Black Panther - Liked It

Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira
Director: Ryan Coogler 
Runtime: 2 hours, 14 minutes 
Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | 2018

For some reason, I've had this movie in my Marvel BluRay collection ever since it came out, but have not seen it. The film was recently nominated for Best Picture in the Academy Awards, so it was time to get this one watch. I actually watched it as part of a literal "double feature" along with BlacKkKlansman, which will be reviewed next week. I have a few thoughts on Black Panther, but first I will go over the synopsis even though I'm sure I'm the last person on the film twitter world who hasn't seen this movie. T'Challa (Boseman) is the heir to the throne in Wakanda, a hidden kingdom that is completely more advanced than the rest of the world in technology, and he must step forward to lead his people along with confronting a lost relative (Michael B. Jordan) who threatens it. 

I have some good things and some bad things to say about the movie. First, overall, I enjoyed the special effects like I usually do in these Marvel films. The advanced technology that is portrayed in their little hidden kingdom is amazing. I also thought the acting was good in this. Each person had their role and owned their role. As for the story line, I felt like it wasn't all that well put together, when it comes to flow. Obviously, this is just my opinion, but I just didn't think it flowed as well as other Marvel films do, and quite honestly, it reminded me a lot of Aquaman with how Erik challenges T'Challa for the Black Panther powers and the throne to the Kingdom. I guess that's the only thing that reminded me of that, obviously Erik is the bad guy in this movie. The beginning also reminded me A LOT of Aladdin, with the black sands and the big cat arising from the black sands... hmm, perhaps I should watch Aladdin this weekend (t-minus 3 months until the live action! Can't wait for that!).

One thing that surprised me a lot was the tone of the movie. It was more of a Sci-Fi drama than a superhero movie. Yes, there were some fight and car chase scenes (which honestly didn't seem to "fit" this movie), but overall it was a king trying to do what's right by his family, friends, and kingdom. It also surprised me that there wasn't too much subtle hints to what's going on in the real world with racism. After watching BlacKkKlansman before this one, I guess I was expecting it to play off all the riots and disagreements that are happening in the real world, but it did not. It strictly stayed in the "comic book" world of today. 

Overall, the movie was good, but I don't really understand how it was nominated for Best Picture. I can totally see other nominations like costume design (oh my they were fantastic!) and even production design (Wakanda was spectacularly brought to life), and honestly I could have seen even some best actor/actresses which did not happen. Is it normal to get "best picture" and not even receive a "best actor" or "best actress" nomination? Well, it was a fun movie and I enjoyed it, but I don't think it will win this year's Oscar. (4/5).