Marvel’s Black Widow lacks bite

Marvel Studios

It’s been a very long time coming, thanks to the pandemic, but Marvel’s first female-led solo film is finally here, but was Black Widow worth the wait?

The story finds Natasha Romanoff withdrawn from the Avengers after that family spat way back in Captain America: Civil War. As she’s trying to live a life off the grid and free from superherodom, she’s drawn into intrigue when she is attacked one night by someone or something, but the creature in question isn’t looking for her, it’s looking for a package Natasha unwittingly received from … her sister, which contains vials of a glowing red liquid. Now Natasha has to travel home to Budapest to find her sister, bust her father out of prison, and team up to fight Dreykov, who has been creating his army of ‘Widows’ from a structure floating high above the planet, to take over the world. Natasha doesn’t really want to be involved but the revelation that someone she thought dead is still alive, and the bond that she’s re-developing with her sister, drags her into the action.

Black Widow has been long-awaited since Marvel has traditionally relegated its female superheroes to secondary status, taking this long to give Natasha her own movie (perhaps shamed into doing it after Warner Bros. and DC beat them to the punch with Wonder Woman). And the wait was exacerbated by the pandemic which doesn’t help the film’s timeline. In fact, it’s really odd that Marvel is referring to this as the first film in Phase 4 since it fits chronologically right after Civil War and long before Endgame. It’s just weird to roll back so far at this point in time knowing what’s coming (and the film’s post-credits scene rockets us to a post-Endgame era (and also gives us the ‘surprise’ introduction of a character who ended up being introduced in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier because of Black Widow‘s delay). So, spoiler alert, is Natasha’s first solo film also her last? I don’t know, the whole timing thing is weird (not that Marvel hasn’t gone back and forth in the timeline previously, but this one is just so far off that it feels like a film produced only to make people shut up about Natasha not getting her own film before Captain Marvel did).

With that being said, Black Widow is … fine. It has some magnificent stunts and hand-to-hand combat, keeping the action pretty much grounded until the prison escape and last act set on Dreykov’s version of ‘Cloud City’ (and James Bond fans will immediately get the Moonraker references even without the Moonraker scene on the television to nudge them along … in fact, the whole conclusion seems completely lifted from the space battle finale of Moonraker), but the story is just … blah. Scarlett Johansson is also fine. She knows the character like the back of her hand and can play Natasha in her sleep, and sometimes it feels like she’s doing just that. The problem is she is completely overshadowed by Florence Pugh as her sister Yelena Belova (and they aren’t blood sisters as we find out in the film’s prologue, and for that matter neither are her parents).

Pugh is terrific, a much more magnetic presence who completely draws focus away from Natasha whenever they’re on screen together. And when they aren’t, you want the film to get back to her. (Which is fine considering she seems poised to be a continuing character in the post credits scene). And Pugh is joined in her scene stealing by David Harbour as their ‘father’ Alexei Shostakov, aka Red Guardian (who loves to regale his girls with stories of fighting Captain America). Harbour is hilarious and does lighten the mood, and thankfully does not go too far over the top. Rachel Weisz shows up later in the film with her complicated allegiances, and Ray Winstone does what Ray Winstone does best — plays an unforgiving and brutal villain. Also a character you want more of when he’s not on screen is Natasha’s ‘friend’/connection to get things she needs Mason, played by O-T Fagbenle. He seems to be the one person who can crack through Natasha’s tough exterior no matter how hard she tries to keep those walls up. Hopefully he will join Pugh in whatever Marvel has in store for her.

Black Widow is competently directed and produced with great action and visual effects (you don’t expect anything less from Marvel), and it’s got a great cast with Pugh, Harbour and Fagbenle getting the highest praise. Unfortunately, the timing is disconcerting and ScarJo just seems to be sleepwalking through her performance, while the story is thisclose to being a rip-off of Moonraker (which is my guiltiest pleasure when it comes to Bond films, so I know it very well). It just lacks the heart and soul of Captain Marvel because Natasha is a pretty cold character, especially as she does all she can to distance herself from the Avengers with a brief appearance by William Hurt the only real link to the MCU films (I suppose it will be interesting now to go back to Infinity War to see if there’s any reference at all to Natasha being absent after Civil War). I’m sure it will please Marvel fans who have spent the last year indulging their cravings with the Marvel series on Disney Plus, but the question is will it have the power to draw them back for repeat visits? That is the bigger question Marvel is facing.

Black Widow has a run time of 2 hours 13 minutes and is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence/action, some language and thematic material.