Black Widow (12A)
Directed by Cate Shortland 
⭑⭑⭑⭑

LONG overdue and warranted, Scarlett Johansson’s Russian spy turned Avenger black widow finally joins her male colleagues with her very own solo film, tackling issues of sleeper cells, child abuse, abduction and weaponisation.

These form the backbone of Natasha Romanoff’s rich and dark backstory, hinted at throughout the other Marvel films. This opens with a 12-year-old Natasha (an impressive Ever Anderson) living a happy life in Ohio in 1995 with her six-year-old sister Yelena (Violet McGraw) and their parents Melina (a phenomenal Rachel Weisz) and Alexei Shostakov (David Harbour). 

But this is all part of their three-year-long cover as a Russian sleeper cell in the US. Once that is blown, they are forced to flee back to the motherland, where the girls are sent to the “red room” to be turned into black widows — ruthless assassins. The opening credits are spine-chilling: young, frightened girls being captured, tortured, trained, taught English and indoctrinated with US pop culture. 

Twenty-one years later, set just after Captain America: Civil War but before Avengers: Infinity War, Romanoff is on the run after breaking the Sokovia Accords and betraying Secretary Ross (William Hurt), while the Avengers have been disbanded.

She decides to make amends for her bloody past by destroying the red room and liberating all the black widows who are now being mind-controlled by megalomanic Dreykov (Ray Winstone), who sees them as his property.

To do this she has to seek out her fake family. Director Cate Shortland delivers a thrilling, non-stop action-packed ride with a deliciously sinister edge, whose breathtaking action sequences rival their male Avengers counterparts.

The light relief is provided by the wonderful Harbour as Alexei (aka Red Guardian) who is obsessed with Captain America.

Meanwhile a magnificent scene-stealing Florence Pugh embodies the film’s heart and emotional turmoil as Yelena — a crack-shot killer, but also a pissed off younger sister who constantly pokes fun at her older, fake sister’s fighting poses and penchant for flicking her hair back. For ardent fans there is an extra scene during the end credits which won’t disappoint.

After 11 years in the role she made her own, Johansson is still on formidable and compelling form; a reminder of what a waste it was — spoiler alert! — to have killed off this enigmatic multi-layered femme fatale, but at least she receives the fitting send off she deserved. 

In cinemas