Haywire

Gina Carano definitely had a “haywire” moment in this movie, and honestly, I think I experienced a mental glitch while watching it too. Gina is fantastic—I don’t think I’ve seen a tougher woman on screen who can kick ass from start to finish so flawlessly. Not just kick, but she runs, fights, and moves with such grace. She’s the main reason I started—and finished—the movie. That said, the film has an artsy vibe. Soderbergh doesn’t handle action in the typical explosive way, but instead with these minimalistic, almost static scenes where Gina just wrecks people. The subtle soundtrack felt more fitting for something low-key than a high-octane action flick. At times, it reminded me of The American with Clooney, but The American had a stronger story and made better use of its setting. Most of Haywire takes place in Dublin, and honestly, if I didn’t know that, I wouldn’t have guessed. It was a bit of a letdown in that sense, but Gina carried the 93 minutes with ease, and that’s what kept me entertained. (07/08/2012)

Haywire wants to be a stylish thriller with a cool heroine, physical action and a clever plot. Instead, it’s just stylish inanity that takes itself too seriously, is too unnecessarily complicated to be a proper chill-out movie and the main character is a violent cold-blooded lesbian about whose fate you don’t really care. A strange pulp hybrid. (25/11/2012)

Steven Soderbergh is a director who is able to attract stars of the silver screen for his films. The same goes for the film "Haywire". Michael Fassbender, Michael Douglas, Ewan McGregor, Antonio Banderas, and even Channing Tatum are actors who have already made a name for themselves, some of which will never be forgotten. None of them have enough space in the movie because the attention is focused on the main character, Gina Carano, a fitness instructor and martial arts specialist. It is evident in the action scenes, they are tough, animalistic, and perfectly executed. And not only thanks to Gina, but also thanks to the other actors. The trailer, where Gina confronts Michael Fassbender, clearly shows that the action aspect is excellently developed, the choreography simply works. But that's all there is to it. Soderbergh presents us with a story that is incredibly small and simple. From a person who made all the "Ocean's" movies and also the excellent film "Contagion" from the same year as "Haywire", I would simply expect more. The random connection with the young man Scott, to whom the main character actually tells everything, is, in my opinion, unnecessary and does not have any proper justification. In the end, it is just an ordinary film about how a tough agent wants to find out what happened, why she was betrayed, and then, of course, seeks revenge. There is no big action finale either. Soderbergh took it as a break and critics will give it good ratings just because it's Soderbergh. This is just bad. More: http://www.filmovy-denik.cz/2012/07/runaways-rok-jedna-nedotknutelni-johnny.html (22/02/2013)

Soderbergh goes against expectations once more - although that was actually expected - and offers a simple fable in which the plot comes last. The schematics of the director's rendition of the secret agents and even more secret leaders evoke in me a mockery of the rules of the genre rather than its adoration. I'm no film scholar, so I don't have to do any digging into it. I was entertained by the clear action scenes, dominated by Gina Carano's physical abilities, and Soderbergh's unorthodox approach. So when Holmes' bizarre music plays during the hostage liberation scene, which evokes cheap spy themes, I sank into my seat and rode on a fully positive wave until the end. PS: I'd damn well change places with Fassbender in the leg choke scene. (14/03/2012)

Everything but cliché. An excellent film that you need to learn to like. Gina Carano is an incredible fighter and the action scenes are amazing, in my opinion better than in the Bourne trilogy; they are dense, believable, physical. You can feel MMA with every second. Packed with stars, but only on the surface. Soderbergh plays incredibly well with the given genre and essentially shows everyone the middle finger. Many people won't appreciate this film, but a few will really like it. (28/04/2012)