Hanna is Joe Wright's foray into the spy-centered espionage genre, and it's a nifty revenge thriller with enough creative flourishes to distinguish it from the pack.  It's a great cat and mouse chase that, while isn't entirely balls to the walls action, has a quiet, relentless sense of urgency to it.

It's true, Hanna is something of a slow burn, as Wright relishes on centering on both the cinematography and the titular character herself.  Like "Atonement" and "Pride & Prejudice" before it, there are some truly breathtaking location shots, as we follow Hanna from the wintry wilderness of Finland, to a bustling, sun-baked town in Morocco, and then to a dreamlike representation of Berlin.  The action is also handled with deft clarity -- steadily tracked, with artful cuts and lighting techniques.  The sensibilities in style feel very 'Euro', which also carries over to the sophisticated use of music and sound effects.

Hanna herself is played with utmost excellence by Saoirse Ronan.  Ronan fittingly approaches the character with an icy cold demeanor, but also with feral curiosity.  Isolation causes a sense of culture shock when she is left to set out to the world on her own; she needs to keep her killer's instinct in check as she begins to discover what normal living is all about, and it's these assimilative moments that readily defines Hanna's character beats.  We discover that her rite of passage is just as much about the assassination mission as it is about coming of age, and it makes for an intriguing thematic idea.

The rest of the cast is equally good.  Eric Bana plays the hard-pushing mentor and caring father to Hanna, and he receives a number of terrific action sequences that showcases his paternal teachings in all its badass glory.  It's a great dynamic when he's roped in the hunt against Cate Blanchett's Marissa Wiegler, a CIA agent with a wicked, authoritative streak whom we're just as curious to know more about as Hanna herself.  And then there's the British tourist family that Hanna hooks up with, and they all have personable character ticks that prove to be an amusing foil for the girl.  Jessica Barden as the bratty, chatty daughter is a particular highlight.

Finally there's the Chemical Brothers soundtrack, which, like Daft Punk's Tron Legacy, is an ever-present entity in the film.   But while Legacy's score merely served as background dressing (albeit a really delectable one), what sets Hanna apart is that it almost feels as though the movie is conforming to the music, rather than the other way around.  The use of cues is so fluently utilized, so expertly blended into the screen's choreography, that they really are like characters in themselves.  I defy anyone not to be gobsmacked by the harmonious fusion of imagery and music during Hanna's escape from the CIA early on in the film; the way it accompanies the lighting and the masterful cuts is absolutely crazy.  In short, the score is loud, thumping, eccentrically fun, and even whimsical.

Hanna won't win points for originality, but it is solidly made, borrowing the best from both The Professional and the Bourne series.  The violence is pretty hard hitting for a PG-13 film, with visceral, impactful kills, and every shot fired feeling like it counts.  It comes off as something of a cold affair at times, and where I thought Source Code went on way longer than its ending should have allowed, it felt like Hanna would've benefited from a little more resolution.  Some folks may also raise an eyebrow at the allegorical use of Grimm's Fairy Tales as a plot device; it's not exactly subtle, but it does add a fairly unique texture to the story.

Glad you did a write-up on this one!

Hanna's one movie I've been wanting to hear about; it's probably the one movie that's (still?) out that I could really stand to see.

The whole concept of a man raising his young daughter to be an anti-government assassin is pretty intriguing.

The trailer really draws my interest, especially since Saoirse Ronan's playing a character much unlike anything she's done before. She doesn't look so cute and innocent in this film!

I've rather liked the Saoirse Ronan flicks I've seen, City of Ember (even if it's just for kids, and there's plenty of logic errors to speak of) and The Lovely Bones, I watched through at least 3 times, not least of which for the trippy CG effects, and the elusive, ethereal soundtrack. You don't get a whole lot of Hollywood movies that actually try to deal with the concept of death, or the afterlife on a serious, philosophical level.

Do I think she's a good actress? Well, I do think she fits well in the roles she's played...she is cute though, especially for someone her age! She is only 17...

I would have preferred more backstory to this, without it I felt I couldn't connect with the characters as much.  I think there was an article on io9 where they spoke with the director and he said he would have preferred no story at all in this.  I think that would have been a worse movie.

Looking forward to seeing this one! I'm always hesitant to trust trailers, but in this case they did look promising. Hopefully I'll be able to check it out later this week.