For the digital age thriller Blackhat, director Michael Mann tackles the blockbuster head-on. Key factors include the nature of hacking, accessibility and government enforcement. Some critics have complained about Morgan Davis Foehl’s dialogue, arguing that clarity is lost. However, a basic understanding of malware should suffice.

Attacks on the stock exchange and a Chinese power plant look to be mere rehearsals, masterminded by an unknown cyber terrorist. To find him, the government requires the individual who wrote the code. Languishing in prison, Nick Hathaway (Chris Hemsworth) makes a deal for freedom which will only be honoured if he can locate the “blackhat” in time.

Hemsworth’s performance as James Hunt in Rush proved he had the requisite dramatic chops. With Blackhat, he’s blossoming into a dependable personality, one whose magnetic presence seems pretty unique. After all, it’s not every day that we get to see Thor hacking into the National Security Agency.

As for Wei Tang, she develops a believable chemistry with Hemsworth. Their love scene carries little of the irksome distraction which plagued Mann’s Miami Vice. Elsewhere, Tang’s emotional range varies from hopeless romantic to assertive strength. Every measure in between radiates authenticity.

Mann’s technique has evolved exponentially since the rigid, bloodless execution of Thief. The cracker-jack opening in Blackhat features a digitised glimpse inside a computer system just as viruses run amok. Memories of Tron linger momentarily only to dissipate once Mann’s singular viewpoint takes hold. Also, we see fingers typing away on a keyboard from the most unusual perspective. Clearly, Mann and cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh will put the lens anywhere to create a special look.

Overall, numerous moments of stunning economy transform Blackhat   into  an engaging, stylish thriller.

(Released by Universal Studios and rated "R" for violence and some language.)