by Emma Smith (Reporter),
In the lead up to the release of Marvel’s Black Panther, numerous friends have commented how nervous they are to go see it. “How can it possible live up to my expectations?” they ask. If you are a member of this group, you can relax. It will meet your expectations, heightened by the brilliant trailers and incredible cast, and then it will joyfully smash those expectations to smithereens because it is better than anything you have imagined. Black Panther is the best Marvel movie ever made (oh yeah, I totally said that).
After the death of his father, Prince T’Challa returns to Wakanda to ascend the throne and lead his country. But dangers from within and outside of Wakanda threaten to destroy the futuristic utopia. While there is an impressive amount of narrative complexity few will expect from a “superhero” movie, describing it in detail would ruin some of the best moments of the film. This is a no spoiler review.
Which does not mean there is nothing to talk about. The cast you have been salivating over every time you walk by a poster? Yeah, they are every bit as good as you have been hoping. Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa anchors the film with a subtle chemistry with every cast member he interacts with. Angela Bassett as Ramonda provides many of the emotional moments. Letitia Wright as Shuri merges “annoying little sister” with the coolest version of Q. Michael B. Jordan has both swagger and emotional depth as Erick Killmonger. Lupita Nyong’o as Nakia is luminous over a core of inner strength. Martin Freeman as Everett Ross is an amusing token White Guy. However, the movie really belongs to Danai Gurira as Okoye who steals every scene she’s in. The remaining supporting cast members are all solid – there are no bad performances to be found.
The visuals are as impressive as the acting. Director Ryan Coogler has fun with the tools available to him directing a large budget action move and it shows in the action sequences. They run the gamut from slick car chases through city streets to hand to hand combat, both with and without the classic Black Panther suit. Despite the variety, each scene displays attention to detail and adjusts for the type of action. Notably, the 3D work in this movie is negligible, so feel free to skip that “upgrade” if you aren’t a big fan. The cinematography, production design, and costumes here are stars in their own right. Rachel Morrison, Hannah Beachler, and Ruth Carter build a world with sweeping visuals and intricate details. The trio deserves much credit for tackling the difficult job of creating a Afro-futuristic utopia and succeeding.
With regards to the African elements in this movie, I am not qualified to offer more than general impressions. My takeaway was that is seemed both respectful of the cultural elements it incorporated while willing to poke fun at Western ideas of Africa. For a more educated take on the cultural intricacies, head over to read Edward Ademolu’s article at theconversation.com
What I can say is this is the most feminist of the Marvel movies. The female characters have strength, agency, and narrative threads. They are funny and completely necessary to the plot development. Even Nakia, who so easily could have been relegated to “love interest,” has so much more to do than her role would suggest. Black Panther even manages to pass the Bechdel test. As a woman who loves superhero movies, I frequently leave disappointed in the lack of fully formed and integrated female characters. No disappointment here.
Black Panther is a well-crafted move. It has action, it has emotion, it has humor, it has things to say. It is a super hero movie. It is art. Go see it. Go see it now.
ComicsOnline.com gives Black Panther 5 out of 5 vibranium claws.
