Review: Black Bag – The spy that came in from the lukewarm
Directed by Steven Soderbergh
Starring Michael Fassbender, Cate Blanchett, Marisa Abela, Pierce Brosnan
6/10
Counterespionage expert George Woodhouse’s (Michael Fassbender) loyalties are tested when he is tasked with stopping a devastating device from falling into enemy hands. Amongst the list of possible traitors within the intelligence agency suspected of stealing the project is George’s wife (Cate Blanchett). As he engages in a cat-and-mouse game to find the leak, he questions what he’d do if she were the traitor.
A whip-smart, stylish spy thriller with marital tension at its core. Visually, Black Bag calls back to the more realistic British spy cinema of the sixties and seventies, with Fassbender’s bespectacled spook bearing a bit of a resemblance to Harry Palmer, with the cold analytical approach of George Smiley. While Blanchett obviously enjoys sinking her teeth into a playful and deadly femme fatale, always radiating extreme confidence and cunning. It’s a far cry from the spy-fi action of Bond or Mission Impossible, a tense world built on deception, but with equally high stakes.
The issue is none of the characters feel like human beings. Oh, they’re intelligent, engaging, and eloquent, but not realistic. All of them are archetypes, spewing forth smart dialogue and the occasional motivating character trait attached to them. Paradoxically, in a worse film this would not be such a significant issue, but with the strong cast, tight direction, and frequent visual callbacks to realistic spy cinema, it almost sinks the film.
Which is a pity, as Koepp’s script is otherwise solid, but it just fails to breathe life into the characters. Although realism isn’t necessary in the spy genre, it would make for a stronger sell for the relationship drama at the heart of the script and the geopolitical drama of the setting. This is the second collaboration with Steven Soderbergh to hit screens this year (the ghost story Presence being the first); both have been interesting but flawed. However, it does seem hopeful that this partnership will bear fruit in the future.
Even with that lack of realism, the dialogue is pithy, with the stacked cast being able to deliver some great scenes, milking the tension for all it’s worth. With a bit more room for both the characters and the plot to breathe, this could have been something special. As it stands, it’s entertaining, sharp, and doesn’t outstay its welcome, but as a study of human weakness, it is utterly devoid of human character.
DAVID O’CONNELL