Move over Mr. and Mrs. Smith, there’s a new sexy spy couple steaming up the silver screen, courtesy of Steven Soderbergh. Say hello to George Woodhouse (Michael Fassbender) and Kathryn St. Jean (Cate Blanchett). In this thrillingly twisty romantic drama inspired by John le Carré, their chemistry might be cerebral, but it is no less carnal.

The screenplay is by David Koepp, which marks the second (and superior) feature collaboration between the writer/director duo in 2025, the first being the ghostly thriller “Presence.” If Koepp and Soderbergh decided to keep churning out 90-minute genre exercises for the foreseeable future, movie culture would be the richer for it, since “Black Bag” is one of the best — and most fun — films of the year so far.

“Black Bag” is the story of how married spies stay married, which involves a lot of trust, a lot of mutual surveillance, and a “till death do us part” level of loyalty that extends beyond the job. “That’s hot,” gasps underling Clarissa Dubose (Marisa Abela), who has found herself entrenched in George and Kathryn’s strange web of deceit and devotion, and indeed it is hot, Clarissa, indeed it is.

Fassbender, outfitted in turtlenecks and horn-rimmed glasses, brings a simmering intensity to his portrayal of the nerdy, fastidious George, who hates liars so much he has no problem surveilling his own family, which now includes his glamorous, elusive wife, Kathryn. She’s ended up on a list of possible leakers of sensitive information to foreign agents, and so now he will begrudgingly, but meticulously, investigate her potential involvement in the plot.

“Black Bag” opens and closes with a high-stakes dinner party game, in which we witness how George carefully extracts the truth from his targets, and how incestuously interwoven their little group of colleagues and collaborators has become, in both matters of the heart and matters of international terrorism plots.

That terrorism plot may be what initiates the conflict, but it is secondary to the primary question of the film, which is about relationships, fidelity, trust and truth. The spy craft on display is more emotional but no less technical in terms of reading people and eliciting reactions. The action, as they say, is the juice, and the action here is verbal, rather than physical — it is manipulation and mind games, which might even be foreplay for George and Kathryn.

Soderbergh surrounds his two powerhouse actors with an equally dreamy ensemble cast, including Abela, Tom Burke, Naomie Harris, Regé-Jean Page and a former 007 himself, Pierce Brosnan. The internal workings of the script deliver dizzying suspense, while Soderbergh offers up delectable surface pleasure as director, cinematographer (under his alias “Peter Andrews”) and editor. Rich, luxe interiors are lit by ostentatiously warm lights, which contrast with the icy environs of the National Cyber Security Centre; George’s proper buttoned-up style juxtaposes the tactile riot of Kathryn’s wardrobe, composed of varying textures in silk, leather and knits of rich browns, maroons and caramel (the stunning costume design is by Ellen Mirojnick).

“Black Bag” makes for an apt pairing with Soderbergh’s 2011 action film “Haywire,” also starring Fassbender. It’s easy to categorize one as brawn, the other brain, but “Black Bag” is embodied too: in George’s assessments of physical reactions during a polygraph test, or the way a jilted lover lashes out with violence, or how someone concealing a secret medicates themself to sleep. It’s embodied in the way George and Kathryn embrace in bed, or turn away; it’s in the golden lamplight that makes faces glow with beauty and mystery across a table.

“Black Bag” may be rooted in the mind, but it is inextricably connected to the heart, especially in matters of love and trust, betrayal and murder. That’s what makes a Soderbergh genre exercise such a deliciously satisfying cinematic morsel: it is pure fun, but also deeply layered with larger existential themes, making for a delightful romantic spy drama that cannot be missed.

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‘BLACK BAG’

4 stars (out of 4)

MPA rating: R (for language including some sexual references, and some violence)

Running time: 1:33

How to watch: In theaters March 14

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