Black Widow Review

Black Widow

Dir: Cate Shortland

Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh, David Harbour, Rachel Weisz, Ray Winstone, and O.T. Fagbenle

2 hr 13 min

 

In the Marvel Universe, we've seen a teenage web-slinger, an ancient god with a mythic hammer, a millionaire with a technologically advanced suit of armor, and a super-soldier whose strength and speed are beyond any other human. Finding a normal human amidst these superhumans is always interesting, especially one that can hold its own without gamma-ray modification, radioactive spider bite powers, or advanced machinery. 

 

Natasha Romanoff, alternatively known as Black Widow, is a talented spy and deadly assassin. She was trained from childhood in a top-secret Russian training program known as the "Red Room," a program that takes young women and turns them into elite assassins known as "Black Widows." She eventually abandoned the group and joined The Avengers. Natasha is one of those humans who stands toe-to-toe with superheroes, often using her cunning intelligence and lethal hand-to-hand combat skills to match the super abilities of her counterparts. 

 

Natasha's story within the Marvel Cinematic Universe is a sad one. Often her character was relegated to simplistic supportive roles where she was primarily used as a feminine object. The lone female in a group of men would show up to save one of the other characters with her spy skills, calm the Hulk with a lullaby, or fly the Avengers plane from one adventure to another. This all led to her ultimate sacrifice in 2018's "Avengers: Endgame," a moment for the character that could have been monumental for her complete story but ultimately felt tone-deaf within the story. 

 

Black Widow, directed by Cate Shortland, provides the back story for Natasha. It explores her childhood within a deep operative spy family living in America, the dark roots of her training program with the Red Room, and minor character pieces that provide context for her role as an Avenger. The introduction is interesting and exciting, but the push to stay within the formula crafted by the Marvel Cinematic Universe eventually overshadows the exciting parts that begin this story. 

 

 The film begins with a young Natasha (Ever Anderson) living in a small town. Her mother (Rachel Weisz) sets the table for dinner with her younger sister Yelena (Violet McGraw). Natasha's father (David Harbour) returns from work; he looks distracted upon arrival and then nervous once a mysterious phone call disrupts dinner. The family immediately abandons their home, driving aggressively through their quaint town while streets close around them with the sight of flashing lights. Quickly, they are followed by people shooting guns and narrowly escape. Natasha's family is revealed as a Russian spy operation, immediately after running this mission, the family is separated, and Natasha and her sister are sent away. 

 

In these initial moments, Black Widow interestingly establishes its story, showing a group of trained spies trying to detach from the emotions that compose a family. The kids do a great job of interacting with the adults in these early scenes. Their emotion for the family is felt deeply, while the adults have grown to view these interactions, and this family, as a mission. 

 

Black Widow transitions into adulthood for Natasha (Scarlett Johansson), now an Avenger and international superstar of sorts, and Yelena (Florence Pugh), now with a mind-controlling group of assassins. Scarlett Johansson has played this role many times. Yet, provided with her own singular story aside from the supporting role provided in other films, Johansson shines throughout this film. Add Florence Pugh, who is excellent in everything she does, and the chemistry between the two assassins is humorous and heartfelt. Pugh wholly owns the role of Yelena; whether mocking her sister's combat moves or taking control of her emotions during a family dinner, she is a great addition. 

 

Black Widow works great until it feels the need to push the Marvel formulaic measures into the forefront. Once the dynamic family story ends and the human element for these characters turns into a story about global control using mind-altered assassins under the management of a bad guy named Dreykov (Ray Winstone), who ultimately doesn't work for the story, the film crumbles apart. And when the story falls out of the sky in a blaze of flames, the abandoned potential to make a compelling story for this overlooked Marvel character turns to ashes. 

 

The cast and a few of the early action scenes, which stay in the realm of spy film espionage action, provide Black Widow with enough entertainment to keep things interesting. Still, it's hard not to imagine something better for Marvel's Black Widow.  

 

Monte's Rating

2.50 out of 5.00

The Favourite Review

The Favourite

Dir: Yorgos Lanthimos

Starring: Rachel Weisz, Emma Stone, Olivia Colman, Nicholas Hoult, James Smith, and Mark Gatiss

At a recent birthday party, I watched two young little girls vie for the affection and attention of the birthday girl. With a temporary crown, that was bedazzled with costume jewels, the birthday princess sauntered from activity to activity with the two little girls in tow. The two girls fiercely competed for attention from the young birthday princess at each activity, pushing and pulling their way towards the side of the honored guest.

Director Yorgos Lanthimos has helmed some impressively unique features in the past few years, tackling interesting subject matter with keen visual perspective and a distinctive sensibility to story structure. “The Favourite”, a career highlight for the Greek director, is a bitingly dark costume comedy about royal affairs, prestige, politics, hierarchy, and the morally abrasive manners that compose the quest for power in the 1700s.

Queen Anne (Olivia Colman), a freewheeling and distracted monarch of the British throne, lives a life trapped in the rigors of the controlling patriarch and the long-lasting tradition that defines but also besets royalty. Anne is surrounded by men in ever-growing white wigs, staff who wait on her every ridiculous request, and lives in a residence that is lavishly composed with shining décor from the floors to the ceiling. Anne’s only friend, Lady Sarah (Rachel Weisz), provides the primary directives as it concerns the affairs of the state and consistently keeps Anne composed at parties and in the ruling court. Lady Sarah is clearly in control until her distant relative Abigail (Emma Stone) arrives and paves her own path towards some kind of power.

Taking a moment from the royal ruling history of the Queen of Great Britain, Mr. Lanthimos and writers Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara compose a fictionalized costume drama that fits all the realms familiar with a period piece film. From the tragic nature of Shakespearean content to the prim and proper appeal of the Baroque perspective, “The Favourite” fashions a film that accepts and twists perceptions of this specific genre of film. While it honors the designs of the time, with flaring white wigs and ornate costumes, it also deliberately pokes fun at the tradition associated with them. Mr. Lanthimos unveils the nastier side of the moral code that typically defines the characters in these films as well; cheeky language, blatant sexual insinuation, and cold-blooded motivations exist throughout every angle of the film. The wolves are faintly dressed as sheep here.

The composition of the environments is beautifully arranged. The wide-angle lenses distort the reality of the world, consistently reminding the viewer that the vision they are watching is purposefully askew. The photography is a mix of overwhelming frames filled with the superficial decadence of design and, more impressive, the subtle structure of what is lurking in the shadows and what is illuminated by flickering flames. It adds an element of unease at times, especially when the director meticulously holds on long frames of character’s faces. It’s captivating and thoughtfully ordered. 

The performances are some of the best of the year. Olivia Colman is exceptional as Queen Anne; her petulant nature, shrieking voice, desperate looks, and tearful pleading compose a character that is trapped and lonely. Ms. Colman impressively yields to the composition of becoming an “easy target” for her two closest “friends”. Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone compete and bicker with amusing flair, their chemistry is palpable the moment Abigail wanders into the royal quarters slathered in mud. For these two actresses, it is more than verbal jabs, it’s the way they position their bodies, the way they gaze with a composition of emotions with just a singular look. 

“The Favourite” is a sometimes bleak but completely comic demonstration of the lengths people will go to be accepted and the motivations they will embrace to achieve power. It’s frustrating, it’s hilarious, and it’s one of the best films of Yorgos Lanthimos intriguing career. 

Monte’s Rating

4.50 out of 5.00

Complete Unknown Review

Complete Unknown

Dir: Joshua Marston

Starring: Rachel Weisz, Michael Shannon, Kathy Bates, Danny Glover, and Azita Ghanizada

Nobody likes a liar. I once worked at a resort and it was fairly common to have people make reservations with an alias. Some people chose famous names while others would make up something ridiculous.  When I asked one of the veteran managers if this behavior was common they replied simply with “people like to play pretend”.

This behavior, in director Joshua Marston’s dramatic tale, is much more dedicated from a woman who consistently reinvents herself into a different person. “Complete Unknown” is a shape-shifting story that takes a look at the lies people tell themselves and one another on a daily basis, it’s about the consuming regrets that push people, and it’s also about the journey some people venture on to find their place in this complicated world.

It’s Tom’s (Michael Shannon) birthday and he is having a dinner party with some close friends. One of his co-workers invites a girl named Alice (Rachel Weisz) to the party. Tom is uneasy the entire time, almost annoyed at the presence of Alice to the point of asking near threatening questions. As events transpire to a night of dancing Tom becomes more agitated with Alice, prompting her to leave the dance club with Tom in pursuit. What follows is an encounter between two people searching for answers to questions neither are ready to accept.

At the core of “Complete Unknown” is a character study vaguely disguised as a thriller. Though at times some of the filmmaking techniques try to compose a mystery, such as the foreboding photography and ominous composition notes, this film is more concerned with watching two people analyze and understand one another. In this regard, and with the help of two exceptional performers, Mr. Marston offers some interesting moments.

The depiction of Alice is fascinating and frustrating at times. Alice is a mysterious woman who changes her identity every few years in search of new beginnings. However, with these constant changes comes an underlying hope that she will find a life that ultimately makes her happy. Tom is a married man living with regret, pushed forward into a life that he is unsure about. Place these two characters in the same space, exposing a secret they both share, and you have moments of drama filled with many different emotions.  Mr. Shannon and Ms. Weisz hold many of these competing elements together; they have an unusual chemistry that works in assisting the unraveling motivations each encounter with one another.

Mr. Shannon, with his stern demeanor, says more with his body language and eye glares than any line of dialog could possibly convey. From the moment Alice walks into the room you can feel Tom’s changing temperament, Mr. Shannon is always a pleasure to watch. Ms. Weisz, with her steadfast commitment to embodying a lie, provides a nuanced portrayal that makes it difficult to detect what parts of her story are truthful, exaggerated, or simply made up. Ms. Weisz pulls everything off with ease.

It’s unfortunate that the good pieces that compose the story don’t always add up cohesively when played from scene to scene. Part of this comes from the unnecessary need to build a mystery and the attempt to make it feel like a thriller. There are quite a few scenes that linger pointlessly while other scenes feel out of place, specifically one scene with some very good actors involved. There are times when you get a sense of what the director may be trying to express, the apathy of life that would make lying exciting or the mundaneness that influences the pieces of life between the memorable moments. Or maybe it’s something completely different? Nothing is straightforwardly expressed.

“Complete Unknown” is an ambiguous story that unfortunately never becomes as compelling as the subject matter may entice. While the performances are great, the film never proposes any kind of purpose and unfortunately becomes the character it creates, a shape-shifter that is never sure what it wants to be.

Monte’s Rating

2.75 out of 5.00