Though I have likely said this about similar films, it bears repeating: the world of espionage is not pleasant.  The newly released Black Bag is a perfect example of why I find this statement true.  What caught the attention of this Catholic reviewer is that one of the principal characters, psychologist Dr. Zoe Vaughan (Naomie Harris), is a professed Catholic.  I always wonder about religious affiliation when I see somebody on-screen with a Crucifix around their neck.  Luckily, the matter was cleared up for me when she openly discussed her Faith.  For her especially, but for others on the cast, their discomfort with the constant deception they are forced to participate in is palpable.  Yet, the two leads, husband and wife British intelligence agents Kathryn St. Jean (Cate Blanchett) and George Woodhouse (Michael Fassbender), seem to revel in it despite professing otherwise.  Hopefully I can make sense of this tangled web for you.

There is already a tangled web from the very start in Black Bag as George is called to a clandestine meeting with a colleague, Philip Meachum (Gustaf Skarsgård).  Philip has learned that there is a mole within their organization who has stolen a top-secret project, codenamed Severus.  As is later revealed, it is a special computer program that can cause a nuclear reactor to essentially blow up, killing thousands, if not millions.  On top of revealing that Severus has been compromised, Philip adds that there are five suspects, and that Kathryn is one of them.  Before they depart, Philip wonders what George will do if he discovers that it is his spouse who is guilty of treason?  He gives a typical spy answer, but says he will have it taken care of in a week.  The next day, he invites all five to a dinner at his house.  Since Kathryn already lives there, he has a head start on observing her, and to this point, there is plenty about her to be suspicious.  The others include the aforementioned Dr. Vaughan, her boyfriend and George’s lieutenant, Colonel James Stokes (Regé-Jean Page), and another work place couple, Clarissa Dubose (Marisa Abela) and Freddie Smalls (Tom Burke).  Upon finishing their meal, George suggests a game wherein each of them proposes a sort of New Year’s Resolution for the person sitting immediately to the right.  The goal is for the unflappable human lie detector that is George to hear what each of them says and gauge their character from their responses.  It gets contentious quickly because none of the invited couples are on good terms, especially since cheating is a professional hazard.  It ends when Clarissa says candidly that she knows Freddie is having an affair, supported by George’s all-knowing nature, and puts a steak knife through her disloyal boyfriend’s hand.  Pointedly, they do not get around to Kathryn’s turn.  Instead, George must rely on other means to discover the nature of his wife’s dealings.  That night in bed they proclaim their loyalty to each other, yet he proceeds to investigate her anyway.  This involves blackmailing Clarissa, who is in charge of satellite feeds, to zoom in on a secret meeting between Kathryn and an unknown individual in Zurich, Switzerland.  The person turns out to be a Russian ex-patriot who could use Severus in order to topple his native government, with whom he is displeased over its handling of the war.  Despite not being able to get a clear picture of what is going on, it looks as if Kathryn is trying to buy Severus, but for what remains unclear.  That she may be up to something nefarious seems likely when Colonel Stokes reports that they have traced an illegal offshore account with £7,000,000 in it to Kathryn.  The situation gets more intense when the gimmick pulled by George with the satellites is found out by Freddie, who must report the matter to his boss, Arthur Steiglitz (Pierce Brosnan).  Since this comes to light, it prompts a meeting of various management types, including Freddie, George, and Colonel Stokes.  During it, Arthur reiterates that there is a leak, citing the loss of Severus.  When questioned why their government would develop such a device, he protests that it is just a contingency against the same plan being done to them, but that it would be a neat way of dealing with their enemies.  George feels pressure to disclose what he knows, but he hesitates.  Instead, he has a private meeting with Colonel Stokes, who confesses to have misinterpreted the information he had given about Kathryn.  Meanwhile, Kathryn returns to London and is greeted by Freddie, who tells her George has been spying on her.  The fact that George suspects her is telling, and since she knows she is innocent, she realizes that Arthur must be involved.  Hence, Kathryn makes contact with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and has them destroy the car taking Severus into Russia.  She then confronts Arthur about what she knows, telling him that he has effectively destroyed Severus.  That night, George and Kathryn reveal that two different sides have been playing them against each other over this Severus business.  To begin unraveling the plot, George orders polygraph tests for the original four dinner guests.  Based on their answers, he has them come to his house where he puts it all together for them in the form of another round of questions.  Based on everything that has happened, including Dr. Vaughan admitting that Colonel Stokes had been open about leaking Severus during a drunken night, as well as other evidence, they have their culprit.  Colonel Stokes goes for the gun in the middle of the table, but it is loaded with blanks.  Kathryn’s weapon is not, however.  She kills Colonel Stokes and his body is wrapped in a rug and dumped in a pond. Arthur is dealt with through less messy means.  We end with George and Kathryn back in bed satisfied with their work, and realizing they could be £7,000,000 richer.

Thus, our so-called protagonists are more Black Bag than innocent of all the things they profess to not like.  It is interesting because one of George’s repeated lines is that he does not like it when people lie.  So fanatical is he about this issue that he turned in his own father, a story he tells to his dinner guests.  Yet, how does one remain faithful to a spouse when your job requires you to break those bonds?  This is not the only cinematic example of this moral conundrum.  There are others, but the one that comes most readily to mind is Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005), although that one has a more lighthearted tone to it.  Still, the eponymous characters, played respectively by Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, hide the true nature of their espionage from each other, and it turns into a disaster with car chases and people dying.  In Black Bag, the game is much more serious, with geo-politics involved.  I would insert something about Dr. Vaughan and her Faith, but she is not much better than the others.  While her secrets are backed by medical privilege, she is also the one with whom Freddie has been sleeping behind Clarissa’s back.  To Dr. Vaughan’s credit, she does seem to allude to Catholicism as being part of the reason she is honest when she is questioned about the whole affair, though the movie mocks her for it through Kathryn’s derision when they are in a counseling session.  Ultimately, it is why these kinds of flicks are so hit-or-miss for this Catholic reviewer.  They say having a relationship with God can be difficult, but try sorting through layers of lies as in this story.

There is one straightforward question that is asked in Black Bag that has a more direct application to Catholicism.  During the polygraph tests George administers to the others, one of the questions he poses is whether the greater good outweighs personal feeling?  It echoes a private conversation early in the film when George first suspects Kathryn, but tells her that he would do anything for her.  In the context of being a spy, he is saying that he would put his wife over king and country.  The Catholic answer to this conundrum might appear obvious.  The greater good, at least in theory, should take precedence.  After all, Christianity is about something bigger, about loving our neighbors as ourselves.  However, what needs to be stressed is that it is God who comes first, not necessarily our country, community, or family.  It is a tough lesson for many Christians, including Catholics.  There is nothing wrong with wholeheartedly loving a significant other or family member, but your whole heart belongs to God.  For George and Kathryn, their world is about taking care of each other and not caring about anyone else.  It works out because their interests appear to align with that of the state, but I cannot say I like them.

What I do like about Black Bag is that it is short.  You could also say that it is good that the right people triumphed in the end.  Otherwise, while it is well acted and there is a smart plot, I just could not bring myself to care about either of them.  So, instead of calling it Black Back, it should be mixed bag.