Sunday, February 18, 2018

2018-02-18

I like very much that "Black Panther" made history (very much) during Black History Month. I watched the movie this morning and found it spectacular.

The cast were all amazing. Chadwick Boseman is a powerful and sympathetic T'Challa / Black Panther. Angela Bassett, Danai Gurira, Lupita Nyong'o, and Letitia Wright make for very strong and smart women who have T'Challa's back. While I knew I'd seen W'Kabi's eyes before, it took way too long for me to recognize Daniel Kaluuya from "Get Out," another terrific film. Speaking of eyes, I always love seeing Forest Whitaker. And Michael B. Jordan has an interesting role in the villain Erik Stevens, aka Killmonger.

Wakanda is gorgeously fleshed out as a technologically advanced civilization of four tribes, powered by vibranium and hidden from the rest of the world in central Africa (a fifth tribe chose to cling to the ways of the past and refused to join). Andy Serkis' Klaue has seen it before, and Martin Freeman's Ross sees it in this film, but to everyone else, this is a Third World nation of farmers, and that's the way they've wanted it for centuries.

Without giving any spoilers, let me just say that the story was a very good one. Slavery and colonialism were certainly touched upon; how could they not be in a tale based in central Africa? So was isolationism, and the quest for revenge. I think they were all handled well.

Kudos to director Ryan Coogler, his co-writer Joe Robert Cole, the superb cast, and Marvel and everyone else involved in making this great film. Pretty sure I'll be seeing it again soon.


No comments:

Post a Comment