Black Widow

The first half is great, it has a dark intro, raw, tight fights and great eye candy FX moments (the chimney scene, WOW!). I almost wouldn't be afraid to say that the first ten minutes not only form a decent backdrop for the origin of a character we don't really know much about, but it also has the emotional edge and directness that was so very good in Winter Soldier, for example. But once it swings into the second part, it becomes more of a comedy, because as it’s usual with comic-book films, few and far between don't go "check all the boxes" style – or rather, they have to please everyone. And so suddenly, the deadly serious-looking film becomes almost a merry-go-round, and it's completely buried from the higher rungs by the insanely over-the-top finale. Florence Pugh is the best, the characters are OK overall, just a bit messily put together. It still has the hallmarks of a bombastic high budget film, but in this version it could have come before the battle and not after. (2021-07-12)

I'm sorry to say it, but this is the most useless Marvel movie for me so far. I don't feel like it contributed at all to the MCU - it was created simply because the fans wanted a Black Widow solo film (and to find out what was in Budapest so that there would be peace) and Scarlett Johansson after Endgame probably didn't mind either. It's such a wasted chance, the film stays in its lane from start to finish, and although the action scenes are pleasantly and deliberately exaggerated (it's no coincidence that Natasha is watching Moonraker) and the main characters and heroes seem even more indestructible than Jason Bourne or any Terminator, which makes sense when I couldn't form any relationship with most of the characters during that fast ride, and in the end I didn't care what happened to anyone. Unfortunately, this also applies to Taskmaster, who is suddenly just there, and according to the creators we should be afraid of him, but we can't be, because it is clear to us that this is not the type of film in which the villain could win or at least come to a draw. There are jokes in Whedon’s style, and you can forget about any tension. If Black Widow can bring anything to the MCU in the future, then perhaps only the return of Florence Pugh and David Harbour. They would both make me happy. But there was no need to tell this Black Widow story. (2021-07-07)

Never trust doomsayers. A true blue Marvel movie, targeted at ladies, but not at all dumb. The introduction is awesome, dark and uncompromising, then it gets into the old rut, but the second half is more than just good too. Infantile humor made at the expense of Harvey Weinstein and tops it all with a family-flavor sauce made by Disney. The ending is strangely cut short (it lacks elimination of Ross or an explanation of whether or not it was Kapo who helped), but due it being set during the Civil War, that is more or less understandable. The biggest surprise the Widow holds is David Harbour and the whole over-the-top prison escape. We want a series spin-off with Crimson Dynamo! And Florence Pugh steals the whole show in the end. Such a poser. (2021-07-12)

I was quite surprised by how messy the script was — it felt like some characters' motivations got lost just to fit the plot's convenience. The action scenes didn't really grab me either; they were often dull or unnecessarily shaky, even when the scenes didn’t call for it. Oddly enough, I found everything else around the action more interesting, which isn’t what you typically expect from a Marvel movie. It’s not a disaster, still a quality product, but it bothers me that it doesn’t really stand out. It seems like Marvel is settling into a standard that’s neither offensive nor exciting. In the earlier phases of the MCU, each film had its own unique flair, but this has been fading since Ant-Man and the Wasp. A solo Black Widow movie should have come out years ago. On a positive note, David Harbour absolutely stole the show. (2021-07-07)

Black Widow isn't the weakest Marvel movie, but it definitely falls on the lower end of the spectrum. Still, when Marvel’s throwing around hundreds of millions on new projects, why not give a character who’s always been in the shadows her own film? Even if the story felt a bit lackluster and didn’t really grip me, I can’t deny that the action scenes were a highlight — especially the intense sequences in Budapest. The opening credits were a standout too, probably one of the best intros in the Marvel universe. The cover of “Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Malia J was an absolute blast. While the overall plot might be average, the ending managed to hit me harder than I expected. (2021-11-01)