[Movie] Black Widow

msteelers · Post by **msteelers** » Mon Jul 12, 2021 11:25 am

EvilHomer3k wrote:Is this streaming anywhere or just in theaters?

You can pay Disney+ $30 for Premiere Access, which is what we did. But you have to be a subscriber already.

dobberhd · Post by **dobberhd** » Mon Jul 12, 2021 4:39 pm

We did the $30. I wish all movies were this way. I like to be able to pause and get snacks.

Paingod · Post by **Paingod** » Mon Jul 12, 2021 6:12 pm

I just can't bring myself to pay theater prices so I can sit in my own living room using a service I already paid for. I'd rather wait for it to hit the streaming services normal lines and save the money.

When I spend money to go see a new movie I'm paying for time outside the house, watching a huge screen, with a sound system better than mine. Stale popcorn and sticky floors are things I could replicate at home, though.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Mon Jul 12, 2021 7:31 pm

dobberhd wrote: ↑Mon Jul 12, 2021 4:39 pm We did the $30. I wish all movies were this way. I like to be able to pause and get snacks.

There are theaters who serve you food and drinks throughout the movie. And not just pop from the soda fountain, actual drinks. I really dislike going to theaters without this service now that I've been spoiled.

Still. a theater isn't a place I'd take the kids until they've been vaccinated. There's been approximately no movies my wife has been so anxious to see in the theater that she's willing to outsource the kids for an evening.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Mon Jul 12, 2021 7:32 pm

Jeff V wrote: ↑Mon Jul 12, 2021 7:31 pm There are theaters who serve you food and drinks throughout the movie. And not just pop from the soda fountain, actual drinks. I really dislike going to theaters without this service now that I've been spoiled.

I dislike going to theaters with this service, as the distraction of food service and drink refills is distracting. And the chairs are rarely as comfortable as some of the more comfortable film options.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Mon Jul 12, 2021 7:38 pm

LA Times

The film, which premiered simultaneously in theaters and on Disney+ premier access, took in more than $215 million globally with more than $60 million of that revenue coming from Disney+ alone. “Black Widow” pulled in $78 million in 46 international markets.

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Mon Jul 12, 2021 7:55 pm

Sorry to say the movie wasn't that great. 80% talking, and the action wasn't much better.

EvilHomer3k · Post by **EvilHomer3k** » Mon Jul 12, 2021 8:20 pm

Thanks. We have Disney+ so I should have known that it's available there. Been catching up on some other shows (Fear the Walking Dead mostly) and I finished Falcon a few weeks ago (haven't started Loki).

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Mon Jul 12, 2021 8:32 pm

We saw it this afternoon, 3:30 showing at the theater. First movie since late 2019/early 2020. Nice big theater with maybe five other people, so I'm not that worried.

We all really liked it. It's an interesting tidbit that the entirety of the core movie took place during the first half of the Captain America: Civil War credits.

We'll be back at the theater in a few weeks for Suicide Squad.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Mon Jul 12, 2021 10:04 pm

Isgrimnur wrote: ↑Mon Jul 12, 2021 7:32 pm
I dislike going to theaters with this service, as the distraction of food service and drink refills is distracting. And the chairs are rarely as comfortable as some of the more comfortable film options.

The one I go to the most has recliner chairs. No non-serving theater I've ever been to has such comfortable seating.

I don't mind the distraction when they are bringing me beer.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Tue Jul 13, 2021 1:50 pm

First world problems! There are two theaters within 30 miles of me. One has three theaters and screens that are about 10' tall. It's like being in a large home theater with no AC. The other is just a standard AMC that serves expensive popcorn and Coke products with barely padded seats that are about four inches too narrow. Leg room is the back of the seat in front of you. The only way we're eating dinner there is if we can fit it into Michelle's smugglin' purse (and then where would we put the snacks?)

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Tue Jul 13, 2021 2:01 pm

Jeff V wrote: ↑Mon Jul 12, 2021 10:04 pm
Isgrimnur wrote: ↑Mon Jul 12, 2021 7:32 pm
I dislike going to theaters with this service, as the distraction of food service and drink refills is distracting. And the chairs are rarely as comfortable as some of the more comfortable film options.
The one I go to the most has recliner chairs. No non-serving theater I've ever been to has such comfortable seating.

I don't mind the distraction when they are bringing me beer.

The one I used to go they'd lower the waiters down to your seat via a system of wires a la Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible.

msteelers · Post by **msteelers** » Tue Jul 13, 2021 5:03 pm

Our local Regal added nice big recliners to every theater about a year before COVID hit. We found that the big recliners and reserved seating was all it took to get us going to the movies more often. Up until COVID that is. We managed to catch one movie in the theater in that blissful 1-2 week period after we were fully vaccinated and before we started to really worry about Delta.

rittchard · Post by **rittchard** » Wed Jul 14, 2021 12:10 pm

I would love the option to watch new releases at home. Black Widow was perfect for this, as was The Tomorrow War. I recently upgraded my front and center speakers so the sound was fantastic. Unfortunately I think this is the last of the big movies (that I care about) that's going to have the option available.

Torfish · Post by **Torfish** » Wed Jul 14, 2021 12:24 pm

My family and I went to see this last night in the theater. First time back since the pandemic. We prefer seeing movies in theaters with crowds.

Not the best Marvel movie, but very good. We all enjoyed it.

Madmarcus · Post by **Madmarcus** » Wed Jul 14, 2021 8:47 pm

Paingod wrote: ↑Mon Jul 12, 2021 6:12 pm I just can't bring myself to pay theater prices so I can sit in my own living room using a service I already paid for.

I lucked into watching it at my sisters with 6 of us watching on a service they already pay for.

I loved it. Lots of good lines and solid action away from the heavy hitters of the Avengers.

hitbyambulance · Post by **hitbyambulance** » Wed Jul 14, 2021 8:56 pm

saw this on the company 'product release event' outing today. i had the strange feeling i had seen parts of this one before. kinda deja vu

Spoiler:

what was sad is the product manager i was talking to had a 10 year old who really, really wanted to see this, but since it was 'employees only' she had to break the news to him that only she could go (and she wasn't into comic book films in the first place.)

also, did anyone else notice the very plain/basic credits - it didn't have the stylized animation sequences that the last few years of MCU films have had. are there other recent ones that were like that? it felt kinda like a cost-cutting endeavor. also noted the first absence of any Stan Lee cameo.

the trailer for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings looked not too interesting.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Thu Jul 15, 2021 12:00 am

hitbyambulance wrote: ↑Wed Jul 14, 2021 8:56 pm also noted the first absence of any Stan Lee cameo.

That would have been Spider-Man: Far From Home. Endgame was his last cameo.

El Guapo · Post by **El Guapo** » Fri Jul 16, 2021 11:14 am

Watched this last night. I thought it was pretty good. Kind of silly and rote Marvel at times, but well written and acted. The family parts were the best - loved seeing Black Widow and her sister busting each other's chops at times.

I kind of think that a giant flying fortress is an exceptionally poor way to stay hidden, though.

naednek · Post by **naednek** » Fri Jul 16, 2021 1:57 pm

hitbyambulance wrote: ↑Wed Jul 14, 2021 8:56 pm

a theatre room was rented just for this group, and everyone was _completely_ silent for the entire film length.

Now that's how it should be. Be quiet so I can enjoy my movie, no clapping or shouting, or candy wrapping

naednek · Post by **naednek** » Fri Jul 16, 2021 1:58 pm

El Guapo wrote: ↑Fri Jul 16, 2021 11:14 am Watched this last night. I thought it was pretty good. Kind of silly and rote Marvel at times, but well written and acted. The family parts were the best - loved seeing Black Widow and her sister busting each other's chops at times.

I kind of think that a giant flying fortress is an exceptionally poor way to stay hidden, though.

POSER!

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Fri Jul 16, 2021 2:17 pm

El Guapo wrote: ↑Fri Jul 16, 2021 11:14 am Watched this last night. I thought it was pretty good. Kind of silly and rote Marvel at times, but well written and acted. The family parts were the best - loved seeing Black Widow and her sister busting each other's chops at times.

I kind of think that a giant flying fortress is an exceptionally poor way to stay hidden, though.

Not if you've disguised your floating fortress as a 379 yard long seagull though.

stessier · Post by **stessier** » Mon Jul 19, 2021 8:35 am

Saw it with the whole family this weekend and enjoyed it. Saw it in IMAX with about 25 other people. All those people chose to sit in a column right up the center of the theater, so we felt very safe sitting off to the side with 12-15 seat buffer to the side and no one at all above or below us.

Grifman · Post by **Grifman** » Mon Jul 19, 2021 8:55 am

Going to see this Tuesday afternoon at a local ANC with my Marvel movie friends. Cost is only $6 a ticket due to it being a matinee and Discount Tuesday! Very much looking forward to getting back in theaters for movies!

Pyperkub · Post by **Pyperkub** » Mon Jul 19, 2021 11:12 am

hitbyambulance wrote: ↑Wed Jul 14, 2021 8:56 pm
also, did anyone else notice the very plain/basic credits - it didn't have the stylized animation sequences that the last few years of MCU films have had. are there other recent ones that were like that? it felt kinda like a cost-cutting endeavor. also noted the first absence of any Stan Lee cameo.

Yeah, the lack of the credits animations bugged me - it felt like the movie didn't get the full Marvel Treatment, and with the multiple pandemic delays, seems like something they could have easily done. The other thing which was sub-par for a Marvel movie was the musical score. It just kind of disappears, rather than enhancing the movie, IMHO.

Almost like a game which didn't license the music (ahem, Crystal Dynamics)...

msteelers · Post by **msteelers** » Mon Jul 19, 2021 3:47 pm

Pyperkub wrote:
hitbyambulance wrote: ↑Wed Jul 14, 2021 8:56 pm
also, did anyone else notice the very plain/basic credits - it didn't have the stylized animation sequences that the last few years of MCU films have had. are there other recent ones that were like that? it felt kinda like a cost-cutting endeavor. also noted the first absence of any Stan Lee cameo.

Yeah, the lack of the credits animations bugged me - it felt like the movie didn't get the full Marvel Treatment, and with the multiple pandemic delays, seems like something they could have easily done. The other thing which was sub-par for a Marvel movie was the musical score. It just kind of disappears, rather than enhancing the movie, IMHO.

Almost like a game which didn't license the music (ahem, Crystal Dynamics)...

I believe they did the credits at the beginning of the movie rather than at the end. It’s unusual for a marvel movie, but made sense for this movie.

Still, it made the end feel a little strange.

One podcaster I listened to said that the scene with

Spoiler:

Felt like the mid-credit scene of the movie because they didn’t have the stylized credits at the end.

Zaxxon · Post by **Zaxxon** » Mon Jul 19, 2021 5:15 pm

Pyperkub wrote: ↑Mon Jul 19, 2021 11:12 amThe other thing which was sub-par for a Marvel movie was the musical score. It just kind of disappears, rather than enhancing the movie, IMHO.

This is a pretty standard thing with Marvel films.

Saw BW with the wife on Friday night (at our home theater, via Premier Access). I actually liked it a lot more than I anticipated I would. Yes, it's got a lot of retread ideas (floating fortress! crashes! Guy that fights like Cap! Gal that fights like Black Iron PantherMan!) Yes, it's true that BW should have gotten her own movie years ago, before it was backed into a corner in terms of character development but coming out after her endgame, so to speak, is completed.

But I had a blast. I thought Florence Pugh was fantastic as Yelena, and I'm looking forward to seeing her take over the BW mantle.

She's just wonderful.

Spoiler:

Pyperkub · Post by **Pyperkub** » Mon Jul 19, 2021 7:11 pm

Paingod wrote: ↑Mon Jul 12, 2021 6:12 pm I just can't bring myself to pay theater prices so I can sit in my own living room using a service I already paid for. I'd rather wait for it to hit the streaming services normal lines and save the money.

When I spend money to go see a new movie I'm paying for time outside the house, watching a huge screen, with a sound system better than mine. Stale popcorn and sticky floors are things I could replicate at home, though.

I expect that, especially for Disney, this calculus *really* changes if you have kids. The $30 is pretty much 2 adult movie tix around here (or really close) and you get re-watches for a couple of months before they are free.

I went solo as Mrs. Kub was out of state taking care of her dad and enjoyed it in the theater, though I missed part of the first "villain" fight because I had to go to the bathroom, and was lucky there was only one post credits scene, which I was able to get back from the bathroom to see

.

Might still do the Disney+ thing for it with Mrs. Kub now that she's back. Will see if she wants to go to theaters (there really isn't much out yet, and Delta variant may be changing that calculus for folks as well).

Side note - in the theater, I was THAT GUY!!!!

Yeah, that guy who accidentally inhales the popcorn shells and has a coughing fit while everyone is still freaked out about the pandemic. Not fun.

was not good to Pyperkub that day!

Grifman · Post by **Grifman** » Tue Jul 20, 2021 8:26 pm

Saw it this afternoon and really enjoyed it and how it fleshed out Natasha’s story. The only thing that bothered me was the juxtaposition of some of the humor with what was done to Nat and her sister in turning them into Black Windows and how their “parents” acquiesced in that treatment. The reconciliation was just too pat and easy for me. But the final action sequence was fantastic. The final tie in with Marvel on Disney Plus is going to be interesting.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Thu Jul 29, 2021 2:27 pm

WSJ

Scarlett Johansson, star of the latest Marvel movie “Black Widow,” filed a lawsuit Thursday in Los Angeles Superior Court against Disney, alleging her contract was breached when the media giant released the film on its Disney+ streaming service at the same time as its theatrical debut.

Ms. Johansson said in the suit that her agreement with Disney’s Marvel Entertainment guaranteed an exclusive theatrical release, and her salary was based in large part on the box-office performance of the film.

“Disney intentionally induced Marvel’s breach of the agreement, without justification, in order to prevent Ms. Johansson from realizing the full benefit of her bargain with Marvel,” the suit said.
...
According to the complaint, Ms. Johansson’s representatives sought to renegotiate her contract after learning of the dual-release strategy for “Black Widow,” which she has said is her ninth and last Marvel movie. Disney and Marvel were unresponsive, the suit said.

The decision to put the movie on Disney+ is projected to cost Ms. Johansson more than $50 million, a person familiar with details of her contract claimed.

Skinypupy · Post by **Skinypupy** » Thu Jul 29, 2021 3:26 pm

Isgrimnur wrote: ↑Thu Jul 29, 2021 2:27 pm The decision to put the movie on Disney+ is projected to cost Ms. Johansson more than $50 million, a person familiar with details of her contract claimed.

Ouch

Zaxxon · Post by **Zaxxon** » Thu Jul 29, 2021 3:48 pm

Seems like they should at the least be treating the Premier Access revenue as box-office receipts.

Zaxxon · Post by **Zaxxon** » Thu Jul 29, 2021 5:36 pm

Zaxxon wrote: ↑Thu Jul 29, 2021 3:48 pm Seems like they should at the least be treating the Premier Access revenue as box-office receipts.

Sounds like maybe they did.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Thu Jul 29, 2021 5:55 pm

Lawyers gonna lawyer.

Zaxxon wrote: ↑Thu Jul 29, 2021 5:36 pm Sounds like maybe they did.

I don't get that from the statement at all.

Zaxxon · Post by **Zaxxon** » Thu Jul 29, 2021 6:13 pm

Isgrimnur wrote: ↑Thu Jul 29, 2021 5:55 pm Lawyers gonna lawyer.

Zaxxon wrote: ↑Thu Jul 29, 2021 5:36 pm Sounds like maybe they did.
I don't get that from the statement at all.

I took it from their reference to her ability to earn more from Premier Access. Granted, I'm inferring.

YellowKing · Post by **YellowKing** » Sat Jul 31, 2021 8:33 am

I don't know enough details to definitively know who's in the right here, but if I had to put money down I'd side with Scarlett over the corporate greed machine that is Disney. It's rare that I've ever seen a case where the artist *isn't* getting screwed in some fashion by their corporate overlords.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Sat Jul 31, 2021 9:14 am

I know it’s horrible and unfair of me, but when I see a major star and a big studio fighting over millions of dollars, I tend to tune out.

gilraen · Post by **gilraen** » Sat Jul 31, 2021 1:38 pm

I think the more significant thought here is that if Disney is really screwing over one of their biggest stars, there are probably also screwing over other people who were involved with the movie, who don't have the clout or resources to pursue legal action.

dbt1949 · Post by **dbt1949** » Sat Jul 31, 2021 1:42 pm

hepcat wrote: ↑Sat Jul 31, 2021 9:14 am I know it’s horrible and unfair of me, but when I see a major star and a big studio fighting over millions of dollars, I tend to tune out.

Ditto

Max Peck · Post by **Max Peck** » Sat Jul 31, 2021 2:05 pm

Scarlett Johansson’s ‘Black Widow’ Lawsuit Is Game-Changing, But May Be Legally Weak

The rollout of a big lawsuit in Hollywood doesn’t always speak to its chances of success, but then again, this is a town that obsesses over public image, and there are absolutely times when something can be read by how litigation is groomed and then marketed. The bold, sure-to-be-influential, but perhaps legally dubious case filed by Scarlett Johansson on Thursday belongs in this category. The first thing that anyone should understand about her suit alleging she was short-changed by the Black Widow release is that the actress (or at least her reps) wanted this dispute to go public in a big way. A headline in The Wall Street Journal timed to the court filing was no accident.

Why is the legal case potentially weak? That’s certainly not the assessment that many in the talent community wish to hear. Actors, directors and writers have very real concerns about being fairly compensated in an industry whose business model is shifting in real time plus legitimate gripes that these huge conglomerates are making moves to benefit their digital platforms, contractual obligations to Hollywood’s top creatives be damned. Johansson’s suit may indeed be forerunner for more litigation from others who will be watching this case closely. That said, her suit has some surprising vulnerabilities.

The explanation why Disney should be the betting favorite against Johansson begins with the very fact that it’s not every day that an A-list star sues a huge studio. That’s not quite the same as saying that these headline-makers aren’t bringing legal claims. In fact, they are. All the time. We just don’t know about it. Simply put, these disputes most often occur behind the closed doors of arbitration.

Undoubtedly, Johansson has an arbitration clause in her deal with Marvel. For all of Thursday’s headlines (true as they technically may be) that Johansson is alleging that her contract to star in Black Widow was breached when Disney decided to put the superhero movie on Disney+ the same day that it premiered in theaters, she’s not formally asserting breach of contract as a cause of action in her lawsuit. To do so would almost certainly mean a straight ticket to arbitration. Instead, Johansson is making the sideways legal claim that Disney, as parent company, caused Marvel, its subsidiary, to breach contractual obligations.