For many years we’ve seen solid productions from Steven Soderberg and great scripts from David Koepp. What if they combined forces? That’s no longer theoretical, as the two team for the new spy drama Black Bag, which opened Friday.

The film focuses on George (Michael Fassbender). He’s a great agent with a skill for sniffing out the truth. And as we meet him, he’s on the hunt for a traitor within the agency that has stolen a secret weapon and plans to sell it. He’s given five names. One of them is responsible. He has a week to figure it out.

The wrinkle is, one of the five on the list is his wife, Kathryn (Cate Blanchett). Also on the list are a pair of colleagues, Stokes (Rege-Jean Page) and Freddie (Tom Burke), the staff therapist Dr. Zoe Vaughan (Naomi Harris), and a young analyst Clarissa (Marisa Abela) who is seeing Freddie. George begins with a tense Sunday dinner for six, setting the wheels in motion.

Throughout the week that follows, George and the five suspects continue to move forward. He tries to sift through the clues and put together the mystery before it’s too late.

This is an interesting set up with a great cast, which also includes Pierce Brosnan as a high up at the agency that is in the middle of all that’s going on. The script is crisp with some great dialogue, some nice twists, and some great interactions among the characters. But what really helps it come together is the fusion with Soderberg’s style and the performances.

From the outset—an opening sequence that beautifully tracks Fassbender’s George through a club—we have a strong set of visuals that pull you in and enhance the story. We see a lot of it through George’s eyes, and Fassbender is great in the lead role. But this is a fantastic ensemble with set pieces and sequences that allow them all to shine.

There is a sequence near the latter phase of the film that includes lie detector tests. The way it moves between questions and characters helps build the tension in the best way. Soderberg knows how to build up this story and bring it to a stirring conclusion.

I had a lot of fun with this film. It was incredibly engaging and very satisfying. I loved how the story came together in the third act and the way these actors played off one another. This is a well-crafted thriller and my favorite new release of 2025 so far. It’s worth seeking out.

Black Bag opened nationwide on Friday, March 14.

Matthew Fox is a graduate of the Radio, Television and Film program at Biola University, and a giant nerd. He spends his free time watching movies, TV, and obsessing about football. He is a member of the FSWA. You can find him @knighthawk7734 on Twitter and as co-host of the Fantasy Football Roundtable Podcast.