![]() Yelena did not, resulting in a contentious reunion between the two and the "parents" who raised them: Alexei Shostakov (David Harbour), Russia's gone-to-seed imitation of Captain America, and Melina Vostokoff (Rachel Weisz), a former Black Widow reassigned to other duties. ![]() "Avengers" lore has it that Natasha escaped with the help of American operative Clint Barton, aka Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner). This story's sinister overlord isn't members of the American government, Hydra agents masquerading as such, but a patronizing despot in post-Soviet Russia, where Natasha Romanoff and her adoptive sister Yelena Belova (Pugh) were trained to be assassins. Nothing about Natasha or Yelena caters to the stereotypical horny male comic book reader – they are capable, confident women who address and treat one another like capable, confident women who somehow survive multiple assassination attempts by men who resent their agency. Take Yelena's shade throwing at Natasha's superhero landing addiction, one of those comic book movie tropes that, as another masked vigilante points out in a different film, is totally impractical. She and screenwriter Eric Pearson take swipes at the action genre's silly indulgences while telling an admirably spun story about women taking a fist to the face of patriarchy. Similarly director Cate Shortland expands "Black Widow" beyond its expected role as a narrative patch. Perhaps that's unintentional, and Johansson's fine, but if Marvel planned for Pugh to clear a runway for Yelena, she fulfills that mission with a performance that sucker punches the heavens. Indeed, "Black Widow" showcases Pugh's incredible range and muscular charisma over ScarJo's magnetic appeal. Smart humor, much of it courtesy of Florence Pugh's resolute delivery and playful sangfroid, combines with the rest to elevate Johansson's hero to the place of honor she deserves in this universe. Astounding action sequences and gripping character development confidently carry the plot. "Black Widow" satisfies in every way that matters. Neither the movie nor the director and writer are to blame for this. in that I loved it, and the fact that I loved it also makes me livid. ![]() It is a killer action flick, and a unique viewing experience. In all the ways that matter to an MCU fan, "Black Widow" the film meets or exceeds all expectations. Taking all of this into consideration, perhaps you get why some may emerge from watching "Black Widow" enveloped in a thunderstorm of mixed emotions. Natasha Romanoff hasn't gotten any kind of unaccompanied spotlight until this weekend. Bicker about that all you want, but my larger point stands: Bruce Banner and the Incredible Hulk received title placement in multiple films and starred in a classic TV show. That number doesn't include the pre-Phase One Hulk flicks but for the sake of this argument I'm counting them. It took 24 MCU films for Black Widow to get a standalone feature while the lives of nearly all of the other core Avengers, save Hawkeye, are explored through multiple titles. I come to praise this unsung heroine, not bury her. In "Iron Man 2" she's more accurately described as tertiary, not to mention some version of a honey trap.ĭisparaging Natasha Romanoff is not my intent, by the way. (She's an Avenger, but so are a lot of other folks.) Three place her in at least a secondary position to two of the franchise's top male superheroes. Hopefully by this point you've noticed the problem with grouping these films under a collection named for the superhero team's top-ranking woman – her name isn't in any of these titles. The wigs alone tell individual style stories, not all of them great, dating all the way back to her first appearance in 2010's "Iron Man 2."įrom there Black Widow leapt into "The Avengers" before co-starring in " Captain America: The Winter Soldier," which came before "Avengers: The Age of Ultron" and " Captain America: Civil War" and, of course, "Avengers: Infinity War" and " Endgame." This hero banner slideshow featured Scarlett Johansson's super-duper spy Avenger in all her guises and from every Marvel Cinematic Universe film in which she appears prior to the character's first solo outing. Disney+ subscribers who used the service in the days leading up to the release of "Black Widow" were greeted with The Black Widow Collection.
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