Hail to the King
Black Panther (12A)
Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o, Letitia Wright, Danai Gurira
Director: Ryan Coogler
The Plot: Following the death of his father in Captain America: Civil War, Prince T'Challa (Boseman) returns home to the reclusive and technologically advanced nation of Wakanda to become King. Conflicted by a decision whether to continue their tradition of secrecy or to reveal his country to the world and use their tech to help, T'Challa's world is torn apart with the arrival of Erik Killmonger (Jordan), a highly trained soldier with his own claim to the throne and a deep grudge against his family. T'Challa will need the help of his genius sister Shuri (Wright), his former lover and skilled spy Nakia (Nyong'o) and the leader of his elite guard Okoye (Gurira) if he is to defeat Killmonger and prevent him from unleashing Wakanda's deadly weapons on the world . . .
Review: It was only a few short months ago in my review of Thor: Ragnarok that I mentioned how astonishing it was that we'd reached the seventeenth MCU film in ten years. Well, here we are now with number eighteen, Black Panther, the final film before the epic Avengers: Infinity War arrives in a few months. The film has generated an astonishing amount of hype, even for a Marvel film, and a large part of it is due to the casting/setting and the incorrect assumption that this is the first superhero film with a black lead - it's not, you can go back to Spawn in 1997 or Marvel's own Blade in 1998 to find that. In an ideal world it wouldn't matter that this is a film with a black lead and predominantly black cast, but that's not the world we live in, so that aspect is generating a lot of buzz. All I will say is that you can believe the hype - the film is brilliant, and another feather in Marvel's proverbial cap. In my Thor: Ragnarok review I talked about how I believe one of the reasons for Marvel's continued success is their willingness to try out different themes and genres within that of the wider superhero one, and that's exactly what they've done here again with Black Panther, to great effect.
Now, that's not to say this is a completely original take on a superhero film - there are many recognisable tropes, especially ones common to Marvel films, that are on display here. But what they've done is taken us to a new and exciting place that we've not seen before, immersing us into a new culture through very effective presentation. Apart from one brief scene in London and a short section later in South Korea, the film takes place entirely in Wakanda. The cinematography is outstanding throughout, brought to us by the films DP Rachel Morrison, who recently made history by becoming the first woman to be nominated for Best Cinematography at the forthcoming Oscars for her work on Mudbound. Whether we're soaring through the skies of Wakanda on T'Challa's ship, in moments of quiet dialogue or thick in the action of battle, Morrison shows she has a keen eye. The visuals are matched to a terrific soundtrack that's a mix of a score that fuses modern beats with traditional African influences, and original songs produced by Kendrick Lamar. A great deal of care and attention has been given to the sets, the costumes, and the presentation of the Wakandan people and their culture - the depiction of the Dora Milaje, T'Challa's elite all-female guard, is particularly good - and it sets the film apart from any other in the MCU.
The story is, perhaps, where the film is at its weakest, as for all the good work done in the presentation of Wakanda there's nothing particularly original about the plot. T'Challa was already introduced to audiences in Civil War, and there's a brief prologue at the start of the film that explains the history of Wakanda, its technology and of the Black Panther's origins, so there's no requirement to establish who T'Challa is. He's given a storyline that revolves around him dealing with a past betrayal by his beloved father, losing his powers and regaining them, and faces a villain who, while terrific (I'll get to that later), falls into a common thirst for megalomania. Luckily we have director Ryan Coogler on hand, who previously brought us the excellent Creed and Fruitvale Station, and under his guiding hand the story manages to overcome these challenges and remains effective and exciting. The story tackles the subject of responsibility, with T'Challa conflicted about whether Wakanda should reveal itself and use its technology to help those in need, and it weaves in comments on colonialism and the widespread racism still present in the world without being preachy, and Coogler's direction is confident and assured throughout. Apart from the presence of the characters Everett Ross and Ulysses Klaue (who we saw in Civil War), the only reference to the wider MCU is a brief mention of Bucky by Shuri, and this actually works in the films favour, helping it to stand alone.
Black Panther wouldn't be a superhero film without action, and I'm happy to report it scores highly here. Despite a few moments where the CGI doesn't quite make the grade, the action sequences are excellent and terrific to watch. T'Challa gains a new Black Panther suit that looks fantastic and has tech in it that would make Tony Stark jealous, and his fighting style is fast-paced and athletic. There's a brilliant sequence in South Korea where a fight breaks out inside an illegal casino which then transitions into an exciting car chase, and the film's climactic final battle features a deadly hand-to-hand fight between T'Challa and Killmonger, armoured rhinoceroses, and the strong female characters of the film kicking some serious ass.
Let's talk about that cast. Chadwick Boseman, as T'Challa, is fantastic here. He has a great screen presence and brings both dignity and style to the role, but dare I say it, T'Challa is actually the least interesting character here, despite being the lead. That isn't meant as a criticism of the plot or of Boseman's performance, it's just that such a good job has been done with the other featured characters that they steal pretty much every scene that they're in. Boseman does get to flesh T'Challa out though, as we see him lovestruck and tongue-tied around Nakia and playfully bantering with his sister Shuri, and he has proved here that's he a very capable leading man.
Michael B. Jordan, as Killmonger, is absolutely brilliant and the character must go down as one of Marvel's best villains to date. It's an electrifying performance, and while (as I mentioned earlier) he does slip into the stereotypical "I want to conquer the world" routine, the character's anger and driving motive is genuine and palatable, and Jordan crushes it. All memories of him as Johnny Storm in Fox's ill-fated Fantastic Four are forgotten. Sadly the character of Killmonger won't be around for future Black Panther films but the conclusion is handled well. I was already a fan of Jordan from his work in Creed, and I'm excited to see where he goes from here.
There's a strong cast of female characters that play a huge role in the story. Of these I was most impressed with Letitia Wright as T'Challa's younger sister Shuri, a tech genius in charge of designing Wakanda's incredible gadgets and weaponry. She's a mischievous figure who playfully banters with and teases T'Challa, but beneath that there's clearly a great love and respect between them and Wright plays both sides of this really well. As the story progresses we see that Shuri wants to be physically out there fighting alongside T'Challa in the field, and the final battle gives her that opportunity. It was great to see the character kicking ass and Wright is an absolute delight whenever she's onscreen.
Lupita Nyong'o needs no introduction from me, the terrific actress being an Oscar winner for her performance in 12 Years A Slave. Her role as Nakia, the former/potentially future love interest of T'Challa, is a strong one - she's a highly-trained spy who feels passionately that Wakanda should be using its technology and resources to help others, particularly in the other parts of Africa. She has great chemistry with Boseman and it's another fantastic performance from her, one in which she gets to physically kick ass as well.
Danai Gurira's character Okoye is one of the most badass women you'll ever seen on screen. Fans of The Walking Dead will recognise her as Michonne, but here she's the proud leader of T'Challa's elite all-female Dora Milaje warriors. Gurira brings both grace and steel to the role, and she's given her own small story arc as her character becomes torn between her loyalty to the Wakandan throne and her loyalty to T'Challa, when Killmonger takes over. She's absolutely brilliant and I would happily watch a solo film just about her.
The extended supporting cast including Angela Bassett, Forest Whitaker, Daniel Kaluuya and Winston Duke, who all do well with the limited material they're offered here. Martin Freeman reprises his role as CIA Agent Everett Ross, and the brilliant Andy Serkis (complete with spot-on Afrikaans accent) returns as the villainous Ulysses Klaue, now complete with a false arm that doubles as a gun. He's terrific.
You have to wonder how long Marvel can keep producing films of this quality. They show no signs of stopping, and Black Panther has given them yet another arm of the MCU that audiences will be happy to return to in the future. In the capable hands of directors like Coogler, T'Challa will no doubt return for more solo features (he and Okoye will feature in Avengers: Infinity War) and I cannot wait.
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Marvel have done it yet again, bringing us another take on the superhero film that, while suffering from a bit of predictability and the odd moment of bad CGI, can be counted as among the best they've made. A strong visual aesthetic, a fantastic cast and effective presentation of a new culture within the MCU make this a real winner. Long live the King.
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