Black Panther

This year's BLACK PANTHER was more than just another entry in the Marvel Comics Universe; it was a cultural phenomenon.  Filmgoers attended screenings in garb representative of the movie, much of which takes place in Africa.  There was much to celebrate.  The character, first seen in the Fantastic Four comics in the 1960s, was given his own story that incorporated much of the "black experience", with realistic character sketches and global concerns within a patently fantastic world.   It was worldwide smash, and would go on to be the highest grossing film ever directed by an African American.  All wonderful, but how is it as a movie?

For me, director Ryan (FRUITVALE STATION) Coogler's film was better than many of the (comparatively few) MCU dramas I've seen.  Who can keep up with them anymore? I won't bore you with another dirge of how tired of superhero sagas I am, with their brooding, juvenile acting protagonists and scummy looking cinematography.  CGI fakery and endless destruction.  Tired cheeky humor (uh, of course excluding the DEADPOOL movies).   BLACK PANTHER is a more mature, dramatically rich adventure in the series, and Rachel Morrison's cinematography is bright and astonishing at times.  The action scenes are highly skillful and exciting.  The usual comic book tropes are present, but are far less obnoxious this time out.  Well, excepting Stan Lee's obligatory cameo, which is a bit awkward and distracting here.

Wakanda is an African nation that appears to the rest of the world as an underdeveloped, impoverished speck on the map.  The reality is that they possess some of the most advanced technology on Earth, powered by a precious metal called Vibranium, which comprises the suits and shields of various Marvel superheroes, including Black Panther, king of this nation.  Over the centuries, there have been many Black Panthers, men who have several of the usual superhuman traits.  But they were flawed, sometimes resorting to evil deeds to protect their homeland.  T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman), heir to throne of Wakanda, will learn some disturbing things about his deceased father, and how they relate to N'Jadaka aka Erik/"Killmonger" (Michael B. Jordan), a former Black ops soldier who claims his own heirdom.

Erik's backstory and dramatic arc are some of the things that distinguish BLACK PANTHER.  He's an antagonist with some dimension.  Not worthy of wholesale dismissal and jeers, not a standard issue villain who is contrived to elicit hisses from the audience.  Jordan does an exceptional job of fleshing out this most complex character.   This element and how it is developed gives weight to those who insist comics can have as much dramatic validity as anything else (even Shakespeare?).  I still don't entirely agree, but this movie makes the most convincing argument of this sort yet.