"Black Widow" a solid, better-late-than-never solo outing
Black Widow (2021) Natasha Romanoff, otherwise known as Black Widow, may have sacrificed her own life in the climactic moments of “Avengers: Endgame” without any take-backs, but she returns one last time for her long-overdue solo outing. The existence of “Black Widow” almost feels like an afterthought, as the end product doesn’t completely justify itself with a sense of purpose. Fortunately, director Cate Shortland (2017’s “Berlin Syndrome” ) and screenwriter Eric Pearson (2021’s “Godzilla vs. Kong” ) are mostly free from the connectivity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to focus on where Natasha came from, what makes her tick, and how her past informs the future. Perhaps Marvel fans will just be excited to be back in a theater for the first theatrical Marvel blockbuster since 2019’s “Spider-Man: Far From Home,” but as the inaugural film in Phase Four of the MCU, “Black Widow” is just a solid one. Much like its titular heroine, it’s steely but vulnerable and not too serious to forget...