Giovanni's Movie Review: HAYWIRE

It’s only been a few months since Stephen Soderbergh’s last film, Contagion, passed through theaters. The sparse, scientific film polarized audiences, many of whom were lead to believe it was a bio-thriller in the vein of Outbreak. Simply put, Soderbergh is an unconventional filmmaker, uninterested in normal techniques. But that’s what’s made his movies so appealing, offering a fresh take on the medium unseen in major Hollywood films.

His latest film, Haywire will certainly please the unusual filmmaker’s fan base, but isn’t likely to win him any new ones. It’s a genre movie, action in this case, complete with all of the auteur’s signatures: non-linear storytelling, intentionally disorienting editing, and sleek stylization. But perhaps most characteristic of Soderbergh, it also features a simple story: Mallory Kane (mixed martial artist Gina Carano) is a freelance operative working for the government. After a seemingly basic mission in Dublin goes wrong, Malloy suspects that she’s been betrayed, and decides to hunt down the men who set her up. It’s a story about deception that deceives the audience into believing things are more complicated than they seem.

While the film doesn’t deliver huge ideas, it’s Ocean’s Eleven style makes for a highly entertaining experience. The playful tone, filled with subtle wit, adds lightness to the story. As a result, it doesn’t feel like a film that takes itself too seriously, setting it far ahead of most ‘super soldier’ movies, which try so hard to be smart that they often forget to be fun. Interspersing satisfying brawls and chase scenes in with the laid back story turns out to be a solid recipe for entertainment, boiling the genre down to its fundamentals. Its scale is tiny in comparison to a film like Inception, but that’s what makes it so refreshing. It’s a twist on an incredibly tired genre that goes back to square one and forges a different path.

But what’s an action movie without a good protagonist? Like the plot, Mallory is simple but just enough to make her worth rooting for. She’s been betrayed, and she refuses to sit back and take it. More importantly, she can do something about it. In a restless society demanding action be taken against injustice, Mallory is a perfect hero. She stands up to the bad guys, beating them down without breaking much of a sweat. Even though Carano isn’t as good an actress as she is a fighter, her character is strong enough, representing for the frustrated everyman and their desire to confront problems head on.

Stopping right around at the 90-minute mark, Haywire is careful not to overstay it’s welcome, which is a wise move. Nowadays, it feels as if every movie pushes the two-hour mark, stuffed with excess. Soderbergh understands the basic functions of the genre, working out a concise cinematic experience. It may feel alien to some, but this is the core of all action flicks, presented in a nicely stylized, no-fluff package. Sit back, relax, and enjoy some good old fashioned revenge.