‘Black Bag’ receives 9 out of 10 stars.
Opening in theaters on March 14th, ‘Black Bag’ feels for all the world like Steven Soderbergh set himself and writer David Koepp the challenge of blending a thorny, John le Carré story with the effortlessly cool and stylish work the director was doing in his ‘Limey’ era.
The prolific filmmaker (who also serves as his own cinematographer and editor), has been on a real tear of late –– this is his second film in a matter of months (he had experimental ghost story ‘Presence’ out back in January –– and by any reasonable reckoning, it is by far the superior entry in his canon.
Related Article: Every Steven Soderbergh Movie, Ranked!
Is ‘Black Bag’ worth spying at your local theater?
Soderbergh is most certainly on top form here, crafting a twisty, thoughtful and timely piece of drama about trust and deception, and the difficulty of maintaining a relationship when much of your life is built on lies –– either ferreting them out or maintaining them.
Having gathered one of the best casts in a while, he uses them in excellent ways, Koepp’s script providing a cluster of superb characters to get their teeth into, especially Michael Fassbender and Cate Blanchett.
It’s not a spy movie in the ‘Mission: Impossible‘ mold (the stunt budget here would probably pay for a day of craft service on a Tom Cruise film), but it’s intellectual and frisky, always keeping you on the back foot, unsure of who to believe.
Script and Direction
Credit to David Koepp for here concocting a fascinating screenplay filled to the brim with interesting personalities and crackling drama.
We’re introduced to a group of operatives who work for Britain’s National Cyber Security Center, whose mission is to take down cyber threats to the UK and the wider world. But when the organization learns there is a mole working to get hold of their software worm known as Severus, which has the ability to integrate itself into nuclear facilities and wreak havoc, Fassbender’s George Woodhouse is tasked with sniffing out the traitor (or traitors).
Unlike, say, ‘Jason Bourne‘, George’s primary weapon here is his brain and his culinary skills (no, really) as he invites a group of colleagues to a dinner party where the secret ingredient in one dish is a healthy serving of truth serum. Along with his wife Kathryn, who might well be even smarter and more dangerous than George (and who he’s led to believe could be a mole herself), he tasks his guests with playing party games that lead to personal revelations.
But the real secret here that the fireworks are less grenades and bullets and more inner demons, as everyone has something they’re hiding and no-one is simply good or bad.
In Soderbergh’s hands, the screenplay comes to smooth, stylish life, scored with a jazzy David Holmes track that suits its near-timeless feel. Aside from some of the vehicles and the obvious tech angle, this is a story that could have been set in the 1960s without losing any of its power.
Yet the technology aspect gives it an extra frisson in this age of misinformation and shady online morals.
Cast and Performances
As we mentioned earlier, this is one of the most impressive casts assembled in a movie so far this year, and they bring the script to fizzy, emotional life.
Fassbender’s Woodhouse comes across as a combination of the intensity of his take on Magneto and the fastidiousness of his character in ‘The Killer.’ This is a committed patriot, a man who rarely lets emotion conflict with his mission. And Fassbender brings such cool effectiveness to the role, especially when a secret about his past comes to light (let’s just say his father was not the most faithful when it came to the sanctity of marriage).
Blanchett, for her part is feline cool, slinky and lethal in her way, and always keeping her intensions close to her chest. Kathryn is a clear match for her husband in skillset –– and her role is a highlight in a movie that features plenty of them.
Regé-Jean Page is Colonel James Stokes, a ramrod loyal agent who serves under Woodhouse and is dating Harris’ character. While the actor has tackled characters such as this before, Stokes is more complicated and a tinder box, ready to explode.
Naomie Harris, herself a veteran of the Bond movies (she played Moneypenny during the Craig era) is another cool customer, quirky shrink Dr. Zoe Vaughan who treats the rest of her colleagues but might be as messed up as they are. She’s utterly brilliant in the role, taking no crap from anyone but also coming across as complicated as those she oversees.
Tom Burke is all seething regret and resentment as Freddie Smalls, a formerly hotshot agent who has somewhat lost himself in addictions to various narcotics and pleasures. Burke, a chameleon of an actor, really digs into the role and is hugely entertaining.
Finally in the main cast, we have ‘Industry’ and ‘Back to Black’s Marisa Abela playing Clarissa Dubose, the youngest of the friend group, who is dating Freddie but can’t quite believe what she’s got herself into. But as with everyone else, there’s more to her than that.
But we would be remiss if we didn’t mention sterling support from Pierce Brosnan, himself a former James Bond, who has a small role but earns every moment of his screen time as Arthur Stieglitz, one of the group’s superior officers who feels himself superior in every way. It’s a great piece of casting, not just for the espionage movie tie-in.
Final Thoughts
It might not hold the sort of action antics we’re used to from Bond, Bourne or even Ethan Hunt, but if you’re a fan of the complex, knotty and well-drawn characters of le Carré, this will certainly make you smile(y).
OiCJgRdzm4ogYvxRINmy97What’s the story of ‘Black Bag’?
‘Black Bag’ follows legendary intelligence agents George Woodhouse (Michael Fassbender) and his beloved wife Kathryn (Cate Blanchett).
When she is suspected of betraying the nation, George faces the ultimate test –– loyalty to his marriage or his country.
Who also stars in ‘Black Bag’?
- Cate Blanchett as Kathryn Woodhouse
- Michael Fassbender as George Woodhouse
- Marisa Abela as Clarissa Dubose
- Tom Burke as Freddie Smalls
- Naomie Harris as Dr. Zoe Vaughan
- Regé-Jean Page as Col. James Stokes
- Pierce Brosnan as Arthur Stieglitz
List of Steven Soderbergh Movies and TV Shows:
- ‘sex, lies, and videotape‘ (1989)
- ‘Kafka‘ (1991)
- ‘King of the Hill‘ (1993)
- ‘The Underneath‘ (1995)
- ‘Schizopolis‘ (1997)
- ‘Gray’s Anatomy‘ (1997)
- ‘Out of Sight‘ (1998)
- ‘The Limey‘ (1999)
- ‘Erin Brockovich‘ (2000)
- ‘Traffic‘ (2000)
- ‘Ocean’s Eleven‘ (2001)
- ‘Full Frontal‘ (2002)
- ‘Solaris‘ (2002)
- ‘K Street‘ (2003)
- ‘Ocean’s Twelve‘ (2004)
- ‘The Good German‘ (2007)
- ‘Ocean’s Thirteen‘ (2007)
- ‘Che: Part One‘ (2009)
- ‘Che: Part Two‘ (2009)
- ‘The Girlfriend Experience‘ (2009)
- ‘The Informant!‘ (2009)
- ‘And Everything Is Going Fine‘ (2010)
- ‘Contagion‘ (2011)
- ‘Haywire‘ (2011)
- ‘Magic Mike‘ (2012)
- ‘Behind the Candelabra‘ (2013)
- ‘Side Effects‘ (2013)
- ‘The Knick‘ (2014 – 2015)
- ‘Logan Lucky‘ (2017)
- ‘Unsane‘ (2018)
- ‘Mosaic‘ (2018)
- ‘High Flying Bird‘ (2019)
- ‘The Laundromat‘ (2019)
- ‘Let Them All Talk‘ (2020)
- ‘No Sudden Move‘ (2021)
- ‘Kimi‘ (2022)
- ‘Command Z‘ (2023)
- ‘Magic Mike’s Last Dance‘ (2023)
- ‘Presence‘ (2025)
