“The film focuses on visceral and propulsive action centered around a female special ops agent named Mallory Kane (Gina Carano), who is described as the best in the business. The cool thing is, the audience is asked to believe this fact simply because the other characters in the film say she is the best – and they don’t have to watch her be brutally beaten, raped or otherwise assaulted in order to make her “prove” it.
As played by Carano – the world’s top female MMA star making her acting debut – Mallory knows how to shoot a gun, but is far more impressive at beating, kicking, running long distances and dismantling her opponents with stunning hand-to-hand combat moves. And Soderbergh also admirably one-ups “Dragon’s” Fincher and the rest of the falsely feminist forces behind “Dragon” by trusting newcomer Carano to hold her own against and/or beat the tar out of veteran male movie stars, including Michael Douglas, Antonio Banderas and Ewan McGregor.” — Feminism in Film: Why ‘Haywire’ Trounces Torturous ‘Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’
by Carl Kozlowski