Hi,
Had not been here for some time, but when I came back and saw this thread,
I knew I needed to add to it. I saw Black Panther a month ago, and here
are my thoughts:
(*Disclaimer: to anyone who has not yet seen this film and/or plans to, PLEASE DO NOT read any further – I’d hate to spoil it for you*)
- I’ve seen a few MCU/Marvel movies fairly recently. I must say that two of the best ones so far, in my opinion, are Captain America: Civil War and of course, Black Panther.
- Onward with the NOW record-breaking Black Panther. It was hard to dislike this movie – knew I wouldn’t even before seeing it. The story (which, in itself, was so powerful and inspirational), the characters, the action, the setting, the score, the script…I was amazed beyond words. Not exaggerating. It was somewhat reminiscent of a classic 90’s Disney film (*also relevant to big cats and kings*), which I’ll go into a bit more detail about below, but I didn’t mind – Marvel really did a great job. It’s definitely worth all the praise it’s getting (and continues to get) – a big hype has followed, and for once, (in this particular case,) I’m okay with it.
- Without a doubt, the official trailer successfully drew people in to see the film, myself included. Despite seeing it multiple times prior to and once right before the movie though, there were some things that I thought were kept well-hidden, one being the connection between T’Challa/Black Panther and (one of the two villains) Killmonger (which I won’t give too much away about here, other than what was just said). Additionally, one bit I really liked in the trailer was T’Challa’s line “I Never Freeze!” (you don’t get to hear that in a heavy African accent often). Having heard that then, I couldn’t wait to see that same part on the big screen – it’s totally worth it.
- I have to admit – before this year (or Fall of last year, I think), I was not familiar with the concept of Afrofuturism (not even the term ‘Afrofuturism’ itself, actually) – Black Panther has changed that. And while I won’t go much in depth into the concept right now, I just wanted to say that I really liked how the movie depicted Wakanda, a technologically advanced nation, yet still an African nation. Yes, Wakanda is a fictional country, but outside the vibranium mine, the culture partially-realistically portrayed, some of the scenery/landscape shown, the music heard, and the real African language (called ‘Xhosa’) spoken in the film screams Africa. I’ll have to be honest – If Wakanda was real , I’d be one of the first few trying to get a flight to go there (sad that there’s no such thing as a ‘Wakandan safari’ – that would be something).
- Now I come to what I had referred to earlier. Black Panther has some similarities to the above-mentioned/above-referenced 90’s Disney film (*I don’t think I’ll need to name it – this is obvious). One that really stood out, and is probably my favorite scene in the entire movie, was (*and this is shown for a few seconds in the trailer*) when T’Challa, now a king, enters this dream-like, spiritual setting – the sky is blue and purple, and there is a tree. He walks up to the tree, in which there sit (at least) three black panthers, all watching him. I won’t really say more so as not to spoil it, but I’ll say this much – that setting is the Ancestral Plane. It heavily reminded me of when another ‘future king’ (the “King” in the old Disney film) looks up to the sky for guidance, and this “presence” tells him to ‘remember who he is’ and to ascend to the throne. Not sure if the Black Panther scene was coincidental, but (if it wasn’t) I think we all kind of know where the inspiration for it might have stemmed from – some say it indeed pays homage to Disney, and they just might be right. In that case, LONG LIVE BOTH (BIG CAT) KINGS!
- Finally, I’ll say it again – it’s a great movie, action-packed (especially the car chase in South Korea and the last battle in the vibranium mine), it has a moving storyline, the characters are some of the best in the MCU, and I would highly recommend going to see it if you still have not at this point (preferably in 3-D – I’ve only see it once, but in 2-D, I might go to again later) . And though I believe in the idea of ‘to each his own’, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Watch the story unfold…feel the emotions…witness the action for yourself…listen to the drum-heavy African rhythms…travel to Wakanda…experience Black Panther (no, I don’t work at an AMC or some other theater nor am I involved in any way with Marvel – I just really liked this MCU gem). Now, as if you haven’t heard this trillions of times already…”WAKANDA FOREVER!!!!!!”
*In the words of T’Challa, “What happens now…determines what happens to the rest of the world.”
(*Wakandan handshake*)
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