https://screenrant.com/black-widow-f...rdian-mistake/
Black Widow Continues MCU’s Worst Gag From Avengers: Endgame
Black Widow makes unnecessary fat jokes at the expense of Red Guardian, which means the MCU hasn't learned from the mistakes of Avengers: Endgame.
Also to add to this good article, the gag with the red guardian of been fat and squeezing to the costume, is actually a worse place for that gag than endgame because again, spy genre dont need that, even action comic book fantasy like Endgame dont need that either, although it is more negative in a film like Black Widow because of what the nature of what the film is meant to be.
Also I don't think you are using gratuitous in the right way as it pertains to that film. I really do hope MCU X-MEN leans more to what the wolverine did in terms costumes than what we see with Black Widow. X-MEN does not to sell toys that badly.
CSTowle
It wasn't supposed to be a spy film, it was supposed to be a Disney superhero movie. And since the success of Guardians of the Galaxy they've used the same template for most of their films, quip/fight/quip/fight/bit of drama to shake things up/quip/fight/music/dance/fight/fight/quip. I'm sick of it, but the box office doesn't lie in showing I'm squarely in the minority.
If you want a good spy story try "the Americans". It's what their life in Ohio reminded me of at first glance. Much better writing and acting for the most part, but more of a slow burn and no shots filmed for 3D falling out of a helicopter or cringe-worthy quips about superhero landings. If you want the Disney hero stuff you're going to have to take the good with the bad. In my opinion this was on the wrong side of that balance (more bad than good), but again seem to be in the minority.
The point of looking at it as a spy film is about giving it the benefit of the doubt and to be objective because some here argue against others that say all MCU movies are the same one the thing, which is something I mostly agree with but is open to logical counter arguments , reason I said we cannot have what is meant to be a spy film and have that costume gag and be taken seriously for a spy movie, especially about a trained assassin.
people do argue some marvel films are heist, political thrillers, action fantasy, space opera. now while there maybe be traces of this genre in those marvel films. they are are still Disney comic films that have one template of some of what you mentioned. The quiping, music, dance, action fight, unrealistic costumes, derivate story, so-so cinematography, CGI game style. all this factors are always present in every marvel film even if one may argue the genre of their films are different. Black Widow still has more in common with GOTG than Jason Borne in film making narrative, although I can understand some part of the spy genre argument for Black Widow compared to the argument that Ant Man movies are ''heist'' films.
Also thanks for highlighting ''The Americans''. I do know many good spy movies/tv/books.