Posted by Russian assassin returns home to spend some quality time with her fake family as they take down an evil organisation
This is it. This is the movie that was supposed to kickstart my return to cinema before I received an unlimited card as a gift. I’m a bit of a MCU fanboy, so if you’re looking for a review that pokes holes in every aspect of this movie – tough! Haters gonna hate and all that. I mean, check out my socks!
Saying that, I had to book and cancel tickets for this movie several times, due to England progressing further than I thought they would in the Euros. Was it worth it? Well, football didn’t end up coming home and it’s all still a bit raw so I’m not going to go there.
Before I continue, I’m not going to hold back talking about spoilers in this movie. You’ve been warned.
Black Widow picks up after the events of Captain America: Civil War (2016). “Our” Black Widow, Natasha, is on the run from the U.S government. Whilst running, she is pulled into a plot by her fake adopted sister, Yelena, another Widow and product of the evil Red Room where Natasha was trained. They intend to take the Red Room down and stop the production of more Black Widows under the control of bad guy, Dreykov. Along the way Natasha and Yelena are joined by their fake adopted parents; dad Alexei, also known as the Red Guardian – basically a Russian Captain America, and mother, Melina – a former Widow herself.
The core family of characters are very likeable. Alexei was the standout for me, with his dad bod and super strength. His arc was quite interesting in that he’s this guy who has superhuman strength and used it well in his heyday, but then was tasked to go undercover as a father of a young family leaving him frustrated and missing those earlier thrills in his life. I can relate to this a bit. Sure, I don’t have the superhuman strength (yet), but it’s like any parent whose priorities change when they are to look after their family as opposed to going out and getting drunk every weekend. By the end you see Alexei’s determination to do right by his family. Similarly, as much as I sometimes miss the days before becoming a father, nothing compares to the happiness I feel with my daughter – I wouldn’t change it for the world.
Alexei’s over the top personality was the main source of comedy in this movie but take nothing away from Yelena. She is equally as funny with her dry wit – her take on Natasha’s superhero poses makes for a good laugh. Melina too, works well. At first you question her loyalty, but by the end family wins out. Given Natasha feels so lonely in Avengers Endgame, it works well to know there was more of her family out there that I’m guessing she lost during the blip.
Despite Marvel movies essentially being superhero movies, this movie didn’t really feel that way. It may be because Natasha doesn’t really have any superpowers, she’s a trained killer that comes good. Therefore, this is more spy thriller territory. In fact, you can make a lot of comparisons to a James Bond movie – they even feature Natasha watching James Bond on her laptop – so it’s pretty in your face what this movie is trying to be.
The James Bond link is especially apparent with the villain, Dreykov. A powerful man sitting in his evil lair trying to take over the world with technology and henchmen (or henchwomen) at his disposal. The more I think of it, the more it reminds me of Dr Evil from the Austin Powers series of movies. There’s one scene where Dreykov leaves the room to let his Widows take care of Natasha. Surely logic would say you should just grab a gun and finish the job yourself!
The reveal of the Taskmaster being Dreykov’s daughter ended up being a little on the predictable side too as the movie played out. There was so much more they could have done, like it could have turned out to be a clone of Natasha, though maybe that’s my fault for reading too many fan theories before the release of this movie and therefore having expectations that were too high. Isn’t the Taskmaster a game show or something too? A link to that could have made for a better twist… And that’s the reason I’m not a screenwriter.
The timing of this movie’s release is a big issue for me. Firstly, there’s the fact that this is released after Black Widow’s death in Endgame. I don’t think Marvel anticipated the popularity of the character and therefore didn’t deem it necessary for a standalone movie until they realised it was too late and her death was already on the cards. I know they have a roadmap, but surely they could have adjusted it to suit. In my opinion this movie would have been much better released in place of Captain Marvel. Captain Marvel didn’t really feature all that heavily in Endgame, and just came along when the plot required. It’s as if Marvel were trying to push for a female hero when they had one all along that they chose to neglect. It would have been more appropriate to have the first Marvel female superhero movie being based on the first female Avenger. With it coming so late, I half expected Black Widow to come across forced like the scene in Endgame where all the female heroes unite. Now, I have no issue with a Marvel female team up movie, but that scene really makes me cringe. It’s as if Marvel tried to prove they have a wealth of female heroes and therefore it didn’t feel natural to me. Thankfully, this movie doesn’t feel forced in the same way. Although you can’t escape the point of an evil male villain controlling females and thus getting his comeuppance.
Another issue with timing is how Black Widow is the movie to kick off Phase 4 of the MCU. It seems odd as the movie doesn’t really take the overall MCU plot forward. Granted, there’s the post-credit scene setting up the Hawkeye series, even then, it seems that isn’t enough for this movie to start the new MCU saga. What it is, is a fitting send off for a character that deserved a movie far sooner than this. Having realised what they missed with their mishandling of the Black Widow character, it seems Marvel are now going to capitalise on the popularity of the character by replacing her with a new Black Widow in Yelena. To be fair that came across in the trailers for this, and I have to say I’m not against it having seen the movie. With all these Widows running around the world, Marvel now have the insurance of introducing new Black Widows whenever they need. A conveyor belt of Black Widows if you like! Or you may just get another scene like Neo vs multiple Agent Smiths in The Matrix Reloaded.
Finally – I was amused at the reaction of the guy sitting near me who gasped at the post-credit scene showing Natasha’s tombstone saying “OMG, she died?!”. I guess it’s an assumption on my part that people would have seen Endgame and a few other MCU movies before seeing this. I’ll get off my MCU high horse now.
Verdict
The big question going into this movie was: Is it necessary given Black Widow’s fate in Endgame? Honestly, as much as I enjoyed the movie, I feel it really would have benefitted from being released 4 years ago. We know where Black Widow’s arc ends, and this doesn’t really add anything to it aside from introducing characters that may feature in future MCU material. But all the same it’s a movie the character deserved.