'BLACK PANTHER' IS ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL MARVEL COMICS ADAPTION THAT DELIVERS SUPERHERO ACTION, AND ENOUGH EMOTION TO STAND GROUND
By: Keaton Marcus
The film we have been waiting for--the first African American led Marvel pic--Ryan Coogler's "Black Panther", who makes a terrific futuristic adventure with plenty of superhero action, laughs while providing incredible production design--like no other Marvel film--"people, the superhero genre has just made history." The pic does not just provide the casually dazzling special effects--in terms of emotional grounding--"Black Panther" stands far over any other flick in the interconnected multi-billionaire franchise. Furthermore, it is virtually impossible to forget the lead performances from Chadwick Boseman and Michael B. Jordan who both flip the switch on racial stereotypes. Really, the film is a Marvel-produced epic like no other.
Boseman, generally leads the talented, almost all African American cast--and that is not done without dignity and investment towards the role of the titular comics. Boseman's character was introduced in 2016's "Captain America: Civil War" which featured most of the Avengers, but the audiences never saw the iconic character enough to judge--in "Black Panther", Boseman is blazingly good as the role of T'Challa, the king of a fictional country called Wakanda. In Wakanda, the one image that everybody admires--is a man dressed in a panther suit--this may sound really, really ludicrous and irrelevant, but trust me--when Chadwick Boseman playing the character in the animal suit, there are no questions asked. The actor is fairly new to the business, had nice outings in "42", as Jackie Robinson, and especially in "Marshall", as the title character; and despite having barely any experience, Boseman digs himself so deep into the important role, I think of him as the Morgan Freeman of superhero films.
Forgetting Boseman's tremendous performance, you are allowed to bring out the real killer in the film, played by talented star Michael B. Jordan, who takes the "antagonist" part in this magnificent movie--Erik Killmonger--the character is trying to challenge T'Challa for the throne the entire film, as he is of descendant to the Wakandans also, and claims that he is the rightful air to the throne. Killmonger scars his body with intense notches every time he kills someone, these cover the actor's body with wonderful makeup--Jordan brings such life and intensity into the role, making him the most complex--and badass antagonist in the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe). Jordan--after making his first appearance in hit TV show "Friday Night Lights", the actor became a superstar with his role as Adonis Creed in "Rocky" sequel "Creed"--though his already solid career is still no match for the actor's raw outing in "Black Panther".
If you think that you're in for another male-led Marvel production--just forget everything--the female leads are more than a decent match for the leading men. Generally led by a vicious, and badass performance from Angela Basset who plays T'Challa's widowed mother--let's just say she can stand her ground--elsewhere in the cast, Lupita Nyong'o is just awesome as T'Challa's ex-love Nakia, who has blazing chemistry with the cast--and how can we forget the memorable Letitia Wright, who plays T'Challa's younger--and sassy sister Princess Shuri. Competing against many other--male--scientists for the coolest gadgets, there's no competition, Shuri is the ultimate smart, tough character who will become a pure role model for young girls in the future.
Also, "Black Panther" is not all drama--the film gives more than enough share of superhero action sequences--just way more impressive than most MCU efforts. The violence is coherent, complex--and just dazzling, booming with the incredible detail and texture of Ruth E. Carter's costume design, and set to the tune of Ludwig Gorranson's rousing score--with a hip-hop feel, provided by Kendrick Lamar, generally, who kicks up the entertainment level more than one notch. "Black Panther" (s) action sequences are also just paint-by-the-numbers--in terms of creativity, and things to differ from other superhero pics, "Panther" will always come out on top, providing loud, but beautifully filmed by Rachel Morrison, who defies gender stereotypes that "women can't film hardcore action"--well the film proves that it does not just take down racial stereotypes--the sexist trolls are going down for this one.
The final verdict is: "Black Panther" is as emotionally compelling as it is visually dazzling--the performances are top notch, along with the tightly-directed action sequences and the sheer defiance of racial and gender stereotypes make the film a powerful, but still deeply entertaining superhero origin tale...$PLURGE IT
Marvel Takedown
Black Panther 90% sweet
Violence: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
Sex: ⭐☆☆☆☆
Language: ⭐⭐⭐☆☆
Age Rating: 12+
Iron Man 82% sweet
Violence: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
Sex: ⭐⭐⭐☆☆
Language: ⭐⭐⭐☆☆
Age Rating: 11+
Black Panther 90% sweet
Storyline: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
Cast: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
Role Models: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
Iron Man 82% sweet
Storyline: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Cast: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
Role Models: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
film review “black panther”
Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) and T’Challa/Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) giving incredible performances in Black Panther.
Black Panther debuted with over 200M, before sliding just 45% to a second weekend topping 111M; The film ended with over 700M domestically.
Genre: Action/Adventure
Age Rating: 13+
Lemonradar: 90/100 "sweet"