My Black Panther review

My Black Panther review 

 

Intro: I must be in the Twilight Zone that's the only explanation to why people are praising this movie. I'm sorry I'm getting ahead of myself. This was one of my most anticipated movies of this year. That's saying a lot considering that this character didn't make the best impression on me in Civil War. It's refreshing to see a Black lead that isn't a criminal, fruity, a token Black character, stupid and spineless with women. Black Panther is not only a superhero he's a King, I haven't seen a Black man as a King in cinema since Coming to American.  

     

I know we had Black Superhero movies before, however, they feel more like comedies than action/adventure films. (Except Blade.) Also, does anyone find those films memorable? 

I was surprised that a lot of people want to see this movie. (Do I really have to explain why?) However, it's disappointing that a bunch of them didn't dress up as the character or have any of the merchandise at the theater where I saw the movie. Enough of that let's get into what I think of the movie.     

Black Panther: This movie takes place literally a week after Civil War T'Challa/Black Panther has to adjust to his life as the King of Wakanda. Meanwhile, some outsiders want Wakanada's resources or the throne, so T'Challa has to stop them before things get out of hand. 

This is one of those movies that fell short from being as good as The Dark Knight and Winter Solider. I feel dirty for saying that because this movie addresses issues that affects Black people, but the movie didn't expand on them or tell us what we should focus on in regard to those issues. If it did it could have been considered one of the best superhero movies. The same thing goes for the should someone in a position of power should help those in their time of need message, I don't think that's a bad massage however it could have worked if more people in the movie were vocal about this issue. I like how this movie depicts African culture, because it was done in an uplifting way. The theme of the movie is tradition vs modern day. I like that this movie isn't plagued by too much setup and comedy like the other MCU films. 

I don't have much to say about T'Challa/Black Panther, he seems like a stand-up guy that wants to do right by his people. Also, he might remind the audience of someone that the general public doesn't like, I'm not going to say the person's name because I don't want to scare anyone away from watching this movie. He's unsure that he's ready to be King even though he earns that right. My beef with this character is that he contradicted himself about how he wants to run Wakanada and how he reacts to what he learned about his father. Plus, he earned the right to be king way to easy compared to what he had to do to earn the throne in the comics. Another thing his Black Panther suit is too powerful, I mean it eliminates any stakes in this movie.      

There isn't a lot to say about the other supporting characters. 

Shuri (T'Challa's sister) is the brains of Wakanda, she builds the technology for Wakanada. It's hard for me to believe that she's smart enough to build new tech with no assistants. 

Ramonda (T'Challa's mother) is just in the movie to tell her son how proud she is of him. 

Nakia ( T'challa's love interest) is in the movie for T'Challa to have a shoulder to cry on. (Plus, get him out of a jam.) Seriously? What's the point of her being in the movie if they're not going to get it on, I mean promote Black Love? Also, she's a hypocrite, you'll see what I mean when you watch this movie.  

Okoye is T'Challa's bodyguard and a General of one of the Wakanada Army's. I'm stunned that she has a Husband I'm not just saying that because she can be scary it's because I thought men being turned off by women with short or no hair was universal.      
              

I can see why people say Erik Killmonger is a good villain because it's hard to see him as a villain. He reminds me of Magneto from X-Men. I wish he had his own identity in the movie, you'll see what I mean when you watch this movie. He would have been sympathetic if he didn't carry himself in a demanding demeanor, also, if we had more context to how he got from point A to point B.     

One of my many grievances with this movie is that it lacks focus on T'Challa as King, this issue might have been fixed if we didn't have the subplot of him hunting a man that wronged him and his people years ago. There are plot holes around the customs of Wakanada and how certain characters know things. The feminist vides at the end of this movie bugs me. The Hero and Villain dynamic feels rushed. There is a scene in the movie that we suppose to take seriously, however it ends up being unintentionally funny. I wish this film would at least set up Infinity Wars since that movie is coming out soon and so far, there has been no setup for it. 

Overall, this is a solid film it could have been a lot better if it was split into two movies. I hope we get more movies like this. 

Rating = Average