Black Widow

[CapnZapp]

Of course, we aren't really discussing Natashas decision to steal the car.

We're discussing the lazy sloppy decision of the writers who clearly thought nothing about the ramifications. It was just a trope to them.

 

[Janx]

And, presumably, c) insurance. I think she can live with him having to deal with higher premiums for awhile.

dude. when has insurance EVER put a man back to where he was?

Never. They will screw him down to a low pay out and he'll be in a Geo Metro because that's all he can afford with the payout.

That is P's point. She didn't pick a prick to rob. She picked a good family man who has a nice car. She didn't leave him a fat stack of bills. She didn't take a less nice car or find a jerk to rob.

That makes her the bad guy.

 

[pukunui]

dude. when has insurance EVER put a man back to where he was?

Never. They will screw him down to a low pay out and he'll be in a Geo Metro because that's all he can afford with the payout.

That is P's point. She didn't pick a prick to rob. She picked a good family man who has a nice car. She didn't leave him a fat stack of bills. She didn't take a less nice car or find a jerk to rob.

That makes her the bad guy.

That's all part of it, yes.

The other part is that, prior to that, when they steal a businessman's SUV, Nat specifically says "You can't just steal a guy's car", to which Yelena responds, "So you want me to chase him down and un-steal it?". This sets Nat up as someone who doesn't appear to approve of random car theft.

Yet, a short time later, Nat seems to have no objections to stealing a fancy sports car. Not only that, but the movie specifically shows us that the car's owner has a family with young kids.

As I said previously, I don't think I would have batted an eye at the car theft if the movie had not set its owner up as a family man. Why did the filmmakers set it up that way? Why include the touching scene where the man embraces his wife and kids as he's closing up his shop for the day?

(EDIT: FYI I can find the scene where they steal the businessman's SUV on YouTube, which is how I was able to verify the dialogue, but I can't find the other scene where they steal the sports car, so I can't confirm that I am remembering it correctly.)

 

[billd91]

The kids are there, in part, as a contrast to the infodump Yelena is giving about the Red Room and the number of kids it kills. She and Nat are discussing the destruction of girls and young women in a brutal program while kids are playing blissfully in the background, underscoring the warped upbringing and betrayal they suffered. Stealing a nice car from the guy’s body shop (we‘re not even positive it’s his own car) is kind of small potatoes given what’s going on. It’s not liked they hijacked the family minivan.

 

[pukunui]

The kids are there, in part, as a contrast to the infodump Yelena is giving about the Red Room and the number of kids it kills. She and Nat are discussing the destruction of girls and young women in a brutal program while kids are playing blissfully in the background, underscoring the warped upbringing and betrayal they suffered. Stealing a nice car from the guy’s body shop (we‘re not even positive it’s his own car) is kind of small potatoes given what’s going on. It’s not liked they hijacked the family minivan.

That's a good point. Thank you.

And you're right -- it hadn't occurred to me that it might not have even been that guy's car!

 

[Dire Bare]

Going back to Black Widow, something that's been bothering me a little bit is the portrayal of Nat and Yelena's theft of that family's car as no big deal. The movie makes a point of showing us that the shop owner has a) a fancy car and b) a wife and kids. Then Nat says she knows where the keys are, and the next thing we know, they're driving off in the poor guy's sports car.

Perhaps Nat made arrangements for the car to be returned to him when she was finished with it, but that wasn't shown on-screen. It's not so much that I feel it's out of character for her or anything. It's more that the movie itself presents this theft as just a means of moving the plot forward.

This isn't a huge thing for me. Just something I've been mulling over periodically ever since seeing the movie.

Stealing is wrong. Stealing from a family, a WHOLESOME family . . . seems more wrong. But allowing the bad guys to win, disrupt world governments, cause death, destruction, and chaos, continue to abduct and abuse young girls . . . that's a bit worse.

 

[Morrus]

Going back to Black Widow, something that's been bothering me a little bit is the portrayal of Nat and Yelena's theft of that family's car as no big deal. The movie makes a point of showing us that the shop owner has a) a fancy car and b) a wife and kids. Then Nat says she knows where the keys are, and the next thing we know, they're driving off in the poor guy's sports car.

Perhaps Nat made arrangements for the car to be returned to him when she was finished with it, but that wasn't shown on-screen. It's not so much that I feel it's out of character for her or anything. It's more that the movie itself presents this theft as just a means of moving the plot forward.

This isn't a huge thing for me. Just something I've been mulling over periodically ever since seeing the movie.

Definitely don't watch a James Bond film then! He does that stuff three times before breakfast!

 

[pukunui]

Definitely don't watch a James Bond film then! He does that stuff three times before breakfast!

LOL. I have seen every James Bond film ever made, and I can't recall any specific instances of him ever stealing a car from a family.

Anyway, my mind is at peace now, thanks to @billd91 and @Dire Bare.

 

[Janx]

That's a good point. Thank you.

And you're right -- it hadn't occurred to me that it might not have even been that guy's car!

that would make it worse, actually. As a small shop, without even multiple bays and doors, you know this is bare bones. Stealing a car from the small mechanic means he's gonna be liable to the car owner, who might be finger breaky.

Still not cool. Heroes stealing from jerks or unseen owners is socially acceptable. Showing the victim to be likeable, is punching down, and that's bad.

They may have had a reason for showing the family during the talk, but like all choices, there are unintended consequences. Here, it's raising the jerk level of Nat and Brat. Their ledger has some brown in it, now.

 

[Imaculata]

They are trained assassins. Stealing a car is rather insignificant when considering they kill people.

And while Nat is now an Avenger, and 'one of the good guys', she is also on the run and wanted for breach of the Sokovia Accords at this point in the MCU.