This Is A Thrilling , Beautiful & VERY , VERY , VERY FUNNY Journey . . . BUT ALAS π’ . . . It Will Of Course, -{ INEVITABLY }- Be A " Short-Lived " One For S.Jβ. Welcome To The Age Of The Superπ¦ΈββοΈ ANACHRONISTIC , Er , " Prequel "
A "Good, Old Fashioned" -{ B I G }- Screen Full Length Review .
Yelena Belova : { about Natasha Rommanoff.. and in -JEST- } " ... You're such a _Poser_β" β¬β¬β¬β¬
1. " I Absolutely, Positively Loved It " : And I'm going to say that right off the bat. For what it's worth, I actually had to go see Black Widow, ( 'B.W' for short ), -twice- as I wasn't able to catch the beginning the first time around . . & ended up appreciating it -{ So }- much more the second time ; because, being a person with a difficult past myself . . the -Superb- , Intricate, ( and often super - Hilarious π€£π€£π€£ - ) drama between the lead characters -{ Really }- hit home for me. So much so . . . That inasmuch as ( - I - ) was concerned atleast, just about the -{ Only }- flaw with this film for me, if any, was the altogether "glaring" fact that it is now all but -Certain- . . . That we -{ Won't }- see Scarlett Johansson ( 'S.J' for short ) . . . Reprise her fascinatingly complex, and truly "Glorious" role as -{ THE }- Black Widow. No spoiler here b.t.w ...this "Prequel"-movie's place in the overall 'M.C.U' ( Marvel Cinematic Universe ) timeline has always been made -{ CRYSTAL π }- clear by 'MARVEL STUDIOS'... from the very Get-go. I invite you in earnest, { -Especially- if you're somewhat new to the whole "M.C.U-thing" }, to view one particular -Official- trailer by them, the one -still- entitled "New Trailer", ( YouTube, Apr.03, 2021 ), where the, 'rationale' ( -if you will- ) for B.W is explained, um, "Super"-well . . and is narrated by -none- other than, you guessed it, the "Hopelessly-Vivacious and yes, genuinely-Affable . . Ms. Johansson herself .
2. " Loose Ends Are Tied Nicely " : Here's a small { but undeniably significant } example. The 'aforementioned' Ms. Johansson's seemingly -{ "Random" }- & generally inexplicable "Suddenly-Blonde" hair in 'Infinity War' . . . . . { a look that frankly, I never -Could- quite warm up to at the time, having ...( along with Millions-&-Millions of -Other- 'M.C.U afficionados', I'm sure )... come to entirely -Adore- her trademark " Fiery Red-tresses Look π₯ " , over the years } . . . . . Was " Finally " explained to us. Looking to the 'bigger' things : Basically, the picture filled in a -{ Whole }- bunch of gaps and 'story-holes' for me { that would often -totally- have me headscratching for "Answers" in the unbearably -Long- spells between each successive new ( & 'ever More Madly' ) anticipated "Massive" New Marvel-release. And it managed to -Achieve- this by essentially showcasing a "Wide", ( frankly ), and previously -Unknown- array of intertwined " Backstories π " ...( not to mention giving us a satisfyingly -thorough- insight into the smattering of "badly damaged relationships left in the B.W's wake" )... that occurred -{ Well before }- & indeed, leading up to, her "very, very, very" high-priced and hard-won "Formal-entry Into Shield" { and concomitant defection from the Russian Secret Service, the 'F.S.B' ( formerly the 'K.G.B' ) }. Hence, a big, loud { " Kudos " } to the wonderfully gifted -Miz- Jac Schaeffer and Ned Benson ( the story-writers ), as well as Eric Pearson ( the movie's screenwriter ) .
3. " A Veritable -Explosion- . . . Of Talent " : A HUGE ππ₯, HEARTY PAT on the back is -{ Completely }- in order for CATE SHORTLAND, the Australian Directress of this U.S.D 200 Million cinematic 'Powder-keg". Although she may have been "hitherto" -{ Relatively }- unknown to -many- , this tremendously accomplished native of Temora, New South Wales actually has, get this -{ Two Full Decades }- of both T.V, as well as Film direction Credits under her belt, with 2012's War-romance-drama 'Lore' being her highest earning movie to date ( until -Black Widow- of course, that is to say π ). Not only has she very successfully managed to bring together a tremendously -Cohesive- Principal Cast just 'gushing' with absolutely -{ Stellar }- Talent, let's be clear ...( a quick, special "Mention-of-note" is altogether warranted here for the -Charmingly- bubbly & ever "tenacious" ( newcomer to -MARVEL- ) Florence Pugh, who well & truly excels in her portrayal of 'Yelena Belova' )... but the film-crew that she's "assembled" have -{ Also }- well & truly outdone themseves in -Every Single- aspect of the Production . . . With the mega-Stylistic & "Dazzling" fight choreography employed in the "Widows training scene", ( -trailers, also- ), featuring an F.S.B 'mini-battalion' of " Spectacularly Luminescent π² " Black-&-Red clad 'elite Girl-assassins' . . . Being the one that stood out for me -{ Visually }- , more than -any- other, in the film. And last, but most definitely -Not- least ; a quick 'Special-mention' of the fact that the 5 -Individual- Russian accents performed by 5 of "most" important Principal actors, ( -each to its Very specific, varying degree- ), were pulled off, rather -{ "Immaculately" }- I might add, by 5 different actors from, well, -get this- . . . . the U.K, & the U.S.A { πβ } .
SUMMATION : -{ JUST AS LONG }- as you go and see Black Widow with a "Free and Open-mind", prepared to be Really, Really -{ Entertained }- . In 'my-specific' case, the ( obvious ) "Anachronistic" aspect of said movie . . . -{ D I D }- . . . in fact make the prospect of watching it ( in the days leading up to B.W's release ) feel a tad bit strange, if you will. However, once I was actually -{ in }- my seat, the -"fabulous, Even Bond-esque"- intro sequence started to work its 'Insta' magic on me . . . . and then . . . . when that ever familiar, ever Dramatic, and yes, ever -Beloved- Marvel theme roared through the massive cinema hall I was in, it all just "Snapped" into place . An -Unabashed- , "Explosive" 13.00 MARKS OUT OF 10.00 MARKS From Me . Oh and yes, Scarlett Johansson, you will be " sorely , but Surely , & Dearly " . . . M I S S E D . . . as " T H E " Black Widow . ->-{ β’ W β’ O β’ W β’ }->- , "1 POST-CREDITS APPEARANCE" , AND 8 "FULL-BLOWN" STARRING ROLES LATER ( A WHOPPING -NINE- FILMS IN TOTAL ) . . . . WHAT A " SPECTACULARLY MEMORABLE " JOURNEY IT'S BEEN β€β.