Rated: PG-13
Writer/Director: Ryan Coogler
Picking up after the events of Captain America: Civil War, new Black Panther T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) returns home to his native Wakanda to take over as king. Wakanda, a highly-technologically advanced country that's been able to maintain it's peace and beauty by staying hidden from the rest of the world under the guise of being a third-world nation, offers as King T'Challa's first duty to bring to justice Ulysses Klaue (Andy Serkis), a low-end thug who somehow managed to steal a cache of vibranium - the substance that Wakanda runs on, which could be deadly in the wrong hands - and get away with it. When a sort of sting operation to get Klaue goes wrong (though makes for one of the coolest action sequences in the film), not only does T'Challa find himself on the bad end of scrutiny by a small faction of his own army ... but soon a stranger, named Erik Killmonger (Micahel B. Jordan), arrives in Wakanda bearing a gift for King T'Challa - and posing a threat to both the future of Wakanda and T'Challa as its leader. Black Panther has one of the best, most perfect ensemble casts every assembled for a film, and pulses with a real heartbeat and genuine social messages that make it far and above just another superhero film. Boseman is sincere and brooding as the conflicted King, with Lupita Nyong'o and Danai Gurira leading an incredibly strong, kick-ass cast of women I would hope would have my back any day. Beautiful, beautifully done, and an important film that speaks out but never preaches - and I loved it. My only fault with the film, oddly enough, is one of my all-time favorite actors in it; for me, Michael B. Jordan's performance in the early scenes of the film comes off very self-conscious, even camera-conscious; over-played. That evens out in time, however, Jordan feeling more locked in with the ensemble about halfway through and only adding to what is already one heck of a terrific film. 9/10 stars
Picking up after the events of Captain America: Civil War, new Black Panther T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) returns home to his native Wakanda to take over as king. Wakanda, a highly-technologically advanced country that's been able to maintain it's peace and beauty by staying hidden from the rest of the world under the guise of being a third-world nation, offers as King T'Challa's first duty to bring to justice Ulysses Klaue (Andy Serkis), a low-end thug who somehow managed to steal a cache of vibranium - the substance that Wakanda runs on, which could be deadly in the wrong hands - and get away with it. When a sort of sting operation to get Klaue goes wrong (though makes for one of the coolest action sequences in the film), not only does T'Challa find himself on the bad end of scrutiny by a small faction of his own army ... but soon a stranger, named Erik Killmonger (Micahel B. Jordan), arrives in Wakanda bearing a gift for King T'Challa - and posing a threat to both the future of Wakanda and T'Challa as its leader. Black Panther has one of the best, most perfect ensemble casts every assembled for a film, and pulses with a real heartbeat and genuine social messages that make it far and above just another superhero film. Boseman is sincere and brooding as the conflicted King, with Lupita Nyong'o and Danai Gurira leading an incredibly strong, kick-ass cast of women I would hope would have my back any day. Beautiful, beautifully done, and an important film that speaks out but never preaches - and I loved it. My only fault with the film, oddly enough, is one of my all-time favorite actors in it; for me, Michael B. Jordan's performance in the early scenes of the film comes off very self-conscious, even camera-conscious; over-played. That evens out in time, however, Jordan feeling more locked in with the ensemble about halfway through and only adding to what is already one heck of a terrific film. 9/10 stars
No comments:
Post a Comment