Review of Black Panther (2018) by Enrique F — 18 Mar 2018

I want to watch Black Panther again but after a day reflecting on the film, I'd say it's one of the best of the MCU and of superhero films in general. You get what you want like people fighting each other (and really well done one on one combat) but a lot of the great weight of the film that stands out is the excellent score and strong writing for it's cast of characters and their moments. Every character is a realized one and has an essential role and function that makes sense for the story. Also this movie proves you can have a heroic and strong main character and also have strong supporting characters - many of whom are women - who are equal to the hero without tearing down the hero. Black Panther is strong as the Black Panther sure but Okoye, Nakia, Shuri, even Agent Ross all felt like they played an essential part in helping Black Panther suceed and save the day by each having strengths that BP just doesn't have.

Also Killmonger is one of the best Marvel villains which is saying something since (contrary to what clickbait articles will lead you to believe) Marvel has many great antagonists. Ultron, Loki, Kilgrave, Nebula, Ego, but Killgrave differed by going a route with his character and motivations that I'm sure no other film studio has the stones to address. The movie addresses race and the repurcussions of history and how it affects the present and how people of the present all are figuring out what to do to move forward towards the future and the answer isn't so simple either leading to many of the characters beyond just Black Panther learning and growing over the course of the movie.

Oh and aside from the last credits scene, Black Panther is simply a contained Marvel movie. It's not trying to set up Infinity War or focused on the wider universe - it focuses squarely on Wakanda and it's characters and while ultimately what happens in Wakanda could have a bigger impact on the planet, when watching the film the characters are so good and so well written and realized that you completely forget about Iron Man and the Avengers who are also on the same planet. They don't matter really which is kind of a breath of fresh air.

The movie was like Game of Thrones in it's approach to politics as King T'Challa is the ruler of Wakanda and Wakanda itself is kind of a character. The film is about just how this country will carry on towards the future and what it will do about it's past as Black Panther and his allies and even enemies are at a crossroads at what to do. It's a damn good film.