Review of Haywire (2011) by Quincytheodore — 23 Feb 2012

It's really true a director can make so much different in a movie. Steven Soderbergh lift Haywire from the near grip of B-movie to a decent spy flick. One of the appeals in this movie is Gina Carano, an MMA fighter who admittedly doesn't have much acting prowess but possesses the strength and speed, better than most stunt women. Haywire tells a story of a secret operative betrayed by her contacts which precede her going hulk on them. Think of it as Bourne movie starring female version of Van Damme in Ocean's Eleven style.

It's painfully obvious that Gina, while being the main protagonist, looks uncomfortable and forced. When she tried to be dramatic or serious, it got unintentionally corny. I think she needs more experience before sharing screen with the big names, but Soderbergh cleverly disguised it with great screenplay and cinematography. He balanced the scenes so veteran actors can take the lead or played the cameras to mask her weakness. It has proven effective as with plethora of talented actor (Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender, Antonio Banderas and Michael Douglas) its narrative went more towards stylish rather than cheesy.

The angle of cameras and jazzy jingle before next set piece reminded me heavily on Ocean's Eleven. He crafted it in clean and sleek fashion, without resorting of CG abuse or over-the-top action. Sequences play out in vivid motions, often with subtle yet captivating details. For example, in certain chase scene, the camera follows Gina as she ran across rooftops and streets with the enemies just behind her, continuously switching between them without losing focus. Background also serves as important parts, Soderbergh incorporated them in smooth style as it blended with the narrative and also engaged the audience.

With MMA fighter as the main character, it gives a lot of edge in combat scene. Most of the fights occur in fast pace and seems tremendously hurtful. Usually Hollywood movies flicker in and out of combat, creating illusion of intense combat or just blatantly abuse CG. This is not so in Haywire, Gina can handle herself very well, her stunts are powerful and unforgiving. You can clearly see the impact of the punches, knees and kicks, she really goes all out in the hurt department. In the first five minutes, Channing Tatum slapped her with coffee mug, tossed her to the ground and began ground-and-pound. It's the purest stunt this side of Chocolate.

While I like Soderbergh's style, I must admit that it relies on the audience piecing the story themselves. He switched from flashback to present, from one character to another, from once city to another as fast as Gina throws her punch, it can be quite convulted at some point. Cinematography is smart and polished, however sometimes it gets awkward when Gina isn't kicking some ass. She does look good though, her great physique is another point Soderbergh portrayed well. Ultimately it's a show case of great fights by a muscular woman with sophisticated B-movie cliche. 7.