I’ll be catching Steven Soderbergh’s “Black Bag” on Tuesday morning, and the review embargo only lifts on March 11. Suffice to say that “Black Bag” has already, every so quietly, started press screening this week, but only for a handful of journos. The reactions have so far been positive.
“Black Bag,” which is being dubbed a “spy thriller,” is set up with a March 14, 2025 release date via Focus Features. Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender star in the film alongside Regé-Jean Page, Marisa Abela, Naomie Harris, Tom Burke and Pierce Brosnan.
Soderbergh has described it as his own take on a Howard Hawks film. Hawks, much like Soderbergh, was a genre-hopper (“Scarface,” “Rio Bravo,” “His Girl Friday”). In the filmmaker's own words, his directing style was based on being “enjoyable” and “straightforward.”
It’s no secret I very much admire Steven Soderberg’s cinema. In some fashion, he’s directed so many movies, on a near yearly basis, that he’s turned into this fairly underrated filmmaker. I’m not kidding. People, especially critics, are starting to take him for granted.
It’s arguable that no director has transcended multiple genres the way the great Soderbergh has, especially over the last decade. The prolific filmmaker has moved from psychological thriller, to drama, to comedy, never allowing the films to lose that slick and entertaining touch he infuses into all of his cinema.
Soderbergh has directed over 35 films in his career. In my books, his 10 best are “Traffic,” “The Limey,” “Out of Sight,” “Ocean’s Eleven,” “Sex, Lies & Videotape,” “The Informant,” “Logan Lucky” “Haywire,” “Erin Brockovich,” and “Behind the Candelabra.”
“Black Bag” is actually the second film that Soderbergh is releasing this year. In January, his Sundance 2024 film, “Presence,” was finally unveiled theatrically via Neon. He’s also currently shooting the dark comedy “The Christophers” in London, which he’ll probably wrap up before starting press on “Black Bag.” The man is a machine.
Edward Berger seems to have settled on what comes next. His Lance Armstrong biopic, starring Austin Butler, is now holding casting calls, with production eyed for January.