Sadly, I wasn’t writing reviews when “Black Panther”, one of the biggest movies of the past few years, was released a few months ago, so this is long overdue. In February, “Black Panther” took the entire world by storm; the box office exploded and the movie continues to play in some theaters even now, over three months (!) after its original release. There is no denying that this is one of the most iconic movies of our time; while it comes just short at some points, it manages to do something with characters and their story that few movies — especially superhero movies — can effectively do.
If you don’t know the plot (and I hope you’re comfortable under that rock of yours), you have the rare choice of seeing this still in theaters or on DVD. T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman), prince of Wakanda, has assumed the throne and the mantle of Black Panther following his father’s death. Struggling with filling his father’s shoes as a warrior-king, T’Challa’s principle goal is to protect his country at all costs, but he is quickly faced with the threat of Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan), a proud villain who means to take the throne and use the rich technology of Wakanda rashly.
“Black Panther” has so much appeal in so many different ways: the beautiful visuals, the soundtrack and score, the powerful themes, and, mainly, the characters played by their respective actors. Each actor gives a full performance, never dull or empty, but also never over-the-top (to some, Michael B. Jordan may be over the top, but, honestly, as I rewatched him, he’s just as good as the rest of the cast). Even the more minor roles like Okoye (Danai Gurira), W’Kabi (Daniel Kaluuya), M’Baku (Winston Duke), and N’Jobu (Sterling K. Brown; amazing even though he’s in only two scenes) are all perfectly acted; you may not encounter them often, but each performance clues you in to all you need to know about each personality and their place in the world of the film in just a few scenes.
Director Ryan Coogler really took advantage of the beautiful setting of the story; Coogler made Wakanda look absolutely stunning. The country landscapes and sunsets are lush, the traditional, vibrant colors are a feast for the eyes in every shot where multiple Wakandans are gathered — the beautiful introduction of Wakanda/ T’Challa’s first royal ceremony are just a few highlights — and almost all the action is sleek, modern, and enthralling to watch. My only personal complaint about any fight scenes is that the final fight between two Black Panthers never really reaches the intensity that is supposed to go with a culminating battle — which isn’t good because we all came to see two Panthers go at it. But, then again, I’m not one to tell Ryan Coogler how to shoot fight scenes; he’s done more than enough with that exquisite casino sequence (my personal favorite).
“Black Panther” does have numerous dull moments, but it can get away with some of these because its characters are interesting enough that we are locked in even if they aren’t fighting — this is much more than many superhero movies can say. Especially for T’Challa, the audience is concerned about how these characters wil grow and deal with the situations at hand, and thus, we pay attention to scenes with pure dialogue (still, it wouldn’t have hurt to cut one or two of these). If I’m being annoying and nitpicky, I thought Killmonger should have had a bigger role from the beginning, but instead we seemed to have one villain for each half of the film: Klaw (Andy Serkis) for the first half, and Killmonger for the second. What was really interesting, however, was how T’Challa actually changed because of Killmonger; rarely do you see a villain who is just correct enough to change the opinion of the hero.
Undeniably, it is Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa/Black Panther that makes this story so interesting. Boseman not only nails a pretty awesome accent, but you can tell he is committed to the role in every way he carries himself — a highlight of his performance was the “Ancestral Plane” scenes where T’Challa reaches his emotional heights. We love T’Challa because he can be the sickest superhero out there, but also be trading memes with his younger sister; he’s relatable even though he’s a superhero/king — he wants his life to count just like the rest of us.
