Review of Black Panther (2018) by Thomas T — 07 Mar 2018

Black Panther:

Part cool demi-God Superhero, Part "The Lion King", Part 90s/early2000s Oakland: "Black Panther" is all awesome and much like Wonder Woman (2017) brings fresh perspectives to the genre and while may fall into some of the same "tropes" and has some questionable CGI and green screen decisions in its final act the story itself is so good and the character so engaging that one can forgive these nitpicks.

"Black Panther" never lets on that it's even in the same universe as Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, and the rest. Feeling as fresh as a movie 10 years into the "Marvel experiment" can. and this is the closest Marvel has come to making a stand-alone tale in many years.

Although this represents the first full outing for the Black Panther character (who made his debut in Captain America: Civil War), it's more of an "introduction story" than an "origin story." Coogler's approach is similar to the one Tim Burton used in 1989's Batman - don't waste the audience's time with a blow-by-blow description of how the Black Panther got his powers and what he initially does with them. Instead, tell a real story and sprinkle in the details along the way. It's a more satisfying method of storytelling that what we sometimes have to slog through with initial forays. As a result, Coogler's characters jump out of the screen - feeling as real and with as real a motivation as any have in the MCU to date.

Everything about the design of the characters to the layout of the narrative seems to have been done with such a care and respect that it oozes out of each frame. A powerful story and driven by veteran direction pulling out emotional performances that we as an audience can empathize with. Much like his other works - Coogler has a really strong throughline in this film that carries his message of unity and empathy. All driven by performances that people can gush about for days. From Andy Serkis & Angela Bassett to Chadwick Boseman & Michael B. Jordan - everyone brings their "A" game.

Black Panther is arguably the most audacious movie to emerge from the MCU to-date and has to be in the conversation when considering the all-time best comic book-inspired stories. Although the structure is rooted in the superhero tradition, the production rarely feels limited by that classification. It takes us to new places and sloughs off the generic label that adheres to many films of the genre, providing an experience that is by turns exciting, emotional, and funny.