By: C.M Edwards
Leaving my culture, my color, and my pride at the amazement at a nearly all-black cast portrayed as something other than drug dealers, criminals, or magical negroes at the door. I come baring an honest critique of the recent marvel film “Black Panther”. While I thoroughly enjoyed myself in the theatre (while at the same watching out for the next James Holmes), there were a few items that caught my eye that deserve to be talked about with an honest opinion. To me, there was no way that Black Panther could fulfill all it’s hype nor did I expect it too, I only wanted what everyone else would wanted, a great movie; what I got was a good one.
The Story
The story of Black Panther takes place after the events of Captain America: Civil War; Ta’challa now king of Wakanda must go through the sacred ritual and receive his birthright. Heavy is the head that wears the Crown but with a few wise words from his father during a spiritual journey he is filled with confidence and reassurance that he can do what must be done for the sake of his people. From there, there are a lot of sub points revealed in a sort of mini barrage. For instance, we’re introduced to Man-ape, the leader of a secluded tribe that appear to be “outsiders”, we’re subtly told that Danai Gurira’s character “Okoye” and Daniel Kaluuva’s Character “W’kabi” are lovers, and that Nakia, played by Lupita Nyong’o will be King Ta’challa’s love interest. From this point on for me, the film seemed a bit rushed. Scenes served only to advance the plot and did not truly give certain elements enough time to correctly portray the weight of the ordeal to the viewers.
There are truly emotional moments that were meant to be quite impactful, but those moments were quickly swept away for the next scene. This I feel took a lot away from the movie including causing its main villain to be much less imposing than he could have been. An extra minute or two to explore Michael B. Jordan’s character, or to at least get to know Erik Killmonger would have increased his presence in the film substantially while utilizing the clear reasoning behind Killmonger’s actions could have thrusted him into the rare area of well written marvel villains. But while the bare essentials were there to make Killmonger menacing, the sandwich of his character was missing the toppings to help his him stand.
While Ta’challa’s arc in the film is considerably more put together (as it should be with him being the main character) I feel this could have been better done had there been a double point of view; a half and half exploring Killmonger’s hatred for his own people while Ta’challa learns to protect them giving a chance to really connect with both Ta’challa and Killmonger. While the execution of Killmonger’s evil plan was done quite well, again his reign seemed rushed and “maybe” ended too soon. This could have been aided by deeper conflict between Erik and Romanda, Ta’challas mother (the previous generation being the source of Killmonger’s hatred with them being the cause of his father’s death) To go a step further, this hatred could have been better portrayed through an act of violence had he murdered the old council and appointed new blood in its place, cementing his way of thinking much like he did when he burned the garden holding the heart shaped fruit.
While rushed, Black Panther’s story did not leave many, if any gaping holes that may have left viewers scratching their heads like some previous installments in the genre from multiple studios. It most surely delivered a well cut cinematic experience that maintained a level of excitement that movie goers have come to expect from Marvel films, there were times that the movie was reminiscent of Marvels Winter Soldier, arguably the best comic book movie to date. While not perfect, in terms of story Black Panther did its job effectively.
The Acting
From top to bottom, Black Panther’s cast is amazing. From Oscar winners to fan favorites the entire roster stepped into their roles seamlessly. Chadwick Boseman seemed even more relaxed as the king of Wakanda but maybe, just a little upstaged by his co-star Angela basset as his mother and Danai Gurira as the head of his royal guard. Even Michael B. Jordan put all he had into making Killmonger as intimidating as possible from physique to persona when he and Boseman shared the screen together it was a true fight of talent. But by far, one of the most refreshing and light-hearted characters of the film fell upon Letitia Wright playing Shuri, Ta’challa’s younger sister the genius of the family responsible for the creation of the new black panther suit, most technological advances in the city, and for safe travel of vibranium shipments through the underground mining facility. Shuri proved that even if Killmonger’s reign were to be permanent, without her he wouldn’t have lasted a day. No doubt did the royals of Wakanda represent and do so proudly.
Outside of the main cast, even minor roles were tremendously impactful; showing that great actors, regardless of the size of their role can still leave a major impression on the audience. Actors like Winston Duke who played the titan Man-ape, and Sterling K. Brown who put heart into the role of King T’chaka’s Brother N’jobu made these roles memorable and not just another plot device. Respect must also be paid to Andy Serkis, who’s portrayal of Klaw shined and showed potential on what Villains should look like on the marvel screen. Where there may be problems in the Black Panther film, you will not find any of them among its star-studded cast.
The Directing
Ryan Coogler, best known for his work the successful installation of the Rocky series “creed” starring Michael b. Jordan certainly stepped up to the plate with black panther. Worried that this monumental of a film would be too much for the young film maker he proved not only that I was wrong but showed that talent when given the opportunity and means to do something, can. Black Panther is a beautiful film. Nothing is out of place, everything seems to fit smoothly together which was sure to be a challenge blending sci-fi with religious culture. A quote from Coogler admits that he “Was not ready to make this movie, until he visited Africa” and the cultural influence it had on him shows strongly in the ceremonial scenes of the film that were brilliantly shot.
However, to be fair, this being his first step into major feature film blockbusters does show. There are certain areas of Black Panther that do seem rushed in a sense that more time may have needed to be taken to polish some good material and make it stronger. While the action was enjoyable, it was only slightly below the standard that I have come to expect from a superhero movie being as some action scenes or certain fights were not as clean as previous installments of the genre. For example, the car chase scene between Klaw and Ta’challa and his crew lacked intensity and for a high paced chase scene it seemed as if the cars were doing under the speed limit, and that it may have been dragged out a bit too far. Also, the final battle between Killmonger and Ta’challa was nearly entirely CGI, which was a bit of a letdown when I was hoping for a bare-knuckle brawl similar to Ironman and Captain America’s fight.
In addition, whether it was Coogler’s call or not, the decision to not only curtain call one villain in the MCU yet again, but to down two who had an immeasurable amount of potential no matter how you look at it, is a bad call. Killmonger showed the most promise as a MCU villain since Loki donned in the original Thor movie; he had a strong motive, a fair head on his shoulders, and a divisive skillset that would have made him quite the rival for the Panther especially if once again teamed up with Klaw who would jump at the chance to steal any of Wakanda’s resources. But alas, none of that will ever happen as is marvels going trend, is to kill and not catch their villains. You would think that since the reveal of the underwater prison, the ‘R.A.F.T” marvel would have better plans for their villains by now.
When it boils down to it, from me Black Panther earns a strong 7.5 ratting being a very entertaining superhero film with strong characters, amazing visuals, and a fantastic cast. Black Panther falters no-where, only leaves room for improvement and I for one cannot wait for Coogler’s next take on the Franchise. Let us hope that when Infinity War arrives we are not short any of the pieces on the board we came with in the Wakandan royal family because I have no doubt that sequels to the film will only make us shout Wakanda Forever even louder and even prouder.
Twitter: @ScriptWrtiter01
Facebook: Charles Michael Edwards
Website: CMEdwards94.wixsite.com/cm-edwards
