Black Panther (2018)

Review

134min

Genre:     Comic-book, Action, Adventure

Director:  Ryan Coogler

Cast:       Chadwick Boseman, Danai Gurira, Michael B. Jordan…and more

Writers:   Ryan Coogler and Joe Robert Cole

-Synopsis-

Fresh from returning home after the events of ‘Captain America: Civil War’ as king of the powerful and advanced but mysterious and secretive African nation of ‘Wakanda’, ‘T’Challa’ faces fierce opposition from within and dangers from without as he struggles to consolidate a regal position and his role as the protector of his people.

With the winds of social change sweeping through America in general and Hollywood in particular over the last twelve months, culminating last year with the hugely successful release of the first truly female-led comic-book blockbuster ‘Wonder Woman’, Marvel Studios makes its own statement by bringing Africa into the fold and majorly upping black representation in superhero fare—turning to young writer/director Ryan Coogler (Fruitvale Station, Creed) to spark a youthful mini-revolution in tentpole filmmaking . . . while sticking to a tried-and-tested formula.

Chadwick Boseman is back as the ‘Black Panther’ and king-to-be T’Challa, returning home along with his fierce general ‘Okoye’ (Danai Gurira) and Wakandan superspy ‘Nakia’ (Lupita Nyong’o), to the support of Queen mother ‘Ramonda’ (Angela Bassett), his tech whiz little sister ‘Shuri’ (Letitia Wright), best friend tribal chief ‘W’Kabi’ (Daniel Kaluuya) and high shaman advisor ‘Zuri’ (Forest Whitaker). But the reluctant Avenger’s journey to take up the mantle left by his father is disrupted by interference from outsiders, arms gangster ‘Ulysses Klaue’ (Andy Serkis) and mysterious American mercenary ‘Erik Killmonger’ (Michael B. Jordan), who threaten to expose the secretive African nation and force them to face uncomfortable truths—placing T’Challa in an existential quandary which will determine the very fate of Wakanda.

After entering the MCU fray and practically stealing the show alongside ‘The Winter Soldier’ in 2016’s ‘Captain America: Civil War’, the mythical Wakandan king gets his solo time in the limelight, as Marvel sees its long-time plan to bring the world’s first black mainstream superhero to a mass audience come to fruition— taking advantage of a changing social climate and the chance to increase black and minority representation in Hollywood by bringing together a wealth of black American, British and African cinematic talent . . . both in front and behind the camera.

Yet for all the talk of this being a game-changing groundbreaker in terms of the superhero and comic-book film milieu, ultimately ‘Black Panther’ is another slick brainchild of Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feige and the MCU masterplan, featuring a familiar structure and narrative beats which stick to a proven formula, which essentially mimics the basic story of 2011’s ‘Thor’. Although certainly entertaining and well-crafted, the action and major set pieces here aren’t particularly impressive and don’t surpass what we’ve come to expect from the Disney-owned studio, and the basic story itself is captivating without being particularly engrossing or wholly original. Ultimately what elevates ‘Black Panther’ above just a solid and entertaining individual superhero tale is the context in which it’s set . . . and boy is it a fascinating one.

Coogler & co. take full advantage of the opportunity to shine a rare positive cinematic light on Africa by creating the beautifully crafted fictional world of Wakanda, combining nature and technology and drawing on the continent’s real traditions to create vibrant and colourful production designs from Hannah Beachler and costumes by Ruth E. Carter, all captured in style by cinematographer Rachel Morrison in her second collaboration with the director—and it’s all energetically scored by composer and fellow regular Coogler collaborator Ludwig Göransson, who combines his original compositions with a soundtrack led by hip-hop superstar Kendrick Lamar.

The result is a sort of utopian African cyberpunk aesthetic revolving around a view of ‘Afrofuturism’ which presents the fantasy of an extremely advanced nation, capable of hiding from colonialist eyes and hands while developing in isolation . . . with more than a little help from an alien meteor with magical properties of course. The writers take the opportunity presented by this new frame of reference to weave a narrative with more social commentary than you might expect even from a modern superhero blockbuster, tackling the dark legacy of colonialism and the folly of isolationism while drawing characters with some measure of moral ambiguity—and further bringing the story in line with the latest newspaper headlines by presenting strong but layered female characters.

The performances all around are accomplished enough to do justice to the fresh context, with Chadwick Boseman adding the necessary layers to the character he introduced in ‘Captain America: Civil War’ and truly making it his own, surrounded and ably supported by a group of actresses led by Danai Gurira as the fierce and loyal head of the ‘Dora Milaje’ and Lupita Nyong’o as the Wakandan operative who holds the key to the king’s heart. But for us it’s some of the supporting cast like Letitia Wright as the spirited and brilliant young princess, Winston Duke as a fearsome rebellious tribal chief, and Andy Serkis as the outsider and irrepressible arms dealer who constantly threaten to steal the show, providing much of the comedic element which we’ve come to expect from a balanced Marvel picture.

In our book ‘Black Panther’ does live up to the hype to an extent—although it’s neither the best comic-book film of the last twelve months nor our favourite MCU film to date—and it is something of a game-changer . . . to a point, at least in terms of perception and representation. Ultimately Ryan Coogler has crafted a hugely entertaining popcorn movie which cleverly threads some serious social commentary into the narrative and dares to jam a crowbar into the racial fault lines which divide America—but never at the expense of spectacle and all while feeding into Marvel’s MCU master-plan.

It also serves to remind us of how much praise should be reserved for ‘Black Panther’ originators Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, for having the boldness to portray a positive image of Africa and create the first black superhero in mainstream comics—a powerful, intelligent, self-determining black character . . . and all of this in the mid 1960s at the height of the civil rights movement and social unrest in America.

The Bottom Line…

The king is dead, long live the king!, as Marvel and Ryan Coogler join forces to give audiences a stylish, action-packed and socially conscious heavy dose of the mighty ‘Black Panther’. A bold and entertaining blockbuster package which further aligns Hollywood with a rapidly changing society, while sticking to a tried-and-tested formula and adding a new flavour to the MCU master-plan.

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

Thor (2011)

Banished to the realm of men and stripped of his powers, the arrogant ‘God of Thunder’ and would-be king of Asgard must connect with mankind while learning humility and what it means to lead, in the hope of saving his world and the realms he guards from war and destruction.

Directed by Kenneth Branagh and starring Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Hopkins and Natalie Portman among others.

Comments

comments

Comments are closed.