Black Bag Movie Review: A tantalising thriller exploring the intricacies of espionage
Black Bag(3 / 5)
Steven Soderbergh’s Black Bag is a slick yet intricately plotted espionage thriller. It provides fascinating insights into the duality of couples whose professions demand maintaining an air of secrecy all the time. This inherent duality means deceit and dishonesty become second nature to them. Take British intelligence officers George (Michael Fassbender) and Kathryn (Cate Blanchett), for instance. George’s senior Meacham (Gustaf Skarsgard) tells him to look into the leak of a confidential software program, which holds the key to a major nuclear threat. Meacham also tells George that it is an inside job and that there are five suspects, including his wife Kathryn. However, how do you spy on your own partner unbeknownst to them? It is a tightrope walk where one mistake can cost your whole life. “I watch her and I assume she also watches me,” says George at one point, Fassbender’s voice exuding the enigma of the situation.
The film keeps us in the dark about the characters’ motivations until the very end, building suspense. Soderbergh’s decision to set the film over a week lends a chamber drama-like quality to the film. The tension and suspense develop gradually, through clever interactions between the characters rather than any major set piece. Even big plot developments come across as an ordinary state of affairs to the officers; of course, the world of international crime is oh-so-familiar for them to be too excited about.
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Cast: Michael Fassbender, Cate Blanchett, Pierce Brosnan, Rege-Jean Page
Another writing decision that works in the film is the avoidance of exposition for the catchphrase ‘black bag’. All it takes for Soderbergh to let us know what black bag means is one scene where a satellite specialist, Clarissa (Marisa Abela), at George’s agency vents out about how little she knows about her partner due to the nature of their job. It is not like black bag is a MacGuffin that drives the plot forward or serves as a character motivation. However, it acts as a window into the dual nature of these characters, like when George asks Kathryn where she is off to on a non-working day and she replies, “black bag.”
Speaking of George and Kathryn, Fassbender and Blanchett bring the necessary nuance to their roles as British officers while marrying them with a sense of understated charisma and dry wit. Fassbender’s meaningful silences and long stares remind you of Group Captain Lionel Mandrake, a high-ranking air force officer, from Stanley Kubrick’s 1964 film Dr Strangelove. As Kathryn, Blanchett reacts to the situations in her espionage world with restraint, which contrasts sharply with the escalating madness around her.
The supporting ensemble cast, including Rege-Jean Page, Naomie Harris, Tom Burke, Marisa Abela, and Pierce Brosnan, also deliver competent performances, demonstrating their ability to work effectively within the narrative's parameters. Soderbergh eschews exposition in Black Bag, allowing the audience to figure out some of the seemingly complex goings-on in the film on their own, such as one involving a Russian operative in Zurich. His screenplay also integrates some quick wit beyond the main plot, such as an element that conveys Clarissa’s mild infatuation with Fassbender’s character in scenes that explore the nitty-gritty of espionage.
Having said that, not all scenes land perfectly in Black Bag. There are some portions that barely register, such as an intense exchange between the agency’s psychiatrist Zoe (Harris) and Colonel James Stokes (Page). We already know what their relationship is like, so why have another scene exploring the same? Then again, these are minor quibbles in a charming film that remains entertaining to the hilt.