blanchett). All Hanna need do is activate a device and the C.I.A. will come for her, but once she does, there’s no turning back.
Hanna activates the button, of course, or we wouldn’t have a movie, and that sets the film in motion. After infiltrating the C.I.A. headquarters from within, Hanna sets about her task. Before long, she is on the run with Marissa and her goons after her at every turn.
In a particularly effective role, Tom Hollander (the last two entries in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise) plays the lead thug in charge of finding Hanna, a blindingly blonde Aryan Nation Euro-trash type who literally whistles while he works and has a hermaphrodite girlfriend!
Providing much-needed levity is a family Hanna tags along with, including Olivia Williams (“Dollhouse”), Jason Flemyng (“Clash of the Titans”), and, most amusingly, Jessica Barden as their tween daughter, Sophie, who befriends Hanna and teaches her a thing or two about popular culture- and boys. It’s a fine cast, top to bottom, and everyone brings their “A”-game, no matter how small the part.
The film also marks the second collaboration between Ronan and her “Atonement” director, Joe Wright, for which she was nominated for an Oscar. That film, a relatively staid English drama, is like night and day in comparison to “Hanna.” You’d never guess it was the same director, in fact, so different are the respective styles of each film.
“Hanna” is like a cold, hard diamond, all sharp edges and austere visuals, with the notable exception of a colorful sequence set in what appears to be a rundown, mostly abandoned fairy tale-themed park for the final showdown between Hanna and Marissa.
Adding to the proceedings is the first-ever score by techno luminaries the Chemical Brothers, who follow in the footsteps of the likes of Daft Punk (“Tron: Legacy”) and recent Oscar winner Trent Reznor (“The Social Network”) in forging a secondary career in film scoring. It’s an effective piece of work, perfectly complimenting the film with angular, forward-moving beats during the action and warm, inviting synths during the mellower moments.
The score definitely holds its own in the Chemical Brothers catalog as a potential stand-alone listening experience, which cannot be said for all film scores. There’s something about techno-pop that lends itself well to the telling of certain stories (think the “CSI” franchise) and “Hanna” is no exception.
Also worth noting is the lush, if mostly stark set design. Hanna’s escape from the government facility is especially eye-catching, and as aforementioned, that final scene is visually stunning, what with the surreal gingerbread house and the tunnel leading out of a huge plaster wolf’s gaping maw.
Kudos also to Alwin Kuchler’s beautiful cinematography, which is lushly photographed, despite the often bleak settings, which also include a Moroccan village and a snowy field in the film’s arresting opening sequence, which animal lovers may want to skip.
Ultimately, though, the film belongs to Ronan, who, despite her diminutive frame, is never less than convincing as the butt-kicking heroine of the movie. There’s a fantastic scene where a guy tries to put the moves on Hanna and she puts him in his place with astonishing quickness and fluidity, eliciting both awe and laughter in the viewer.
Though the film could have benefitted from a little more levity of this sort, for the most part the tone of the film is dead-on, just like its heroine. This is a tight, compact little thriller that mostly never lets up in its intensity, down to literally the final frame, which is admittedly a bit abrupt. If you like action that revolves around a female protagonist, skip the disappointing “Sucker Punch” and give “Hanna” a shot. You won’t regret it.
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