Black Widow (***1/2)
In which a character we thought was dead turns out to still be dead
If there’s one thing the MCU doesn’t know how to do, it’s slow down.
First of all, I can’t tell you how hard it was for me to watch this movie. The weekend it came out, I was working at Lakeshore Camp in Cobourg. Theatres weren’t open yet, so I figured I’d shell out the exorbitant $35 and then gather the camp staff together for a socially distanced movie night. There’s no WiFi to speak of at the camp, so streaming the film in the space we wanted to use was out of the question. I figured I’d go and download the movie to my mobile device so I could cast it to a projector. The download worked great, but then to my horror and astonishment I learned that you cannot cast streaming services like Netflix or Disney+ from a mobile device to a larger screen. With the minutes ticking away until the staff was supposed to show up, I scrambled to get around this obstacle. Eventually, I figured out that my Mom had WiFi at her camp accommodation, and the signal was strong enough to reach an indoor space large enough to fit the staff safely. We grabbed all of our equipment, shuttled to the new movie spot, and got everything set up.
Just as the opening credits started to roll, I got a text from my wife that informed me some of her family had just shown up at the camp. Crushed that I wouldn’t be able to watch the movie opening night but relieved that I had at least made it possible for others, I left the room and spent the night with Jenna’s family.
That was Friday. On Saturday, Jenna and I were too busy with our baby to get the time to sit down and watch it. On Sunday, I was frantically preparing for the next week of camp. On Monday, we gathered my mother and sister together to try and watch it through their WiFi as before, but for whatever reason the signal was horrible that night, so we stared at a rotating circle for half an hour before calling it quits. I didn’t get to finally watch Black Widow until a full week after it had come out. After having already waited more than a year longer than anticipated, each day was like incessant torture. But hey – we finally got there, and I finally got to watch it.
Like its titular character, Black Widow is a film that often feels out of place. Natasha Romanoff has found her way into seven different films that didn’t have her name in them – and each time she’s found a way to carve out her own section of spotlight and earn the place she holds as one of the original Avengers. You’d think that now that she has her own film, this would be Black Widow’s moment of greatest triumph. But here’s the problem. This can’t be the beginning of Black Widow’s story, because we all know she died in Endgame. As a result, this is the first MCU film that (as far as we know) was never designed for a sequel. This also can’t really be her swan song, because her character already gave the ultimate sacrifice in Endgame. This is neither an origin story or a final act – and as a result, the final minutes of the film don’t really land for me. We’ll get to the bulk of the movie in a moment, but the whole plot’s relative insignificance when it comes to our heroine’s fate makes this movie feel improperly placed. I know we all waited for this movie much longer than we wanted to – but after watching this twice, I really think this movie would have felt more appropriate if we’d seen it back when its events were meant to have occurred.
If you can get around the fact that this movie doesn’t quite fit in its release date, though, this is a really fun popcorn flick – as most MCU films are. The cast is terrific and hilarious, with Florence Pugh and David Harbour being particularly memorable. They’re both wonderful characters, and together with Black Widow they create some great banter. Ironically, Black Widow doesn’t really end up as the star even in her own movie. Part of Natasha’s strength lies in the way she cuts the other Avengers down a notch with her quick wit and deceitful nature. But without the other Avengers around, she’s ended up losing her sarcastic remarks in favor of a hyper-serious persona. Maybe it’s this decision that allows Pugh to shine, because it’s her snide critique of Nat that makes her so lovable. It seems like we’re going to be getting more of Pugh’s character in the future, and I’m all for it. Just please give me more of the Red Guardian too.
It goes without saying that the MCU films have learned to thrive off of special effects and green screens. It comes with the territory – we’re dealing with characters with superhuman abilities, after all. But when this film got announced, I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who was expecting a more down-to-earth film. By that, I mean that I was expecting more practical stunts and actual death-defying acts, akin to the Bourne or Mission Impossible films. Sadly, the removal of super-powered characters did not remove Marvel’s need for super-powered action. I’m not knocking the action that’s come before, but I feel like this film would’ve really benefited from (and set itself apart by) incorporating authentic fight scenes and true-to-life action. It just felt like a missed opportunity.
But that aside, I’m still glad we got this movie. It was a fun ride, and it showed us a number of strong female leads who were able to escape the thumb of an oppressive male villain. Black Widow’s story looks like it’s over for good, but maybe the people we’ve met here will have more for us down the road.