I watched this movie on DVD on 6.25.12. There are quite a number of scenes of violence. It's definitely not for the weak stomached. My general impression is very positive.
The story is that of a young girl, the titular Hanna, raised to confront the murderous spy types who want her for themselves.
I referred to this one to a friend of mine as a "Wes Andersen" action film. This quality of writing, pacing, and acting led me toward a 9.5 initially. This compares with 21 Jump Street and The Freebie, but the issue for me, the reason this movie is not all 9.5's, is the ambiguity of the ending. No spoilers here, but the whole of the fates of every character not explicitly killed is completely up in the air. Mind you, lots of death, but there are plenty of ambiguities left at the end. It begs for a sequel by its nonchalance about closure, but one is not imminent. This is terribly damning for me from a wit standpoint.
I don't want to forget to rave on Saoirse Ronan or the rest of the fantastic cast. Saoirse never seems to let up. After Atonement, The Lovely Bones, and The Way Back, I can say that she is one of the most consistent actresses I've seen in a while. She can be subtle and loudly, violently open within a few breaths. I'll try not to go on and on. She's amazing.
Eric Bana is also heavily underrated. Hulk was panned despite brilliant performances by him, Jennifer Connolly and Nick Nolte. I also just learned while writing this that he started out as a stand-up comic and had his own sketch comedy show. A man of many talents. I could mention that Cate Blanchett did quite well, but her consistency seems hardly worth mentioning. Tom Hollander and Jessica Barden give very impressive performances for minor characters. Tom is a genuinely scary, even creepy sort of guy in this film. Jessica, playing a spoilt British teenager named Sophie, legitimately steals the show at times.
As for wisdom, it also takes a hit from the open-ended lack of clarity. The violence with little regard to consequences brings up questions of legitimacy and collateral damage in the attempted right use of violence. That said, it feels good to me, in the same way Inglourious Basterds did. It could have been a 9.5, but so much is left to the imagination.
Wonder is easily 9.5. I'm avoiding giving it 10 from caution, but it looks fantastic and music is used ingeniously. Music works its quiet magic in contrasting the loud real world with the near-silent snowy woods. Oh, who cares? I'm going to give it a 10 on second thought. It deserves it. Well, I hope anyone who sees it enjoys it and if you studio types read this, My rating could be greatly improved by a sequel.
I referred to this one to a friend of mine as a "Wes Andersen" action film. This quality of writing, pacing, and acting led me toward a 9.5 initially. This compares with 21 Jump Street and The Freebie, but the issue for me, the reason this movie is not all 9.5's, is the ambiguity of the ending. No spoilers here, but the whole of the fates of every character not explicitly killed is completely up in the air. Mind you, lots of death, but there are plenty of ambiguities left at the end. It begs for a sequel by its nonchalance about closure, but one is not imminent. This is terribly damning for me from a wit standpoint.
I don't want to forget to rave on Saoirse Ronan or the rest of the fantastic cast. Saoirse never seems to let up. After Atonement, The Lovely Bones, and The Way Back, I can say that she is one of the most consistent actresses I've seen in a while. She can be subtle and loudly, violently open within a few breaths. I'll try not to go on and on. She's amazing.
Eric Bana is also heavily underrated. Hulk was panned despite brilliant performances by him, Jennifer Connolly and Nick Nolte. I also just learned while writing this that he started out as a stand-up comic and had his own sketch comedy show. A man of many talents. I could mention that Cate Blanchett did quite well, but her consistency seems hardly worth mentioning. Tom Hollander and Jessica Barden give very impressive performances for minor characters. Tom is a genuinely scary, even creepy sort of guy in this film. Jessica, playing a spoilt British teenager named Sophie, legitimately steals the show at times.
As for wisdom, it also takes a hit from the open-ended lack of clarity. The violence with little regard to consequences brings up questions of legitimacy and collateral damage in the attempted right use of violence. That said, it feels good to me, in the same way Inglourious Basterds did. It could have been a 9.5, but so much is left to the imagination.
Wonder is easily 9.5. I'm avoiding giving it 10 from caution, but it looks fantastic and music is used ingeniously. Music works its quiet magic in contrasting the loud real world with the near-silent snowy woods. Oh, who cares? I'm going to give it a 10 on second thought. It deserves it. Well, I hope anyone who sees it enjoys it and if you studio types read this, My rating could be greatly improved by a sequel.
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