Black Bag Parent Guide
Taut and fast-moving, this is a talk-heavy, action-lite spy thriller with some heft.
Parent Movie Review
“Would you kill for me?” doesn’t count as pillow talk in most marriages but for George Woodhouse (Michael Fassbender) and Kathryn St. Jean (Cate Blanchett), it’s a re-affirmation of their devotion to one another.
George and Kathryn are spies, with storied careers in British intelligence. Now they both have assignments that are “black bag” – they can’t discuss them with each other. George is tasked with figuring out which of five agents has stolen a lethal device: one of them is Kathryn, whose activities are certainly suspicious. Will George be able to figure out what Kathryn is up to without destroying his marriage, risking their lives, or betraying his country?
I had an unexpectedly good time watching Black Bag. It’s a spy thriller for your brain with nary a chase scene to be had. There are zero scenes of people chasing each other across roof tops or down staircases; no cars racing through London’s streets or doing a Tokyo drift. Instead, we get a tense dinner party, poisoning, a drone strike, verbal sparring, lots of traps being set, lies aplenty, and a tense final confrontation. There’s even a battle between realpolitik and morals at the heart of the film, which will give viewers something to debate on the way home.
The film’s tension is ably carried by its cast. Fasbender is a bit too robotic at the beginning but he warms up as the film progresses. Cate Blanchett is enormous fun to watch, and I’m particularly delighted to see a woman over the age of 50 starring in an action film, where she is portrayed as intelligent, skilled, and attractive instead of being past her “best before” date. Pierce Brosnan is also a blast – frankly, I think he was born to play British establishment figures and he’s great in his role as a senior Intelligence officer.
Unfortunately, the movie comes with some downsides. Obviously, there’s some on-screen violence, but compared to most spy thrillers the killing is brief and sanitized. Sex is limited to marital making out and some crude innuendo and there’s a bit of drinking. The real problem here is profanity, with over three dozen sexual expletives, which is what pushes this movie past the PG-13 rating it otherwise deserves and into Restricted territory. It’s too bad: if Black Bag didn’t turn the air blue, I’d be happy to recommend it to genre fans but now I have to give a language warning to potential viewers. Darn it.
Directed by Steven Soderbergh. Starring Cate Blanchett, Michael Fassbender, Tom Burke. Running time: 93 minutes. Theatrical release March 14, 2025. Updated March 14, 2025
Watch the trailer for Black Bag
Black Bag
Rating & Content Info
Why is Black Bag rated R? Black Bag is rated R by the MPAA for language including some sexual references, and some violence.
Violence: An angry woman stabs a steak knife through a man’s hand. A man is poisoned and dies on screen. People discuss a potentially catastrophic nuclear incident. A man eats a fish that isn’t dead and is obviously still moving on his plate. People are threatened with a gun. A person is shot and killed; blood is seen on the wall behind him and his body is dumped in a river.
Sexual Content: A married couple kiss passionately on their bed. A person mentions a covert sex tape made of an adulterous relationship. There’s brief, non-detailed mention of pornography, erotica, and masturbation.
Profanity: The script contains approximately five dozen profanities, including at least 38 sexual expletives, ten scatological curses, eight terms of deity, a few minor profanities, and a smattering of crude slang terms for sexual acts and genitals.
Alcohol / Drug Use: Adults drink alcohol. A man spikes people’s food with a drug. There’s mention of a person’s problem with alcohol and pills. A woman discusses her use of medications for insomnia. There’s mention of a person’s use of ecstasy.
Page last updated March 14, 2025
Black Bag Parents' Guide
Do you agree with the rationale behind the theft of Severus? Do you think it’s okay to do something wrong for the greater good? Do you agree with what Kathryn did? What would you do if you were Kathryn or George?Home Video
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