It's weird to think that Black Panther is the first mainstream black superhero movie in approximately a decade. Despite late 90s release Blade being a massive hit and earning a successful trilogy (the second of which directed by recent Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro) as well as leading the way for superhero movies to become revitalised, the only black-led superhero movies were the abysmal Halle Berry effort Catwoman and the divisive Hancock, the latter of which released a decade ago. Think about that for a moment: it's been a decade since the last non-white superhero movie. Granted, that's not as bad the gap between Elektra and Wonder Woman (12 years) and how there hadn't been any mainstream female-led superhero movies, but I digress - Black Panther is a big deal. Not only does it feature a predominantly black cast (the only white actors being Hobbit alums Martin Freeman and Andy Serkis) but also has a diverse crew in the form of director/screenwriter Ryan Coogler (who made his name with Rocky reviver Creed), fellow scribe Joe Robert Cole and cinematographer Rachel Morrison, who recently made history as the first woman to ever be Oscar-nominated in the field. So with all these elements on the table, can Black Panther prove to Hollywood that heroes don't have to be white? Following the death of his father in Captain America: Civil War, his son and heir T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) returns to his homeland of Wakanda – a nation hidden away from the rest of the world due to its advanced technology and masses of Vibranium – to take the throne and earn his right to be the Black Panther. Following his coronation ceremony though, a problem arises in the form of Erik Stevens (Michael B. Jordan) - a former U.S Black-Ops operative with ties to the throne. With the assistance of the black-market dealer (and a wanted criminal in Wakanda's eyes) Ulysses Klaue (Serkis), Stevens aims to take over the country and use their technology to help the underprivileged to take over their suppressors. So with his recent job title at risk of being taken, T'Challa – with the help of his genius teenage sister Shuri (Letitia Wright), former lover/spy Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o), head of the Dora Milaje (an all-female special forces team) Okoye (Danai Gurira) and CIA agent Everett Ross (Freeman) – must decide where his leadership will take his nation.
The biggest problem Black Panther has is pacing. The first hour is dedicated to the coronation ceremony and the elongated sequences of events that follows Klaue selling some of the Vibranium he had stolen, but by the time Stevens finally makes his way to Wakandan soil and makes his case it feels like the film is nearing its end; the second and third act rushing through whatever time remains and leaving T'Challa and company to make somewhat rushed decisions for the sake of not overrunning. That's not to say that these elements are a drag to get through, far from it in fact, it's just that it leaves the actual meat of the movie to be a little more minimal than the appetisers that are presented beforehand. Add that this is a film that's a bit lighter on the laughs – especially the floor-rolling heights of Thor: Ragnarok – and at least one of those laughs was massively outdated, and you can see that they were more focused on the actual world of the character than just how the screenplay evolved.
Luckily, what does come to show is a great-looking picture. Whilst the visual effects are surprisingly hit and miss for certain moments – strange for a film with an estimated $200m budget – Ryan Coogler and company pull all the stops, with energetic action beats, some gorgeous vision sequences, and just a wonderful world at its helm. There are many reasons why "Wakanda Forever" has become something of a rallying cry, and one of them is because this is a world any of one us – regardless of creed – would want to visit and live in. And with so many African customs, costumes and even an authentic score by Ludwig Göransson, it feels like a real world, which is something that so many films try to do but more often than not fail to.
Chadwick Boseman has repeatedly proven himself worthy. He already won people over in the role when he first appeared in Civil War (myself included), but here he truly shines, holding his own against a large cast and almost crowning himself as king above them all. Alas, it's former Marvel black sheep Michael B. Jordan that proves himself king, more than making up for the disastrous Fantastic Four reboot and creating Marvel's best villain since Loki. With his multi-layered performance and message that has genuinely been seen by some audiences as a good move, he manages to break what many consider is a curse within this universe of movies and become both influential and intoxicatingly intense. Lupita Nyong'o is always a pleasure to see, and once more brings her A-game to the scene alongside some good chemistry with her ex; Letitia Wright is an overnight star thanks to the adorable and outright charming Shuri; Danai Gurira is a surprisingly fun straight-faced guard who nearly steals every scene she's in; Martin Freeman does a good enough American accent and adds something (but arguably not enough, feeling like an audience surrogate to this new world except an hour after we'd been introduced to it) to the mix; Angela Bassett isn't given nearly enough to do alongside Forest Whitaker; Winston Duke is a strong presence in every sense of the word; Daniel Kaluuya is given surprisingly little to despite having ties to Klaue and after making waves in Get Out (although considering when production started the latter is less surprising), and Andy Serkis is Andy Serkis, meaning we're destined for greatness there. I also want to give a quick shout to Sterling K. Brown, who makes a great impact on the film through his performance in a short amount of time.
Black Panther is a film that feels very different from all other blockbusters currently out there. It's impactful in the sense that it shakes up both the world it exists in and the world it's playing in, and while it does have its moments of shakiness, it very much proves to any naysayers that diversity can be a good thing. With a largely stellar cast and some great action sequences, not to mention a villain that's likely going to be seen as one of the modern greats, Black Panther is just yet another step in the right direction for Marvel Studios, and the final one tricky one before the behemoth Avengers: Infinity War comes out. 8/10.
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