The Marvelous Marvel Rewatch (Now Playing: Avengers: Infinity War)

[The_Liquid_Laser]

Black Panther

I saw Black Panther today and I really liked it a lot.  I'm going to share my thoughts below, and there are several minor SPOILERS, but I am going to be vague and avoid spoiling the major stuff.  If you are bothered by minor SPOILERS, then please DO NOT READ, but I'm not going to put anything in here on the level of "Darth Vader is Luke Skywalker's father" major stuff. 

 

Pluses:

This film feels totally unique to me, and I feel it is breaking major ground.  I think it is obvious that the concept of a high tech African nation pretending to be a Third World country is unique in itself.  But more than that is that I can't recall ever seeing a movie about Africa where the people and culture were presented in a positive, affirming light.  Instead Hotel Rwanda and Zulu Nation come to mind.  (Not saying those are bad films, either.)  One of the biggest things that will bring me out to the theater is a unique experience, and this film totally delivers on that.  Therefore Black Panther scores major points with me for the same reason that the Avengers did, and on top of that I actually had more problems with the first Avengers movie, than I did with this one.  I'm totally ready to buy a ticket to Black Panther 2, just to see more of Wakanda and its characters.

The cast is awesome.  I really loved the characters and the acting that went along with them.  I had already grown attached to Black Panther in Civil War, but I'd have to say most of the new characters in this film were even more interesting.  Really liked the chief from the rival tribe.  There were lots of interesting and kickass women in Black Panther, but I'd have to say Shuri, the high tech sister, was my favorite.  Klaue we already saw in Age of Ultron, but he really gets to shine here so much more.  Not sure how many of these characters are going to be in Infinity War, but I would be happy to see the whole cast all over again.

Great action.  All of the stuff in Korea plus the first waterfall scene particularly stand out.

The villains did a surprising thing in the middle which I really liked.  (How is that for vague?)



Minuses:

I really wanted to like Killmonger as a villain, but I just couldn't get into him.  I think the main reason was that his motivations were unclear.  All of the scenes (including the opening scenes) show him as having one motivation, but his dialogue suggests another motivation.

The waterfall.  I actually really loved the first waterfall scene.  However, it was so good, that I found the second waterfall scene to be predictable and uninteresting by comparison. 

Overall Black Panther is a unique film with a great cast that really leaves you wanting more.  However, the Killmonger villain was not developed in a way that is clear to the audience.

8/10

Last edited by The_Liquid_Laser - on 20 February 2018