Ticketworthy! - Black Bag

If I had made a checklist of all the things I want out of a spy mystery, I’d have to wonder if director Steven Soderbergh and writer David Koepp had somehow found it and used it to create Black Bag. From the acting to the directing, the script, the atmosphere, even the lighting is meticulously crafted by artists who clearly love and respect this genre of film, and I was entertained the whole way through. There’s very little to complain about.

The story, though admittedly tough to pin down completely at first with all the lies and double-crosses, follows a married couple and master spies George (Michael Fassbender) and Kathryn (Cate Blanchett) as they try to uncover a traitor within their agency before a stolen computer virus leads to the deaths of thousands of innocent people. Complicating matters are the cabal of talented liars and spies they surround themselves with, and the fact that both George and Kathryn are under suspicion themselves.

By far, the most important part of the film is the dynamic between the two lovers, and it does not disappoint. From the first second that the two are on screen together, there is an undeniable chemistry between them. These two characters are devoted to one another and seem to be putting a lot of effort into not ripping each other’s clothes off at any moment out of sheer politeness to those around them. For the plot of Black Bag to work, the audience needs to believe that these spies are so deeply in love that, should one of them turn out to be the traitor, the other would join them without hesitation. Blanchett and Fassbender pull it off, and then some.

The supporting cast is equally great. Though I think it would take this entire review to individually praise each of them, and they’d deserve it, I do want to give special mention to Marisa Abela as the young computer expert Clarissa. Abela gives a performance that is both guarded and calculated, yet somehow also incredibly raw. There are portions of the film that she outright takes over. Not an easy task when paired against some of the acting heavyweights in this cast.

Aside from the cast, the writing and directing sparkle in the film. Both Soderbergh and Koepp are near legendary in Hollywood at this point, so perhaps that’s no surprise. The script wastes absolutely no space, every scene and line of dialogue is absolutely vital to the overall story, and the directing is a masterclass on how to use framing and lighting to create mood and tension. As I said, both men are known for the quality of their work, but they are truly at their best here.

I can’t, however, say that Black Bag is perfect. There is one flaw, and unfortunately, it feels like a pretty big one. So much time is spent early in the movie on George and Kathryn that by the time the movie gets into the real meat of the “whodunnit” mystery, and we start to get a feel for why each of these characters might be the traitor, there’s almost no runtime left to work with. As a result, the conclusion comes very quickly, with very little buildup or fanfare. Just as you’re starting to piece things together a little yourself, everything just gets revealed and then it’s over. It’s a bit deflating, given how tense everything up to that point has been. I’m not holding it too much against the filmmakers, they very likely had a certain runtime they had to aim for and there’s only so much you can fit into those minutes, but it is a little disappointing. A little more time spent on the ending would have gone a long way.

That said, it’s hard to be upset at a movie that pulls everything else off this well. The only people I don’t think I could recommend this to would be those who just do not like spy thrillers. If you’re not into those kinds of movies, I don’t know if Black Bag is going to change your mind. For everyone else, though, this is the genre at its best, don’t miss this one.