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Black Widow

The fact that I'm not sure how I feel about Black Widow probably means the part of my brain that wanted it to be better is still fighting with the part that realises it isn't. And that pile of word spew is all down to my brain too. Just be thankful you don't have to deal with it on a daily basis. I'll try to unpack. I admire many, and quite like a few of the Marvel films. I have a Lost in Translation-based soft spot for Scarlett Johansson. I also trust Kevin Fiege and assorted minions to put together a cast and crew that know what they're doing. And so, I didn't walk into the cinema with any chips on my shoulders. But, but...I can't help thinking that this film, for all its good intentions, may have missed a golden opportunity. Setting this chunk of Natasha Romanoff's back story just after the end of Captain America: Civil War meant that the writers (Eric Pearson, Jac Schaeffer and Ned Benson) had references points, but basically carte blanche on where they could go, what they could do. It had a chance to be much more raw, more stand-alone, and maybe less formulaic. Instead we have one villain in Dreykov (Ray Winstone), who seems a faxed copy of many gone before, another villain in Taskmaster (NAME REDACTED), who isn't utilised well enough, and another - SPOILER AHEAD! - unfeasibly large structure falling from the sky. Honestly, it's getting silly, it's as though this Marvel mob have the Branson/Bezos/Musk affliction of Earth aversion.

Scars is as good as usual in the role, which has come a long way from the sexy aggression of Iron Man 2 and the many poster stances she had to strike in the past. There's a meta-piss-take from her sister, Yelena (Florence Pugh), complaining that she always does that 'thing with her hair and her arm' when she's getting ready to fight - calling her out as a poser. Pugh is pretty good, as are Rachel Weisz and David Harbour as the sisters' faux parents, Melina and Alexei. Aussie Cate Shortland directed this and the female gaze marks an improvement, especially for Romanoff's character. No more flinching, like in the first Avengers, instead there is a grudgingly warm relationship with her sister and attempts to reconnect with people. The theme of family runs deep through the Romanoff story, as does forgiveness and guilt, and here we get to know what happened in Budapest, a running motif between her and Hawkeye in previous films. On the note of guilt, this is one of the points where I think they chickened out, but to detail it would give away too much (we'll likely do that in the podcast though).

I've just read this back and I feel like I'm slagging it off a bit too much. It does do some nice things. The opening sequence from 1995 is well handled, as are the country hopping segments; from Norway, to Hungary, to Russia - it all feels a bit Bondy (maybe no coincidence Romanoff watches Moonraker in her caravan at one point). The showdown with Dreykov is satisfyingly reminiscent of a similar one with Loki in The Avengers, even down to a particular line (no, not the 'mewling quim'). And there's one particular scrap on a bridge, which stands out as a great example of how to block a fight scene. There are several call-backs to earlier lines or moments in the film (song, dog, upside down, whistle, even bioluminescence), and while I may be happy to countenance one or two, the number here just seems like smart-arsery.

To sum up, Black Widow was a fun enough watch and it was nice to see Scars in the role one last time. The end credit sequence leaves a few interesting possibilities re: Marvel's phase four slate of films (and TV shows) and I guess this was the fitting send-off that Romanoff's character deserved. I read somewhere that this was Marvel's Bourne Identity, and while that's utter bollocks, I can kind of see why the critic wrote that. It was set up to be this antidote to a behemoth, as Bourne was to Bond, but didn't quite administer correctly.

See also: All the Red Room stuff is quite similar to Red Sparrow (2018), directed by Francis Lawrence, and David Leitch's Atomic Blonde (2017) has some echoes, especially in the Soviet spying stuff.

A MULTITUDE OF SPOILERS WITHIN POD!

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