The cast and director answer questions about which they believe was more challenging on the set of Hanna; fighting or working through the different accents. They decide the fight scenes win over staying true to the accents, hands down. In light of all the espionage movies out there, everyone is vying for that touch of realism.  Director, Joe Wright decided to enlist the help of a real master of espionage. Wright refers to his work as an Indie flick, not at all big budget Hollywood, not realizing he’s an “A-Lister” and with a top notch cast anything small he creates will not remain small for long.

Interviewer: what was tougher for you guys thinking up the fight sequences or your accents. Two different ones going at the finish I guess no problems? [AO Comment: Eric responds first, regarding his Australian and Saoirse’s Irish accent.]

Eric Bana: No, I mean were professionals (laughter) I mean we really don’t have much choice.…

Saoirse Ronan:  Yeah I suppose it was the fight to be continued, and also we, Joe said we used it a few times, but we did a lot of steady hand shots. And a lot of them worked with the fight scenes. So you’d have to get the moves right in one take and that’s tough.

Eric Bana:  It’s very rewarding at the same time

Saoirse Ronan: It really is

Eric Bana:  …because there’s nothing more frustrating than spending months working on some choreography that in the end the choreography was really unnecessary because we’re really just going to go and there and there. So many fight scenes in movies that are just a thousand little pieces that you don’t really have to be that physically adept to be able to do in the end….

Saoirse Ronan: It’s more like a dance then, I think– isn’t it?

Eric Bana:  it’s what?

Saoirse Ronan: It’s more like a dance it’s quite beautiful to look at. [AO Comment: Wright explains the films lack of big budget flare, even though the talent from within and the glimpse of the finished product is clearly an indication that big box office revenue will ensue.]

Joe Wright: But, ah, this is a film made on a kind of Indie budget.  It’s not a big kind of holiday action budget. And so that relates to schedule and there for you don’t have a few days to shoot an action sequence you’ve got a day. It kind of makes sense to rehearse those fights all day you know, on the set and shoot at the end of the day.

Interviewer: so uhm it seems like this is the year of the CIA examination with so many different films coming out. How would you describe your, the difference in your take or also what did you look into in terms of information about how it influenced or where you departed from the Bourne and other things. It seems like between the documentaries about the CIA and the features and the action features. This is the year for it.

Joe Wright: Uhm, Ah,In terms of our research, it was mainly Cate  and there was obviously research done by Seth and the writers. Then Cate Blanchett, who plays the CIA agent, was very keen to research agents and how they operate. And so we had a woman called Melissa? [AO Comment: Wright tries to remember the name of the agent who assisted them with the intricate details of espionage.]

Assistant:  Melissa Boyle Mahle, she was indeed a very successful secret operative.

Joe Wright: yeah and so she came over to Berlin and met with us over two or three days and I was terrified of what she told us. It was pretty scary. And She was a little bit scary (laughter). It’s a fantasy. You know it’s very much a fairytale fantasy. It’s not a critique of the CIAs activities.

Interviewer: no I didn’t think it was.

Photo Credit: Alex Bailey – 2011 Focus Features

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About the author

Erin Chavez
Erin Whitney-Chavez has been writing professionally since 2009. She obtained her Bachelor of Arts from St. Bonaventure University and received a Master of Arts in mental-health counseling from Argosy University. Erin Whitney-Chavez is a licensed mental health counselor and has worked in the mental-health field for more than 10 years.