Bullet Points: Black Widow (2021)
Thanos was not enough to beat the MCU but where he failed the Coronavirus succeeded. Yes after delay after delay Phase 4 is finally back (on the big screen). Black Widow is in theatres and on Disney Plus Premium Gold Ultra for $30.
- Housekeeping: To those maybe not as deep into the MCU you may be wondering “But wait Black Widow died in Endgame how does this make any sense” well some housekeeping. Black Widow takes place in between Civil War and Infinity War while most of Team Cap is either on the run or imprisoned in The Raft. Black Widow while on the run ends up facing the demons of her past and her family…
- Better Late Than Never: While yes it is a little late I am still pleased Scarlett Johansen was given the chance to headline a Marvel movie and while the pandemic did take some of the wind out of it sails it is nice to see her get this chance. In regards to the grand scheme of the MCU and it’s direction you could almost call this phase 3.5. Really only the post credit scene does any set up for the next phase but it is nice to get some closure to Natasha Romanov. Starring alongside Scarlett is newcomer to the MCU Florence Pugh who plays her sister Yelena and heavy hitters Rachel Weisz and David Harbour. They play her parents for lack of a better term and they both are fantastic especially Harbour who is the witless father only he is also a secret Soviet Super Soldier named Red Guardian. He is hilarious in the film constantly comparing himself to Captain America and what could have been. Since Stranger Things, Harbour can play the lovable drunk oaf that you care about well. Its a role that is not easy to play as he is somewhat of a piece of crap both as a father and person but Harbour makes you care about him and root for him hoping he can pull it together for his family and that they will forgive him of his trespasses. For me the show is stolen by Pugh’s character Yelena. She is every bit the match for Natasha and since knowing her pre Avengers is not impressed or fooled by the celebrity and cult hero she has become. She even busts her chops about her super hero landings which is one of the funnier bits of the film. The 4 make the perfect broken family, it is messy, tough and in some cases maybe not even real but in this world of lies, deceit and shadows it is the best any of them have.
- Gray Area: BPA often has to tow the line a bit when we review these big SuperHero films, sure they are action but maybe in a separate gray area. Black Widow is probably the most pure action of the movies and fits right in to the BPA landscape. It’s like the Jason Bourne of the MCU with a little bit of super hero magic thrown in. Minus the third act the rest is pretty grounded action with car chases and close quarters fight scenes minus a pretty good prison break scene that uses some topographical features in ways we have never seen in a prison break. The action is non stop with just some brief breaks for the family to reconnect. As Marvel films go where now we are accustomed to ensembles and so many characters it is hard to keep track this movie keeps it pretty basic down to a few key characters we follow along the way.
- Taking Me To Task on Twitter: But no action movie is complete without it’s bad guy and the Taskmaster will be a pretty polarizing character in MCU circles. Maybe not as bad as the Mandarin from Iron Man 3 but I can see the neck beards really getting up in arms over this one. I mean I’m sure someone on twitter will tell me they REALLY care about the Taskmaster but honestly… who cares about the Taskmaster. This film is about Natasha and her story and they just need someone to be slightly stronger than a faceless thug to fight her a bit and it serves that purpose. The bigger bad she does end up facing is much more personal to her and interesting anyway so I’ll see you guys on Twitter (its @RyCamN7).
- Farewell Natasha: Black Widow serves as the real final goodbye to one of the key players in the MCU’s establishment and while it is a little late to the party it is well worth your time to close the book on Natasha Romanov. Thank you for your cooperation.
