‘Black Bag’ review: A breath of fresh air

Steven Soderbergh delivers another sleek and refined thriller with the superb Black Bag starring Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender.

At a lean 93 minutes, prolific director Steven Soderbergh and writer David Koepp deliver a sleek and sultry marriage caper with Black Bag. Poised and precise, the scalpel-fine editing makes for a film without padding that never overstays its welcome. Instead, the story immerses us from the jump as we try to keep up with a story hellbent on staying one step ahead and having a raucous time doing so.

Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender star the married couple Kathryn and George Woodhouse. The two are dedicated to their love, much to the surprise of their colleague, who believes their work — both high-ranking intelligence agents — makes honesty, trust, and monogamy impossible. One night, George learns that Kathryn is suspected of betraying the nation. As George is tasked with investigating her potential treason, he must toe the razor edge of who his faith greater favors, his marriage or his country.

Blanchett and Fassbender strike an immediate, sizzling chemistry and familiarity despite the restraint in physical intimacy. Black Bag is an undoubtedly sensual film that captures the innate details of their lives and how the couple looks at one another. There’s no doubting their love. There are hints of their opposing mannerisms. George’s attention to tidiness is methodical, changing a shirt when a speck of the dinner he makes splashes on the cuff of his sleeve. He walks behind Kathryn at the end of the night, picking up what she’s dropped.

Black Bag is gorgeously shot from start to end.

George’s rigidity is met with Kathryn’s silken, languid motions. Their immaculate costumes mirror their personalities. He’s buttoned up while she chooses from a swath of fabrics and silhouettes. Black Bag is handsomely shot, both because of Soderberg’s tight direction and laser focus and mainly because of how striking everything looks. From the fitted clothing and the emphasis on George and Kathryn’s beautiful home to the meals prepared, there’s a level of refined decadence.

It’s both a mirage to the more insidious underbelly of the silent war they’re contending with and an accurate portrayal of their lives. Yes, they work in a harrowing field, and Black Bag deals with multiple forces seemingly trying to tear them apart. But their home reflects their love and the warmth it emanates for a film that so easily could be cold and clinical due to the characters’ professions, Soderbergh and Koepp detail a tapestry that makes up a rich life for our central couple.

The investigation at the heart of the film gives it its pulse, and it’s where the rest of the strong ensemble comes in. Marisa Abela, Tom Burke, Naomie Harris, Regé-Jean Page, and Pierce Brosnan all appear in supporting roles as the potential instigator of the driving mystery. The film ignites with unmissable energy in any scene where all the characters come together (barring Brosnan, who exists on the margins).

Steven Soderbergh rounds up a strong ensemble.

These scenes help give the characters their distinctive personalities while avoiding any heavy-handed expository exchanges. Abela’s Clarissa, a satellite imagery specialist, lacks Kathryn’s calm demeanor as she actively seeks George’s eye, her messiness a stark contrast to Kathryn’s control. Freddie lacks George’s motivation but has a roguish charm. Agency psychiatrist Zoe deserves better than her boyfriend, fellow agent James, and is actively belittled for her faith.

These sequences are so well-crafted and so well-staged that it’s hard to leave them as we, too, get caught up in the evening candlelit glow. George uses it as a ruse to figure out who might be framing Kathryn, while Soderbergh uses it to lure us in and make us invested in their lives.

Abela is the most striking of the supporting cast, doing a lot with her reactions as she continually deals with others trying to implode her life. Harris, too, is excellent, suggesting a character who is much brighter and ahead of the game than the others give her credit for. There isn’t a weak performance in the bunch, culminating in a story in which it is hard to determine who is after another. Especially when each dynamic — barring George and Kathryn, of course — has its dosages of ready hostility.

Koepp’s script keeps us in the dark as it weaves back and forth, creating palpable anxiety as George pushes too close to the truth in his efforts to protect Kathryn. While the story becomes a little too lost in its own mystery, it’s an infrequent hiccup. With no padding, Black Bag delivers a taut thriller where the deception is never forced or written with the explicit desire to create a weak ‘gotcha’ moment.

The bottom line.

Black Bag is a gorgeous film that deliciously luxuriates in its actors’ natural magnetism and charisma. It is a pure adult drama that understands the cinematic value of chemistry and lean storytelling. Devoid of excess or bloat, the film finds unexpected heart in the devotion between the central married couple. But it finds its magic in how it roots itself in realism despite the heightened narrative. What a breath of fresh air.

Black Bag is now playing in theaters everywhere. Watch the trailer here.

Images courtesy of Claudette Barius/Focus Features. Read more articles by Allyson Johnson here.