Black Panther (2018 Film) Review
"Black Panther" features the return of Chadwick Boseman as T'Challa a.k.a the Black Panther, and is directed by Ryan Coogler. The supporting cast includes the likes of Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, Letitia Wright, Martin Freeman, Forrest Whitaker, and Andy Serkis.
As you can tell from that intro, the real question about "Black Panther" is not whether it is a good movie. This is the eighteenth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, so you should already know that they'll deliver solid installments at the very least. The real question about "Black Panther" is: just how good is it?
Listen here, "Black Panther" is not a solid superhero movie. It is not a good superhero movie. It's a great movie. There's no need to put "superhero" between it. It's absolutely unnecessary to put an asterisk on "Black Panther." Truth be told, this film hardly seems like a superhero movie. It's a movie, similar to that of "Captain America: The Winter Soldier," that tackles political subjects while also highlighting how important it is to mix tradition with evolution as time moves on. "The Winter Soldier" is one of my favorite movies period, so to see Marvel tell a political story using the Black Panther character, was automatically engaging when the movie began. Just like that film, the discussions are enthralling and don't get overbearing and that's mainly because of the director.
Ryan Coogler
So many of you may not know, but Ryan Coogler was not intended to be the original director of "Black Panther." Acclaimed director Ava DuVernay was in talks to direct the project but, like Edgar Wright with "Ant-Man," declined because of creative differences.
I haven't seen her films, yet, so I can't give an opinion on her ability to direct, but Marvel Studios made the right choice with Ryan Coogler. In fact, they could not have chosen a better person to direct this film, than Ryan Coogler. Fairly recently, I watched "Creed" for the first time and, other than being a great movie in of itself, it gave me an idea of what to expect with "Black Panther."
Watching the movie, it was clear, even from the first frame, that "Black Panther" was right in line with Coogler's previous filmography. The film feels grounded, very down-to-earth, and diverse, not (just) because of the cast, but with the lighting, the use of cinematography, and how he presents these locations. All of these elements set it apart from piers. Sometimes the lighting gets in the way of the action sequences (I'll elaborate later on), but other times it really makes the locations vibrant.
With one MCU picture under his belt, I surprise myself to say that Ryan Coogler is one of the best directors that have been a part of the franchise. He, like those before him, understands the comic book material. I haven't read many Black Panther comics (I don't read many comics period), but beyond being a faithful adaptation, Coogler constructed an enthralling story with truly amazing dialogue that he and his co-writer, Joe Robert Cole, came up with. The political dialogue can get too on-the-nose, but for the story at hand, there was no better way to do it. There's certainly room for improvement, but from a story, directing, and action perspective, Coogler did it and his cast is just as good.
Chadwick Boseman
After viewing his short and sweet scenes in "Captain America: Civil War," the thing that I left wanting was more Chadwick Boseman and, expectedly, we get that in his solo movie. He impressed in that movie and he continued to do so here.
He plays T'Challa as a vulnerable character, all while having a commanding presence in the company of his cast members. It goes without saying that he has immeasurable chemistry with them and he almost acts like a leader off-screen, as he does on-screen. Where Boseman fit perfectly into the role with his debut, he now solidifies, and turns in an intriguing as well as entertaining performance as T'Challa.
It was a bold decision for Ryan Coogler to put T'Challa out of his Black Panther suit for most of the film and luckily, it worked. I found Chadwick Boseman significantly more entertaining when his character is having simple conversations with his sister, his lover, and his other subjects. Partially because the writing and acting was top-notch, but also due to Chadwick Boseman's charisma. By far, the actor's best scenes were his more dramatic ones. To my surprise, I couldn't whittle it down to one, because his acting was always on-point. All in all, I was beyond pleased with Chadwick Boseman's performance.
He plays T'Challa as a vulnerable character, all while having a commanding presence in the company of his cast members. It goes without saying that he has immeasurable chemistry with them and he almost acts like a leader off-screen, as he does on-screen. Where Boseman fit perfectly into the role with his debut, he now solidifies, and turns in an intriguing as well as entertaining performance as T'Challa.
It was a bold decision for Ryan Coogler to put T'Challa out of his Black Panther suit for most of the film and luckily, it worked. I found Chadwick Boseman significantly more entertaining when his character is having simple conversations with his sister, his lover, and his other subjects. Partially because the writing and acting was top-notch, but also due to Chadwick Boseman's charisma. By far, the actor's best scenes were his more dramatic ones. To my surprise, I couldn't whittle it down to one, because his acting was always on-point. All in all, I was beyond pleased with Chadwick Boseman's performance.
Michael B. Jordan
There are two types of villains we've seen in the MCU: the generic and underdeveloped baddie, or the fleshed-out and compelling adversary. It's debatable as to which side has the more substantial amount, but I believe that no one can argue that Michael B. Jordon's Erik "Killmonger" Stevens isn't one of the latter.Fun fact, Michael B. Jordan is three-for-three when it comes to Ryan Coogler films, starring first in "Fruitvale Station," followed by "Creed," and now "Black Panther."
If there was ever a time to mark the end for Marvel's supposed "villain problem," it's now. In my opinion, I only find two of their villains to be lacking. The rest range from good to superb. For all the dissenters there are, Marvel has been nailing their villains in the last two years and Erik Stevens may be the best representation of their villains in recent years. Jordan's performance is so well done that he often overshadows Chadwick Boseman in his own movie. That's not uncommon in superhero films, but I found it unprecedented here due to the writing, which makes the role.
Sure, Michael B. Jordan turns in a brilliant performance, but the writing makes this character both brilliant and sympathetic, despite the decisions he makes throughout the film. I even got teary-eyed because of the touching weight this character had forged throughout the film. Yeah, he was a bad dude, but I understood where he was coming from and, in the end, that's what makes a great antagonist.
Supporting Wakandans
For all the praise these supporting characters are receiving, I never felt that I got to know them personally. Yes, everybody is highlighting the cool action scenes they are a part of, and all the witty dialogue they have, but beyond being affiliated with T'Challa, I never knew who they were individually.
As much as I enjoyed the performances given by Daniel Kaluuya, Forrest Whitaker, and Winston Duke, I never felt like I got to know their characters particularly well. In some cases, they had one thing to contribute, but were otherwise inessential to the story at hand. Forrest Whitaker probably sneaks out of this, because he plays someone who is somewhat crucial to the story, but due to his brief amount of time in the picture, I lump him in with the rest.
As an individual, I never knew who Shuri was, outside of being T'Challa's sister and an intelligent engineer. I never knew who Okoye was, outside of being the leader of the Dora Milaje and T'Challa's main bodyguard. I never knew who Nakia was, outside of being T'Challa's lover and a political activist. You get the point. While I praise the writing in the story and dialogue department, it falters at giving the supporting roles any meaningful development to make them standout for me. It is so thin, that the only thing left to praise is, again, how cool they were in the action scenes, or how witty their dialogue was.
Granted, they succeeded in both departments, but to say that they stole the show from characters who had more development and presence, is stretching the praise too far. In short, the supporting actors in "Black Panther" do great with the screen time they have, but a lack in development keeps me from getting too invested.
Serkis and Freeman
After being axed in both the "Planet of the Apes" and "Star Wars" franchises, although the former came at the end of a truly special trilogy, I was excited about the actor broadening his horizons into more on-screen and behind-the-camera roles. Among them, was as Ulysses Klaue and after that one scene in "Avengers: Age of Ultron," it looked like the character had a lot in store for him. Which makes it all-the-more sad to find his time in the Marvel Cinematic Universe abruptly cut short. While it may have been to further the main antagonist's development, I was sad to see the actor to be cast aside, again, by Disney.
As for Martin Freeman, while he has more screen time than Andy Serkis, it's not a huge difference. He essentially boils down to being another person to help T'Challa in his cause. Like the supporting Wakandans, he doesn't have much of a personality and we don't learn anything about him from his initial appearance in "Civil War." Freeman does whatever he can with the part, but it's not really an meaty role to fill.
Action/CGI/Score
In one particular action scene, there's no jump cuts. It's all one continuous take from the beginning to the end and even though it was the same thing Coogler did in "Creed," I still loved it. The hand-to-hand combat feels more brutal, thanks to Coogler's existing experience, which leads me to where the director really falters at.
The CGI is the only part of the film where Coogler really fails. Understandably, this is his first effects-heavy picture, so you can call this all just a learning experience, but I do feel the need to point it out.
While the design of Wakanda is still impressive, the city looked like it still needed a few more minutes to render. The ships and backgrounds were not as seamless as I thought they'd be. It didn't look real enough, especially the vibranium mine. The third-act battle was amazing, save for the obvious CGI rhinos they decided to add.
The CGI wasn't all bad, because the suits looked impressive. The Black Panther and Golden Jaguar couldn't have looked better when morphing onto their hosts and it was beyond convincing when both were leaping all over the battlefield. I really felt that these suits actually existed, more-so than usual.
The two most overlooked elements of the MCU films are their villains and their scores. "Black Panther" is no different. Ludwig Göransson composed a beautiful score for this movie. I get this "Lion King" vibe from it and it, like one of the plot points in the film, perfectly blends traditional, African themes with more modern compositions for this soundtrack.
When the movie is alive and kicking, so is the score. When the film is going through its more slower moments, there's a soft melody that plays throughout and it really is music to my ears. One other film score I would compare this one to, is also another MCU film (sorta): "The Incredible Hulk." That underrated film had a brilliant soundtrack to play throughout it and just like that music fit the tone of that film, the score for "Black Panther" does that for itself. It's just so darn good, that I don't think I'll find anyone who disagrees.
Grade: A
I wanted to give this an A+ so bad. Unfortunately, there were flaws, so I give "Black Panther" an A. That's not nothing to be sad about though. This is a fantastic film that you should certainly see in theaters, regardless if you have seen the previous films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe or not. No need to pay extra for 3D. So far, I've seen this film twice and both times, I saw it in 2D, and it looked impressive by itself. Just find a theater with a big screen and enjoy the movie!
Conclusion
The stage is now set, Russo Brothers. I am prepared for "Avengers: Infinity War." I have not seen any of the trailers for the film and I will continue to abstain until after I see the film when it arrives the first weekend of May. Good luck! Anyways, this has been my review for "Black Panther." Since it made big money its first weekend, I assume most, if not all, of you have seen it already. If you have, let me know what you thought of my review. If you haven't, do you plan to? (I highly recommend you do.) Share those thoughts in the comments below, let me know what film you want me to review next, and share this review with your friends and/or family. Thanks for reading, I'm the Film Fanatic, bye-bye.
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