Black Widow

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. (07/07/2021)

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. (12/07/2021)

After a two-year cinematic hiatus in the MCU, we got to see another Avengers solo film and I'm actually quite pleased. It might be the twenty-fourth time of basically the same thing, but in many ways it's still a very good mainstream production. A strong female element is very much present, but I can't say I mind that in any way. On the contrary, I think that the whole crew around Feige know how to work with those contemporary paradigms with due flair and grace. The first half delights with a very dark thriller atmosphere, which is appealingly reminiscent of the second and third Captain America films. Despite the top-notch action sequences, Black Widow doesn't avoid the expected schematic quality in its second half, where its initial cheesiness is replaced with the typical Marvel formula that ultimately places this solo effort in the broader MCU average. Which is certainly not a bad thing. [65%] (07/07/2021)

It's an incredible shame they didn't release Black Widow a month after Wonder Woman 84, it could have been a great female combo. It doesn't sound much like that anymore. That's how Captain Marvel and the series' WandaVision fizzled out in the interim, as the start of Phase 4 of the MCU comes at a time of distrust in the Covid-distorted media world. Still, the encounter with Scarlett Johansson's solo film, abundantly supported by Florence Pugh and Rachel Weisz, is thoroughly enjoyable. The action is traditionally ironically over-the-top, Cold War fans are satisfied, and this time the travel guide recommends Budapest. (12/07/2021)

After almost two years, a Marvel movie finally hit the cinemas and the result is nothing to write home about. For me, a pretty useless movie about a useless character. The first hour is surprisingly solid, it's well paced, the action is kept down to earth and the fights have decent choreography – they're Bourne style so I enjoyed them. I'm also pleased with Florence Pugh, whom I like a lot, and the Taskmaster's entrance is awesome. By the second hour, however, I felt that perhaps the director had been replaced, the action goes by the wayside, and so does the fun goes, the humour is completely absent, the Taskmaster goes by the wayside! (it's reprehensible to sideline such an interesting villain like that!), and the finale was perhaps the weakest of all the action scenes, so I'm quite disappointed. I rate the first half as 8/10, the second half is about 5-6, and in the end I'm rounding up more towards 6, because for Marvel I found it unbalanced, the effects aren't too dazzling either, it felt a bit like it was going half throttle and quite possibly the first Marvel movie I definitely won't watch again. Story 3/5, Action 3/5, Humor 1/5, Violence 0/5, Fun 3/5 Music 2/5, Visuals 3/5, Atmosphere 3/5, Suspense 3/5. 6/10. (20/07/2021)