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Black Panther Review


It's difficult to stress how much Black Panther needed to be good. The film was coming off the backs of 2017’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Spider-Man: Homecoming and Thor: Ragnarok - three of Marvel's strongest films to date. Plus, as the last release before the highly anticipated Avengers: Infinity War, Black Panther had to be something special to avoid being overlooked. Most significantly, Black Panther found itself in a similar position to last year's Wonder Woman, bearing the responsibility of representing a regularly underrepresented group without screwing it up. Fortunately, it succeeds with flying colours.

Black Panther is possibly my favourite standalone Marvel film yet. It excels in nearly every area, including those the MCU normally botches. Black Panther is the first Marvel film that doesn't look merely professional, but genuinely beautiful. The sets and costumes are an inventive kaleidoscope, shot with beaming vibrancy by Academy Award-nominated cinematographer Rachel Morrison. The music is another element that avoids its typical blandness, opting instead for the most strikingly unique score of any Marvel film. Much of this is achieved by the film's thorough embrace of Afrofuturism, resulting in a richly creative aesthetic the previous eurocentric instalments haven't come close to achieving.

As the first MCU film with a predominantly black cast, Black Panther was inevitably going to find itself tangled in politics. What I wasn't expecting, however, was how smartly it tackled this. Ingeniously utilising the nature of Wakanda, Black Panther critiques nationalism and isolationism with unprecedented nuance and thought, presenting it in ways just as relevant to western audiences. Black Panther sets up multiple points of view and gives each one a fair chance to be tested and challenged. It does ultimately come to a conclusion, but it robustly justifies that conclusion throughout the course of the film. The MCU has grown increasingly mature since 2016’s Captain America: Civil War and Black Panther is the most shining example of this yet.

However, Black Panther’s greatest strength is the depth of its characters. Rather than being bundles of quips wrapped in a charismatic performance, writer/director Ryan Coogler has crafted authentic human beings. Every character boats a distinct personality and convincing motivations, thanks to the sturdy script, emotive direction and a terrifically talented ensemble cast. Here - despite his relatively shallow appearance in Civil War - T’Challa is a gripping, three-dimensional character, blending slick superhero coolness with genuine humanity and compelling conflict. Michael B. Jordan's Killmonger is also the first truly sympathetic MCU antagonist, driven by ideas more complex and ambitious than some vague evilness. Dramatically - with the exception of a handful of hackneyed plot points in the third act - Black Panther is Marvel's strongest yet.

The recent effort to increase diversity in Hollywood is a welcome - if overdue - one, but obviously progressive casting doesn't inherently make a good film. Just look at the 2016 Ghostbusters reboot. However, Black Panther is proof not only that a film can be great as well as diverse, but great because it's diverse. Alongside a host of tremendous characters, Black Panther’s challenging politics and extensive cultural appreciation have resulted in one of Marvel's best films. Now it's time to see if Infinity War can live up to the hype without collapsing under the weight of its ridiculously large cast.

8.6/10

Comments

  1. Unknown24 March 2018 at 10:08

    I loved this review, I can understand your point of view very insightful (this is Heather by the way)

    ReplyDelete

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