Black Widow

"Confidently crafted and worthy on its own terms."

"While the film is plied with eye-catching action sequences, it struggles to strike a balance between action and family drama..."

"A big disappointment."

"It’s hindered most by the sensation that this has all come a little too late, especially for a character who’s been repeatedly let down by her own franchise."

"Thanks to some zesty new character dynamics and smart twists, Marvel have finally done (Black Widow) right."

"In execution the film moves so haphazardly as to be bewildering."

"Directed by Cate Shortland with propulsive excitement, humour and pleasingly understated emotional interludes..."

"This episode is great fun..."

"Shortland works in unvarnished closeup and establishes a mood of lurching, desultory anxiety that's closer to Russian neorealism than the Russo brothers."

"Black Widow is a fun dysfunctional family sitcom, until it goes full Marvel."

"At its best... Black Widow is a welcome break from the overwrought transmedia machine that dictates Disney's biggest franchise bets..."

"A strong solo superhero effort that feels both timely and also way too late."

"Black Widow is too little, too late."

"Black Widow simultaneously feels like too much and too little."

"A thrilling 007-like adventure."

"Black Widow sets itself apart by emphasising Natasha's past, and her reunion with her fractured, drolly comic family."

"A satisfying mix of muscle and emotion."

"A fitting and often fabulous sign-off for one of the Avengers’ most memorable heroes."

"It makes sense that a no-nonsense killing machine like Black Widow should have a no-nonsense instalment, but it's nice to see it actually happened."

"The real-world resonance falls totally, troublingly flat."

"The fight choreography is impressively acrobatic, if mildly numbing..."

"Shortland, an Australian director of indies, grounds Black Widow in a more tactile and murky reality."