Black Bag (2025) - Film Review

Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender play an upper-class couple who are both intelligence officers keeping tabs on each other in Steven Soderbergh's spy drama "Black Bag". When Fassbender receives a list of possible traitors, his wife Blanchett is among the five names listed. What ensues from here is the husband doing what he can to protect his wife by investigating and asking about the evidence he's been given. Other parties of varying backgrounds get involved in this dilemma, including Pierce Brosnan as the head of the agency.

Not much I have to say about "Black Bag" except that it was efficient. With only an hour and a half running time to its name, that should be expected. The question that begs is: how much did I get out of this experience? The answer is enough at least, but I felt there could have been more bang for the buck. More of a reason to care about why certain people are being suspected of these actions. Not just being dropped in what feels like the middle of the plot right at the start. In other words, I feel "Black Bag" is missing something for me.

It's got solid supporting cast members with Marisa Abela and Tom Burke being the most notable dramatic standouts. Abela is outspoken (expletives and all) yet retains a degree of elegance amongst her fellow wealthy allies. Burke manages to be truthful about his infidelity and shortcomings, but he remains loyal to our main couple and helps them out wherever needed. There wasn't much about our main couple that stood out, the more I thought about it. Blanchett looks the part of the sexy, secretive wife, but not much else happens.

I thought there'd be more tension and spark than there actually was. Whatever fireworks are present can be found more in the less known supporting cast members. You can tell these folks are making serious dough with how elegant and rich their fancy apartments and condos are. The interior designer knew what they were doing. "Black Bag" is well shot in every setting. Whether at a fish pond on a nice, sunny day or an office with glass doors that can turn blurry at the flip of a switch. The presentation is exceptional all around.

For me personally, I felt that "Black Bag" needed more meat in its bones to back up its critical hype (85 on Metacritic, 96% Rotten Tomatoes score). More of a reason why the transgressions are a big deal to understand what's at stake. The most notable stars (Fassbender, Blanchett, Brosnan) having more material to their characters to make them standout. Yes, you'll get something valuable out of this "Black Bag", but it might be a little less than you initially expected given the pedigree of its director and stars.

Final Verdict: 6.5/10