Black Panther - A-

​Quick Hit: Timely and political, Marvel has another hit on its hands. 

I’ve sat on this review for a few days, partly because I had to think about all the thoughts I had about and surrounding this movie. Though Civil War approached some of the political climate that we’ve been in since the election in 2016, it’s nothing like Black Panther. I mean at one point, an African-American guy calls a white guy a “Colonizer”. Panther is in your face about what it thinks, going as far as ending with a post credits scene in the United Nations. Now many movies come at you with political agendas, but a lot of them end up less than entertaining. However, as Panther continues to make boatloads of movie at the box office, it’s obvious to all that it’s not just a political movie. Instead, Marvel has made a compelling story, filled with characters that have actual motivations. It’s actually a step up from most super hero fare.

I usually hit upon a bit of the plot, but I’m going to avoid that outside of a few spoilers near the end of the post (you’ve been warned). Suffice it to say that the Ryan Coogler gives us one of the preeminent views of Africa at its finest, invoking simultaneously a technological metropolis and an African Savannah full of wildlife. Along with this, Coogler and his writing team, give us a myriad of characters that don’t feel like African stereotypes. Gone are the Rafikis of the world, and in are characters whose looks are individual, definitive, and, well, normal. 

That leads me into the look of the film overall – it’s gorgeous. There are several dream-like sequences in the film, each of them given a certain lens filter in order to focus the light into the purple spectra. There’s also glowing, magnetic trains, vibranium galore, and giant rhinocerous for battles. It’s a visual spectacle that only fails once or twice during the scenes that feature Black Panther fighting on his own against random goons. Outside of that minor flaw, the film contains a definitive vision that usually Marvel films have lacked, outside of Ragnarok and Doctor Strange.

I just want to have a shout out to the amazing African-American women that were in this film – from Lupita Nyong’o, to Danai Gurira, to Letitia Wright, each and every woman has a moment to shine in the film. Whether it’s their bravery, their loyalty, or their intelligence, we see that the women can do more than just support the men. They make choices based on their own merit, and the film is much better for it.

The soundtrack also sets the beat well, and mixes in with the transportation to a whole new world. Wakanda is meant to be different, and the music ties in to that. But all the beautiful music and the gorgeous look of the film would have been tinged if we would have had another Whiplash or another Malekith. Instead, we’re given Kilmonger (played by Michael B. Jordan). Arguably the first villain since Loki to captivate an audience with his every move and every word, Kilmonger is both formidable and vulnerable. He’s the mirror image of what T’challa sees within himself – and now I’m headed into spoiler territory. Check it out after the picture, or scroll to the end to see the rating again.

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Ok, still with me?
WHY WOULD YOU KILL HIM???? I understand that death in a comic book universe is pretty fluid, but to have such a lame exit after an incredible battle is a bit lame. I also didn’t enjoy the fact that the exact same formula from Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Captain America: The First Avenger, etc. etc. is repeated again where we have a villain with arguably the exact same power set as the hero get 1) beat up badly 2) mopes a bit 3) comes back and wins it.

It’s just going to be a bit hard to build forward after this.

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Hahaha Tolkien White Guys. Kills me.

Outside of the few hiccups I mentioned, I thought Black Panther was very good, and I shall rate it accordingly. It’s an “A-“.

For more on this film, check out IMDB.