Black Bag Review! - The Perfect Date Night Movie for Cinephiles!

 

Thanks to Focus Features for providing an early screening at the World Premiere to make this review possible.

Sterile. That’s one word that can be used to describe “Black Bag”. Clean cut is another term. Both proper terms but also in positive ways to describe the film.

The plot is a unique tale of the test of marriage or loyalty to one’s career and country. George and Kathryn Woodhouse have been powerhouses in their field, occasionally stirring up drama yet executing their missions perfectly. In this particular mission… their goal is to find a mole in their agency. The movie starts off strong, a dinner party to discover who’s involved in what. While comedic in certain aspects, it has important points saved for the suspenseful ending later. 

Some films can come off gender specific, meaning some can have a dominantly either male based audience or female based audience. Shockingly? This film will have women deep in their thoughts for an undetermined amount of time. Solely based on Fassbender’s actions. Throughout the film, his character Woodhouse’s mission is to protect Kathryn from any and every harm. Even though she’s very much capable of protecting herself. 

Michael Fassbender as George Woodhouse
(Black Bag)

It’s very rare one leaves a film without a single criticism for any member of the cast’s performance. Yet somehow director Steven Soderbergh accomplished just that with who he picked. Leads Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender performed so well that their characters can indeed be dubbed the new power couple of 2025. Rége Jean-Page is definitely back and better than ever. And Marisa Abela? You won’t recognize her in this new spy thriller.

Audible reactions were key here. The dry humor in this made the audience in this premiere viewing quite a few times laugh out loud. There were even some gasps from the audience at certain key moments, from both little to big. 

A very strong point is that unlike other spy thrillers, the focus of this film wasn’t the sexual tension between many agents and associates in this film. It was made clear of Kathryn and George’s passion and love for one another… yet it wasn’t the main focus. The emotions and dialogue spoke for themselves, and Soderbergh made sure to focus on the plot rather than heated moments.  

Cate Blanchett as Kathryn Woodhouse 
(Black Bag)

This film is well executed, however challenging to follow. The dialogue, while well written, isn’t for viewers who aren’t used to watching and joining the ride of spy thrillers. It’s the kind of film one would need to watch a few times to pick apart. “Black Bag” is the newest and most elite spy thriller of 2025 that you do not want to miss.  

Black Bag World Premiere 

Black Bag is in Cinemas March 14th