What a great way to spend a day during Black History Month!
On February 16, 2018, the next film in the Marvel Universe will be released. That film is the much anticipated Black Panther.
Black Panther is the first black superhero in the world of comics in America. His debut was in 1966 in Fantastic Four #52 where the Fantastic Four made a visit to the secret city of Wakanda following an invitation. That’s when they met the leader T’Challa for the first time and the man who is also known as the Black Panther.
The film is the latest in the Marvel universe series of movies which began in 2008 with Iron Man. Other superheroes and films in the universe include Captain America, Thor, The Avengers, Doctor Strange and more.
Going into this film, you already heard the initial reviews from the premiere last week. With such high expectations and reviews, I had to take a deep breath before sitting down preparing to be disappointed and watching with full curiosity.
It’s truly a movie unlike something you will have experienced before. Not just saying that. For years we have seen a stereotypical genre of film that paint people of color in certain boxes of life get much of the attention. You’ll sometimes see actors portrayed as being gangster, an athlete, a woman scorned or a poor victim of Madea. In recent memory that viewpoint has been changing, especially in the Marvel world with the release of Luke Cage, Zoe Saldana in Guardians Of The Galaxy, and other films such as Hancock. Black Panther just looks different, and feels different culturally, and as a movie.
With many superhero films you get the corniness of some animations or even the simple reaction of “come on now you know that didn’t make sense!” Not with Black Panther. Visually it looks as good as I’ve ever seen a film since Avatar. The animations are cool and not overdone, and it all felt natural. For one of the first times in my life I wondered, “how does this look in 3D?” Everything was vivid, and bright, and captured the beautiful secret nature of Wakanda.
The other thing I was worried about was dialog. Yet, there were no forced accents or actors trying to overplay their role. You felt the pride they had in playing it, and really made you believe them.
Unless you are a super comic book fan, you won’t find many holes in the film itself. There are many metaphors comparing reality to some situations the characters come into. It is also an amazing visual and unspoken message to see so many women kick so much ass in one film. The wardrobe also stands out as true to its culture, and very fashionable as well. If you stay long enough you will also find a connection to the larger universe as well.
The acting was flawless, the plot was flawless, and there were enough surprises to keep you on the edge of your seat. It’s safe to say that not only did this movie meet expectations, but actually superseded them. If you’re a parent, it is a film you will be proud to take your child to. As an action movie fan you will enjoy the fight scenes and the overall action mixed in with some humor. As an African or African-American you will find the conversation between both cultures immured silently within the film. As an overall fan of movies, sit back and enjoy arguably the best Marvel film to come out in the recent history of its universe.