The Black Widow is a highly anticipated game and with good reason. The game will be the culmination of years of planning and design and will feature some of the best of what is to come in the industry. But with so much hype and expectation, the new title has much to live up to, and our expectations are high. The trailer is breathtaking, with some truly innovative features and elements we have not seen before. The game is looking to be one of the pivotal releases for 2021, and as such, we expect big things.
This year, Black Widow joins the ranks of the exclusive and the expensive. However, it’s a well-deserved position, as Black Widow is an incredibly powerful gaming laptop. It comes with a top-of-the-line CPU, GPU, storage, and RAM, as well as a gorgeous and sturdy enclosure.
CHECK : Black Widow (2021)
Movie reviews
Black Widow is not what you think. Maybe you thought so because that’s what the first trailers led you to believe: a fun, down-to-earth Marvel movie (as down-to-earth as these movies can be) in the vein of The Winter Soldier. But trailers and posters aside (and to the credit of director Kate Shortland), the writer, the star and – worst of all – the media sold this film as the latest misogynist feminist fest waiting only for your dollars to be insulted for two hours. It doesn’t ring true, and I don’t understand why they like to alienate people so much. I don’t blame anyone for having a bad taste in their mouth, especially if they’ve seen Marvel’s insufferable Disney+ series, but I really hope people see the film and enjoy it for themselves because it’s an incredibly entertaining film that’s perfect for luring people to the cinema during the rather dull summer season.
In the aftermath of the Civil War, Natasha Romanoff is on the run, separated from her enemy Avengers and pursued by the government forces she defied. As she lies at the bottom of the sea, she receives a mysterious message from a man related to her past, and battles age-old demons. Will Black Widow finally be able to erase the red stain from her book, or will she drown in the sea of blood she helped create?
Comparisons between Black Widow and the Bourne films will inevitably crop up, and that’s a good thing. The first act is very reminiscent of this show: Natasha hides escapes the government and loses her resources. It was a good decision to set the story just after the Civil War – not as good as creating it at that point, but we play with what we have – because it doesn’t erase nearly a decade of Natasha’s character development, but puts her in a position to return to her roots. She is once again a spy and must rely solely on her intelligence and training while being pursued by powerful forces.
The shooting of Black Widow follows this logic, and the cinematography is clearly reminiscent of Bourne’s frenetic aesthetic of jerky cameras and quick shots. It’s a nice touch, but it’s also a reminder that these movies are great despite, not because of, the epileptic visual effects. As a result, the fight scenes are hard, but sometimes hard to follow. The score is better, it’s excellent and intentionally reminiscent of the Bourne score, which was exciting and gave those films an exhilarating tension. Black Widow is also inspired by heart-pounding music, even when there isn’t a martial arts fight or car chase on screen.
At the center of it all is a wonderful protagonist who was more than ready to be the center of attention. The Black Widow presents Natasha as she has always been: smart, resourceful, defiant and ready to destroy anyone who gets in her way or those she loves. And she doesn’t fall into the modern trap of stripping her of her femininity; here she is as feminine as ever, and without going into detail because it was a pleasant surprise, the camera knows it. Natasha is also vulnerable; she can still perform the incredible combat maneuvers she used to, but she takes a lot of damage when she crashes in combat, and she never comes out of a conflict without taking John McClane-like damage. (Not that there’s that much blood; it’s a family movie).
But Natasha isn’t just bleeding physically. Black Widow explores its past without dragging us into the events of 15 years ago. The result is exceptionally well done; this character is revealed in a way that doesn’t detract from his power or his role in the MCU so far. There are many references to lines from old Marvel movies in the film, and they all work. When a theme came up, I was afraid they would ruin something that would have been better left alone, but in the end it was executed perfectly. There is never a dumb answer to an open-ended question, in other words: Natasha was not recruited as a spy because she was scratched by a stupid kitten. Despite her recent bad mood, Scarlett Johansson is once again phenomenal in this role, and all the aspects of Natasha we’ve loved since her first appearance are on display, albeit a bit more subtly at times.
The supporting cast is also excellent, each with moments to shine without distracting from Natasha’s story. Florence Pugh seems to be getting a lot of attention, and rightly so; she’s great as Elena Belova, Natasha’s longtime ally, someone who knows her better than anyone in some ways and understands her completely in others. But as attached as she is to Natasha, she also exists independently of her, and you feel the pain and sorrow of a lifetime every time she speaks. The same goes for Alexei Shostakov and Melina Vostokova; all of these people are imperfect, not all good and not all bad, and the actors walk a tightrope, trying not to stumble one way or the other. The latter two are played by David Harbour and Rachel Weisz, who are also perfectly cast; Harbour in particular is very human in a role that could easily have degenerated into parody or evil, depending on how you interpret it.
Then there are the villains, and this is where the old school creation of Black Widow in the MCU has its weaknesses. The villains are pretty good; Tuskmaster is really fun to watch in action, and while he doesn’t look as cool as he does in the comics, he fits the story perfectly with his demonic mask and hood. (In the 90s and early 00s everything was leather, now everything is metal). Ray Winstone, lurking in the shadows as a villain, is even better. I will not reveal his identity, not because it is a secret, but because it would be a pleasant surprise not to know. Winstone is a great actor, and the menace and cold-blooded cruelty with which he portrays this villain is palpable. The problem is that the villains are almost non-existent. I’d be surprised if Tuskmaster was in Black Widow for ten minutes and Winstone for much less. They do their best to impress given the limited screen time, but they’re both mediocre, and that’s a shame.
The Black Widow, of course, has other problems. The film has several twists and turns, and while they all work, one of them is too much. I don’t think it’s a big deal, especially in retrospect, because it fits the theme and supports Natasha’s story. But I admit I rolled my eyes when we found out what was going on, and I’ll bet money that some people wouldn’t like it, especially the big comic book fans. There is also a major plot point towards the end that is completely overlooked. They try to explain it away with a sarcastic line in the dialogue, but there’s no denying that it’s a hoax and something that would be great to see. And while I enjoyed the final scene of the film itself, I did not like the post-credits scene and its aftermath. For once, I wish a Marvel movie would just end instead of teasing us.
But his weaknesses are easily outweighed by all that he does well. Black Widow is a fun, exciting and very entertaining Marvel movie. The direction is sloppy here and there, the villains are too few and too far apart, and there is an unfortunate gap at the end of the film, but the characters are great, the cast is impeccable, and the film is so much fun that you forget it hasn’t been seen in theatres in over a year. The best days of the MCU are probably behind us, but Black Widow is a love letter to the days when you could see the Marvel logo on the big screen and be sure you’d be entertained.
Location – 8
Actor – 9
Control/Assembly – 7
Music/Sound – 9
Action – 8
8.2
Good
Black Widow is a fun, exciting and very entertaining Marvel movie. The direction is sloppy here and there, the villains are too few and too far apart, and there is an unfortunate gap at the end of the film, but the characters are great, the cast is impeccable, and the film is so much fun that you forget it hasn’t been in theatres in over a year.
