Agent Palmer

Red Sparrow is a great addition to the world of cinematic spy fiction. And yet, because the film is so good and so close to the origins of Marvel’s Black Widow, it’s hard to see this as anything more than Marvel being painted into a corner.

But before I get too far into the weeds on that, let me first talk about the film on its own, based upon a novel of the same name by Jason Matthews which I haven’t yet read.

1966’s Blow-Up is the pinnacle of avant-garde filmmaking in the pop art, swinging sixties directed by Michelangelo Antonioni.

Not only is it the story of a mod London photographer who finds something beautiful and sinister in the photographs he has taken of a mysterious beauty in the park, but it is the perspective of the swinging sixties through that photographer’s eyes, as well.

Tin Cup is one of those rare romantic comedies that can get away with being called a “sports film,” which is why it transcends the rom-com genre and is just a great well-balanced movie that teaches you about the mental hurdles of relationships and golf.

Ok, so maybe it doesn’t teach you all of that, but it does give you glimpses of the lessons, both for relationships and golf. And as you’ll find out over the next 18 holes, the writing strikes well, hitting fairways and greens with regularity.