Black WidowIf you don't come to terms with your past, it will forever haunt your future. Black Widow is a superhero action movie about an untold episode in the life of one of the Avengers, Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson), a.k.a. "Black Widow", and is chronologically set in-between Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War. On the run from U.S. Secretary of State Thaddeus Ross (William Hurt) for violating the Sokovia Accords, Natasha receives a mysterious package from another "Black Widow" and erstwhile childhood "sister" named Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh). In it is something that recalls a terrible part of their shared past--the "Red Room", where they were trained to be killers, and the evil overlord of the program, a man who Natasha thought she killed many years ago: General Dreykov (Ray Winstone).
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A Black Widow movie had been in development for many years before this film was released--almost twenty, it would seem. Ultimately, it would not be made until after the capstone Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film, Avengers: Endgame. (Warning: spoilers for Endgame to follow.) Since Natasha sacrifices herself to secure one of the Infinity Stones in Endgame, this meant that a Black Widow movie starring Johansson would probably have to be a prequel of sorts. which Black Widow is. Furthermore, this movie makes a point of exploring Natasha's past, not just as a highly skilled, ex-KGB assassin, but as a child soldier raised to believe that she was disposable. A prologue to Black Widow details an episode that took place in Ohio in 1995, which at first depicts an innocuous suburban life for a husband, wife, and two daughters. However, it soon becomes clear that this family is really a sleeper cell for Russian agents working for Dreykov. The parents are really Alexei Shostakov (David Harbour), a.k.a. the "Red Guardian" (a Soviet "super soldier") and Melina Vostokoff (Rachel Weisz), another Black Widow; the children are younger versions of Natasha (Ever Anderson) and Yelena (Violet McGraw). After they perform a daring escape and land in Cuba, the children are drugged and shipped off to the Red Room, where Natasha's conditioning continues and Yelena's begins. An opening credits montage--set to a cover of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Think Up Anger--shows rapid imagery of terrified young girls being forcibly pressed into vans and internment camps, then indoctrinated via cartoons and juice boxes, alongside archival photos and video of politicians and warfare. It is at this point that Black Widow sets the stage for a movie that is less concerned with galactic adventure and technological marvels than one which purports to explore the human cost of Cold War era deception and covert ops, as well as human trafficking and enslavement.
Following the prologue, Black Widow shows how the savvy Natasha misdirects Ross and makes good on her escape to Norway, trying to keep under the radar. However, when her contact and clandestine supplier, Rick Mason (O-T Fagbenle), brings some letters (and the movie's "MacGuffin", a set of red luminescent vials of anti-mind control mist), things change. She is targeted by Dreykov's personal elite agent--called "Taskmaster"--to retrieve the vials, because they pose a threat to his operation. Natasha figures out that none other than Yelena sent these to her, hoping that Natasha could use her Avenger contacts to try to do something with the medicine, unaware that at that time the Avengers were essentially disassembled. Natasha returns to Budapest and encounters Yelena; after a brutal fight, the two team up and embark on a mission to locate the elusive Red Room and stop Dreykov by getting the "family" back together again. It soon becomes clear that there is bad blood between this fabricated family. Natasha and Yelena hold Alexei responsible for turning them over to Dreykov after the end of their mission, while Alexei feels betrayed by Dreykov for tossing him in a Siberian gulag after the mission so as to make sure that no one else could reveal the nature of their top secret mission over twenty years ago. Ultimately, all of them have their own reasons for seeing Dreykov pay for his crimes, and Natasha essentially forms her own post-Soviet team of trained spies to infiltrate the Red Room, becoming a leader in her own right.
Black Widow seems almost predisposed to distance itself from being a superhero movie in favor of being an "action spy" movie instead. Of course, these have been popular since the days of James Bond, and it wouldn't be out of place to describe it as a movie from the "Bourne" series, either. There are car chases, the daring exfiltration of Alexei by helicopter--where not even an avalanche can stop it--gun battles in free fall, explosions, martial arts, and so much more. In an effort to counterbalance these occasionally outlandish and adrenaline-saturated set pieces, there are moments that intend to explore the sisterly relationship being cultivated between Natasha and Yelena, including a comical conversation about the tactical vest Yelena wears--the first piece of clothing she ever bought for herself--and Yelena teasing Natasha over her signature action pose. Black Widow shares a lot with other female-led spy action films in recent history, from Atomic Blonde to Red Sparrow, the latter of which seems to have been deliberately modeled after (or at worst, even plagiarized from) none other than the character of Black Widow herself. Given the extensive amount of time it took before Black Widow was made, it may very well be that this movie might have come across as more original without the presence of its predecessors. However, Black Widow wears its inspiration on its sleeve a bit too proudly, and feels almost achingly like The Bourne Identity or contemporary action movies, and is almost obsessed with trying to top those movies by featuring even wilder action pieces, while still managing to explore a more personal side of Natasha. Subsequently, this movie feels a bit like it's trying too hard to be something to everyone, which is unfortunately a common criticism of the superhero genre. Dreykov is arguably the worst example of this attempt to be "more Bond than Bond", since he represents an antagonist who is little more than a stereotype of the sneering, sinister Soviet mastermind of a secret brainwashing project. (I wanted to call him "Boris" in every scene, but that would have been too "Rocky & Bullwinkle.) Like any "interquel", Black Widow is forced to spin a compelling yarn, while not violating the canon of the larger framework that it is forced to operate within. Unfortunately, this often leads to a story where viewers familiar with the bigger story of the MCU can never feel truly invested, as it feels like nothing that takes place will have any meaningful impact on the protagonist. And Taskmaster is far removed from the Marvel Comics counterpart, to the point that the character's inclusion seems solely to justify having a super-special villain for Natasha to fight with at the film's climax. Black Widow wants to tell a personal story, but isn't also patient enough to let this sense of camaraderie with Yelena or her pseudo-parents feel authentic enough--and it ends up feeling more like what it really is instead: just a "passing of the baton" to a new actress to play Black Widow in future MCU films.
Recommended for: Fans of the Marvel superhero movies who are interested in seeing a story about Black Widow. There is plenty of action and suspense, so there is nothing patently wrong with Black Widow since it was made for fans of the character or this style of filmmaking. It just seems a shame that the stakes are too low to matter because it was necessary to make this prequel fit neatly into the MCU.
Following the prologue, Black Widow shows how the savvy Natasha misdirects Ross and makes good on her escape to Norway, trying to keep under the radar. However, when her contact and clandestine supplier, Rick Mason (O-T Fagbenle), brings some letters (and the movie's "MacGuffin", a set of red luminescent vials of anti-mind control mist), things change. She is targeted by Dreykov's personal elite agent--called "Taskmaster"--to retrieve the vials, because they pose a threat to his operation. Natasha figures out that none other than Yelena sent these to her, hoping that Natasha could use her Avenger contacts to try to do something with the medicine, unaware that at that time the Avengers were essentially disassembled. Natasha returns to Budapest and encounters Yelena; after a brutal fight, the two team up and embark on a mission to locate the elusive Red Room and stop Dreykov by getting the "family" back together again. It soon becomes clear that there is bad blood between this fabricated family. Natasha and Yelena hold Alexei responsible for turning them over to Dreykov after the end of their mission, while Alexei feels betrayed by Dreykov for tossing him in a Siberian gulag after the mission so as to make sure that no one else could reveal the nature of their top secret mission over twenty years ago. Ultimately, all of them have their own reasons for seeing Dreykov pay for his crimes, and Natasha essentially forms her own post-Soviet team of trained spies to infiltrate the Red Room, becoming a leader in her own right.
Black Widow seems almost predisposed to distance itself from being a superhero movie in favor of being an "action spy" movie instead. Of course, these have been popular since the days of James Bond, and it wouldn't be out of place to describe it as a movie from the "Bourne" series, either. There are car chases, the daring exfiltration of Alexei by helicopter--where not even an avalanche can stop it--gun battles in free fall, explosions, martial arts, and so much more. In an effort to counterbalance these occasionally outlandish and adrenaline-saturated set pieces, there are moments that intend to explore the sisterly relationship being cultivated between Natasha and Yelena, including a comical conversation about the tactical vest Yelena wears--the first piece of clothing she ever bought for herself--and Yelena teasing Natasha over her signature action pose. Black Widow shares a lot with other female-led spy action films in recent history, from Atomic Blonde to Red Sparrow, the latter of which seems to have been deliberately modeled after (or at worst, even plagiarized from) none other than the character of Black Widow herself. Given the extensive amount of time it took before Black Widow was made, it may very well be that this movie might have come across as more original without the presence of its predecessors. However, Black Widow wears its inspiration on its sleeve a bit too proudly, and feels almost achingly like The Bourne Identity or contemporary action movies, and is almost obsessed with trying to top those movies by featuring even wilder action pieces, while still managing to explore a more personal side of Natasha. Subsequently, this movie feels a bit like it's trying too hard to be something to everyone, which is unfortunately a common criticism of the superhero genre. Dreykov is arguably the worst example of this attempt to be "more Bond than Bond", since he represents an antagonist who is little more than a stereotype of the sneering, sinister Soviet mastermind of a secret brainwashing project. (I wanted to call him "Boris" in every scene, but that would have been too "Rocky & Bullwinkle.) Like any "interquel", Black Widow is forced to spin a compelling yarn, while not violating the canon of the larger framework that it is forced to operate within. Unfortunately, this often leads to a story where viewers familiar with the bigger story of the MCU can never feel truly invested, as it feels like nothing that takes place will have any meaningful impact on the protagonist. And Taskmaster is far removed from the Marvel Comics counterpart, to the point that the character's inclusion seems solely to justify having a super-special villain for Natasha to fight with at the film's climax. Black Widow wants to tell a personal story, but isn't also patient enough to let this sense of camaraderie with Yelena or her pseudo-parents feel authentic enough--and it ends up feeling more like what it really is instead: just a "passing of the baton" to a new actress to play Black Widow in future MCU films.
Recommended for: Fans of the Marvel superhero movies who are interested in seeing a story about Black Widow. There is plenty of action and suspense, so there is nothing patently wrong with Black Widow since it was made for fans of the character or this style of filmmaking. It just seems a shame that the stakes are too low to matter because it was necessary to make this prequel fit neatly into the MCU.