BLACK PANTHER – Review

What’s all the commotion rolling out of the hallways down at the multiplex? Could it be a celebration? Well definitely, since it’s the first new Marvel Studios release of this year, a much earlier release than ever, just a touch over six weeks into the new year (a long way from the first weekend of May, usually considered the start of the Summer movie season). That’s sure to bring a smile to theater owners, who know that this is the start of Marvel Studios’ tenth year. In 2008 IRON MAN blasted out of that old white and red logo to usher in a new age of superhero spectaculars. And which one of their beloved characters is leading the big 2018 parade? Those trumpet blasts can only mean one thing: royalty. Not content to repeat themselves (although Marvel’s the new leader in tent pole franchises), they’re branching into different genres and settings. ANT-MAN was a buddy heist comedy, while DOCTOR STRANGE delved into magic by leading us through lots of weird, “trippy” dimensions. And those “a-holes”, the GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY, expanded the Marvel Universe even further by taking us on a pop-tuned filled adventure in the cosmos. Well, we’re not reaching for the stars this time, but we’re exploring a fantastic land hidden from the rest of planet Earth. And our hero is indeed royalty, a man we met as a supporting player nearly two years ago. Next stop on the Marvel movie express: Wakanda, a country governed and protected by T’Challa…the BLACK PANTHER.

The story begins with a father telling a story, one thousands of years old. The land of Wakanda in Africa is fought over by four feuding tribes until a meteor crash lands. At its core is the mysterious substance known as Vibrainium a source of technological wonders. The rock affects a local plant which produces a serum that gives the enhanced abilities of the panther. The head of the royal family drinks the serum and becomes the land’s guardian, the Black Panther, who brings peace to the different tribes. The Panther role is passed on, generation to generation, over the centuries. The story jumps forward, not to today, but to Stockton, California, USA circa 1992. An angry young Wakandan, N’Jobu (Sterling K. Brown) is amassing an arsenal in his run-down apartment, with help from his friend James (Denzel Whitaker). A flash of light and suddenly the current Black Panther, T’Chaka, along with two of his elite security guards, known as the Dora Milaje, face the stunned duo. This tragic confrontation will have repercussions in the present day. Speaking of which, we’re back in the present as the new Black Panther, T”Challa (Chadwick Boseman) is on a secret midnight mission with the leader of the Milaje, Okoye (Danai Gurira). Their cloaked flying battleship is tracking a truck convoy filled with kidnapped Wakandan women. But one of the taken is a highly trained spy, Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o), who’s also a former flame of T”Challa. This occupies his thoughts along with the recent death of his father T’Chaka at the hands of master terrorist Zemo (which put events in motion that played out in 2016’s CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR). At the mission’s end they return to Wakanda for the ceremony that will crown T’Challa the new king.

The first appearance of the Black Panther from Fantastic Four #52, 1966

Across the globe, in a London museum, Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) is causing a scene at a display of tribal items from Africa. This distraction is put of an elaborate robbery by Ulysses Klau (Andy Serkis) and company (you may recall his painful encounter with Ultron in the second Avengers epic). They escape with a hammer head made of Vibranium. Word gets back to T’challa, and soon he, along with Okoye and Nakia, is headed to Korea to stop the piece’s purchase and bring Klau to justice. At a shady casino they encounter undercover CIA agent Everett Ross (Martin Freeman), who insists that T’challa’s team stand down (Ross had met him two years ago). Klau arrives, mayhem ensues, and, after a wild chase through the streets, the criminal is captured. But not for long. Turns out that Killmonger was using Klau to achieve a more lofty goal. The young master assassin is on his way to Wakanda to challenge T’Challa for the throne. Despite his skill, can T’Challa defeat the American mercenary and retain his title?

Boseman, finally getting to play a fictional film hero (Jackie Robinson, James Brown, and Thurgood Marshall comprise a terrific trio), brings a sense of humanity to the protector king. T’Challa has changed quite a bit from the grieving son thirsting for the blood of the Winter Soldier, maturing into a leader seeking justice rather than revenge. Boseman handles his action sequences with great agility and a dancer’s grace. But his king is a man much like all of us. He stammers around his former love and agonizes over his homeland’s role in the world. Nyong’o is dazzling as that rekindled love who’s a skilled champion in her own right. Her ultimate goal isn’t sharing the throne with T’Challa, rather she wishes to explore and right wrongs. Her Nakia has a sly sense of humor that enhances her compassion. Plus she’s a terrific partner not only to T’Challa, but also to Gurira’s Okoye whose retorts are nearly as sharp and deadly as her teched-out spear. While leading the Dora Milaje, she a most fearsome force of nature. Though she spends most of her time in the lab, the most essential woman in support of the king may be his younger sibling Shuri played with charm and energy by the scene-stealing Letitia Wright. She’s up for any challenge, always enthusiastic about some new gadget she’s crafted from the multi-purpose Vibrainium (Flubber’s got nothing on it). And her scenes with Boseman truly crackle with good humor. It’s as if James Bond’s tech wiz was his teasing kid sister, who beams with pride as she delights in “taking the piss” out of him. As for the other members of “Team Wakanda”, Angela Bassett projects a noble dignity as widowed Queen Ramonda, while Forest Whitaker is a most patient sage advisor as Zuri, uncle and consul to the king. GET OUT’s Daniel Kaluuya is impressive as W’Kabi another aid to T’Challa (and husband to Okoye), who doesn’t always see eye to eye with old childhood friend.

Opposing T’Challa and his team is Jordan as the menacing Eric Killmonger, full of swagger who strikes out unexpectedly like a springing poisonous snake. His casual air, boasting like ambitious rap star, masks his lofty aspirations and hides the pains of his past. When his dead-eyed stare erupts into a snarl, Jordan makes a villain worthy to challenge the hero. Although he doesn’t appear to be having quite as much fun as Serkis as the gleeful poaching pirate Klaus. He’s a party animal out for profit, destroying anything in his way via the sonic Vibranium cannon that replaced his left arm. They guy just seems to love his work, especially as he thumbs his nose at those who would stop him. Aside from T’Challa that’s mainly the always wonderful Freeman as the prickly, exasperated Ross, a by the book lawman who’s irked by these super-folk. Later on, he proves a valuable ally and a good audience stand-in as he gasps at the wonders of this hidden high-tech paradise. Speaking of surprising allies, kudos to Winston Duke as the imposing and hilarious leader of the “ape tribe”, M’Baku.

Director and co-screenwriter (working with Joe Robert Cole) Ryan Coogler has crafted an action-packed thrill ride fantasy, that, as the best of the Marvel Studios movies, has a lot to say about our modern world. The film’s hero is determined and more than a tad conflicted. Should his land join the planet or remain hidden, their achievements only benefitting its citizens rather than saving lives outside its holographic walls?Isolationism isn’t generally a theme in popcorn superhero flicks, which adds to this story’s emotional heft. And it doesn’t detract from the spectacular stunt work and bracing battle scenes. I was surprised to feel so uneasy during the last act “throw-down” because I truly cared about the people of this fictitous country, they weren’t merely toys to be tossed about the jungle. In addition to the superb cast, script, and director, the many artists that created this world deserve a lion’s share of laurels. Unlike the dark and murky films from another super-hero studio (the “Distinguished Competition” as Stan Lee would say), the visuals here truly dazzle the senses, the colorful costuming gives new meaning to “eye candy” (it may have sparked a new hybrid, “Afro-futuristic”). I can imagine pausing the eventual Blu-ray to savor all the gowns and sparkling jewelry. And the towering cities of the country are as awe-inspiring as any part of glorious Asgard from the Thor series. Wakanda now joins Shanga-La and Middle Earth as cinematic “dream destinations”. Though it’s early in the movie year, I can’t imagine the production team not getting a well-earned Oscar nomination for their inspired work that’s a great tribute to the art of comics co-creator Jack “King” Kirby. Along with a majestic soaring music score from Ludwig Goransson, the newest Marvel entry shows the studio moving forward, never content to merely rest on their impressive previous hits. And from the trailer for the next Avengers extravaganza, looks like we’ll have to wait just months rather than years for another adventure in the astounding world of Wakanda and its ruler, the BLACK PANTHER.

5 Out of 5