My expectations of Joe Wright's junior hitman movie Hanna were aligned by my memories of Luc Besson's Leon; an urban, small scale thriller/drama. But Hanna is so much more than I expected. It follows Saoirse Ronan's teenage girl, naive as she's grown up secluded from civilization by a protective father, yet highly educated and trained to kill.
It works on several different levels.
It's an offbeat coming of age drama set in the world of international espionage with Hanna's Dad, an always cool Eric Bana, letting her go her own way and unleashing Hanna on the outside world.
It works as commentary on the passage of our lives, from a protective upbringing with our parents and school, then leaving them to learn about the world through our own experiences, gaining new knowledge and perspectives about romance and family, and then dealing with the loss of our parents and eventually facing our own mortality. There's a spiritual element as well with Hanna seemingly ascending to a higher level of understanding about life and herself, before finally coming to terms with her own identity.
Another way to read the film is as a wider view on the assent of mankind from primitive man hunting animals with primitive weapons in the wilderness, through to the establishing of rudimentary townships, the discovery of science and electricity, to idealistic rural communities, and the descent into crumbling conurbations... before reminding us that in all mankind's progress, we still kill in a primitive way.
And then there's a very deliberate fairy tale quality as Hanna grows up in a Brothers Grimm inspired log cabin in the woods, is pursued by Cate Blanchett's 'wicked stepmother' character, and the climax takes place in a fairy tale theme park.
It's a deceptively simple tale with lots of depth that's made even better by some standout performances from Ronan, Blanchett and a barking Tom Hollander. For a guy who's mainly directed period drama or Oscar baiting dramas, Joe Wright handles the action and suspense expertly. And finally, The Chemical Brother's pulsating original score adds energy that no amount of Avid-farts could provide.
Like Hanna herself, this is a small unassuming movie that packs a punch.
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