Ivan Radford | On 26, Apr 2025

Director: Steven Soderbergh
Cast: Cate Blanchett, Michael Fassbender, Marisa Abela, Tom Burke, Naomie Harris, Regé-Jean Page, Pierce Brosnan
Certificate: 15

“It’s been a while since we had a traitor to dinner,” Katherine wryly observes to her husband, George. The fact that they’re both spies makes the set-up playfully tantalising – and the fact that one is played by Cate Blanchett and the other by Michael Fassbender even more so. That’s the appeal and success of Black Bag in a nutshell.

Steven Soderbergh’s precisely crafted thriller is a potent mix of star talent and stripped-back storytelling – an eye-catching flourish of skill delivered with the understated efficiency of an assassin. The film, penned by David Koepp, follows British intelligence officer George as he’s tasked with finding a leak in the intelligence service – a leak that has something to do with Severus, a deadly bit of computer code. And so George does the British thing: he invites a group of suspected colleagues over to dinner.

The guests include Freddie (Tom Burke), a veteran agent with a drinking problem, Clarissa (Marisa Abela), an ambitious young tech whiz who’s sleeping with him, the up-and-coming would-be star player James (Regé-Jean Page), and Dr Zoe (Naomie Harris), the agency’s psychiatrist who’s in a relationship with him. It’s no coincidence that they’re made up of two couples: Black Bag is a forensic examination of trust and boundaries in relationships, both professional and personal. It’s no surprise, then, that Kathryn is one of George’s suspects too.

What ensues is a wonderfully twisting web of double-crosses, triple-crosses and, perhaps most complicated of all, straightforward loyalty. And Soderbergh sets the stakes from the off by beginning with a dinner party laced with tension (among other things) – it’s an intimate, high-stakes but distinctly low-key affair, one that unfolds almost entirely through dialogue.

That approach wouldn’t work without skilled conversationalists, and Soderbergh’s cast bring more than sheer star power – although that A-lister charisma certainly keeps you hooked. The ensemble enjoy sinking their teeth into disreputable, often disenchanted espionage types, with Tom Burke’s Freddie wonderfully frank and self-centred, and Regé-Jean Page’s James an inscrutable, enigmatic careerist – neither of them really looking out for others. Naomie Harris leaves Moneypenny confidently behind with the smart and savvy Zoe, who is party to everyone’s private business but no less emotionally entangled. Marisa Abela steals the show as Clarissa, whose youthful arrogance is as entertaining as it is dangerous for herself – she treats everything, including George’s clinical polygraph tests, as a game, and is only really serious about winning at all times.

In the background, Pierce Brosnan brings gravitas and a whiff of distrust as their overall boss – who doesn’t hesitate to turn transparent glass windows in his office to opaque, isolating walls. That shift, from openness to secrecy, is where Koepp’s script makes its home. The writer of Panic Room, Snake Eyes, Jurassic Park, Kimi and more is no stranger to Soderbergh, but also well at home in worlds of unfolding lies and unexpected plot turns – he keeps us just informed enough at all times, but never quite lets us guess what’s coming round the next bend.

The key to it all is the bond between our central couple, and Blanchett and Fassbender don’t disappoint. It’s always a pleasure to watch Blanchett swagger and slink, and she does both her with effortless style – and a frosty stare that makes her a formidable ally and foe in equal measure. Fassbender, meanwhile, is clipped and reserved to a fault, giving nothing away whether he’s fishing or merely observing through his Harry Palmer-esque glasses. They live a comfortable, wealthy live in a minimalist home – and we soon learn that this is only possible because they know that, whatever happens, they’ll always protect each other. That means spying on their other half as much as it does holding things from them for their own good, and their easy uneasiness as a duo generates a fun, crackling undercurrent of suspense. The only challenge? Everyone else knows this about them as well.

The result is a smart, slick study of loyalty and secrets that pieces its puzzle together with old-school class – all wrapped up in a clean 94 minutes. Soderbergh should have traitors to dinner more often.

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