BLACK PANTHER REVIEW: has depth, diversity and violence.

Black Panther, the latest entry in Marvel’s shared cinematic universe, is a remarkable feat of world building and visual craft. Its setting, the fictional central African nation of Wakanda, is a technologically advanced wonderland light years ahead of the rest of the world that lives and breathes unlike anything we’ve seen from Marvel Studios or the superhero genre at large.

Lupita Nyong’o, Chadwick Boseman, and Danai Gurira in Black Panther. Marvel Studios

After the events of Captain America: Civil War, Its protagonist King T’Challa—who fights in defense of his nation as the Black Panther, returns home to the reclusive, technologically advanced African nation of Wakanda to serve as his country’s new leader. However, T’Challa soon finds that he is challenged for the throne from factions within his own country, and the previous Kings ‘own making.’

King T’Challa is equipped with a bulletproof suit and imbued with enhanced strength, speed, and agility—is played with both regal confidence and real vulnerability by the versatile Chadwick Boseman. 

Which gets us back to the ideas in Black Panther. The plot is straightforward. Set shortly after the events of Captain America: Civil War, the film begins as T’Challa prepares to take the mantle of king. When an old and dangerous adversary appears on Wakanda’s radar—carrying a stolen cache of vibranium, the fictional metal that is the source of the nation’s wealth—the new monarch springs into action, hoping to bring him to justice while securing Wakanda’s future and continued secrecy.

But his path crosses with Killmonger, who hopes to use Wakanda’s power and technological prowess to spark a revolution of oppressed peoples around the world, exporting weapons and assistance to those who suffer under the boot of racial oppression.

From the view of the American-born Killmonger, Wakanda and its leaders are morally bankrupt. They’ve isolated themselves with their wealth and technology, indifferent to the fate of the African diaspora. They have great power, but they won’t take responsibility, cloistering themselves away from the world, when they could rule it, inverting racial and colonial hierarchies. “The sun will never set on the Wakandan empire,” declares Killmonger at one point in the film, imagining a future where an unconquered people become conquerors themselves in the service of liberation.

The film delves into a true meaning with its pursuit of the idea that arguably defines the superhero genre, “With great power comes great responsibility.” And that makes Black Panther unique is that it pursues this in the context of its characters and its setting. It asks not just, “What is T’Challa’s responsibility to Wakanda?” but “What is Wakanda’s responsibility to the world?”

Chadwick Boseman anchors the film, but he is nearly upstaged by an impressive cast of cinematic veterans and relative newcomers. Lupita Nyong’o shines as Nakia, T’Challa’s close confidante who hopes to see her country take a larger role in the world. The Walking Dead’s (Danai Gurira) gives what ought to be a star-making turn as Okoye, the fierce leader of Wakanda’s royal and loyal guard.

But Letitia Wright steals the lion’s share of the movie’s laughs as Shuri, T’Challa’s younger sister and a technological wunderkind who develops the tools and weapons deployed by her brother.

Angela Bassett, Forest Whitaker, Martin Freeman and Andy Serkis give more than capable performances. And an impressive performance by Daniel Kaluuya too.

The most dynamic performance, however, comes from Michael B. Jordan, a longtime collaborator of Coogler’s who dominates the screen as Erik Killmonger. It’s not just Jordan’s muscular build and physical presence. It’s the fire in his eyes. Driven by pain, anger, and ideology, this is a character who believes in his cause of the kingdom.

Throughout the movie, director Ryan Coogler delivers moments that feel as rooted and personal as anything in his previous films, while building environments that carry a real sense of atmosphere and place. Wakanda is fantastical, but in Coogler’s hands it feels as real and as lived in as an real place in the world.

Black Panther is a film beyond the average superhero movie. There’s an interesting and well plotted story with themes of family loyalty and community responsibility. It is witty and exciting and very entertaining. The whole family would enjoy this film and have a lot to talk about after.

There are no words to describe how much Culturedemandsgeeks loved this movie. Turns out the combination of the mastermind Kevin Feige with the talented writer/director Ryan Coogler has resulted in not just yet another widely entertaining addition to the MCU.

 8/10 STARS