Black Panther
What a beautiful movie that does exactly what it sets out to do.
(spoilers, probably)
- I absolutely loved the constant blend of tradition and modernity. The world felt real -- as if a Bantu kingdom with established cultures and traditions slowly developed advanced technology -- the technology is integrated into the culture, grows out of the culture, and isn't grafted on or borrowed. The shield force fields, the communication beads, the shape of the aircraft, etc etc.
- It did a really good job of introducing the characters in the first 10 minutes, and then hewing to their character backstories when developing the motivations for each character. None of the decisions that the characters make in the movie feel "for the sake of the plot." Of course Killmonger would think and do this, given his background of betrayal and loss. Of course Okoye would do this, given her fierce loyalty to the throne. etc etc etc
- I love that it's basically a movie about a country's foreign policy choices. I like the nuance that it was able to present: W'kabi's "I don't want refugees here but I'm happy to impose Wakandan might out there," versus the Council's "Our isolationist policies have always served us well," versus Nakia's "We have a moral imperative to share our technology," N'Jobu's "the people are suffering, we need to help them fight back," and Killmonger's "the world is the conquerors and the conquered. We need to be the conquerors." Giving people weapons is easy, staying in a location and working with the community is hard, and I'm glad that T'Challa chose that. In a way, it also answered my question of "Sure, T'Chaka could have brought Erik back as a child, but what about all the other kids left on that basketball court?" While I wish there was more acknowledgement of "hey, centuries of imperialism and racism created this fucked up system", as well as a deeper examination of "what culpability does Wakanda have in its historic inaction and isolationist policies," it's a Marvel movie, and armored rhinos and exotic chase scenes need to happen.
- That said, I also feel like it did the "legacy of the father" thing better than Thor:Ragnorak, and the "sibling squabble" thing better than Cap3:Civil War. (Well, most things are better than Cap3:Civil War.) The moment when Okoye steps in front of W'Kabi's charging rhino: THE BEST.
- I love the women SO MUCH. BLESS the creators for passing the Bechdel test so hard you barely see it in the rear-view mirror. Shuri's precocious energy and enthusiasm. Ramonda, grappling with her own loss but ever the queen. Nakia, so much passion and resolve. Okoye's loyalty and side-eye. I love Nakia and Okoye's conversation about serving/saving the country. I love the moment when Shuri and Nakia check in with each other and are like "hey you okay? cool, let's go." I love Ramonda and Shuri's grief of losing T'Challa on the heels of T'Chaka. I love that T'Challa is clearly someone who has grown up around strong women. I love that the conflict was really resolved by the women of the tribe (Nakia's decision to steal the herb and go to the Jabari, Okoye's decision to denounce Killmonger, Shuri's technology that enabled Ross to shoot down the planes, and Okoye confronting W'Kabi). Basically, the T'Challa vs. Killmonger panther fight was almost an after-thought. Like, if T'Challa didn't win, the united tribes would have stopped Killmonger anyway.
- Ritual combat doesn't seem like a terribly good way of choosing the next absolute leader, just sayin'.
(spoilers, probably)
- I absolutely loved the constant blend of tradition and modernity. The world felt real -- as if a Bantu kingdom with established cultures and traditions slowly developed advanced technology -- the technology is integrated into the culture, grows out of the culture, and isn't grafted on or borrowed. The shield force fields, the communication beads, the shape of the aircraft, etc etc.
- It did a really good job of introducing the characters in the first 10 minutes, and then hewing to their character backstories when developing the motivations for each character. None of the decisions that the characters make in the movie feel "for the sake of the plot." Of course Killmonger would think and do this, given his background of betrayal and loss. Of course Okoye would do this, given her fierce loyalty to the throne. etc etc etc
- I love that it's basically a movie about a country's foreign policy choices. I like the nuance that it was able to present: W'kabi's "I don't want refugees here but I'm happy to impose Wakandan might out there," versus the Council's "Our isolationist policies have always served us well," versus Nakia's "We have a moral imperative to share our technology," N'Jobu's "the people are suffering, we need to help them fight back," and Killmonger's "the world is the conquerors and the conquered. We need to be the conquerors." Giving people weapons is easy, staying in a location and working with the community is hard, and I'm glad that T'Challa chose that. In a way, it also answered my question of "Sure, T'Chaka could have brought Erik back as a child, but what about all the other kids left on that basketball court?" While I wish there was more acknowledgement of "hey, centuries of imperialism and racism created this fucked up system", as well as a deeper examination of "what culpability does Wakanda have in its historic inaction and isolationist policies," it's a Marvel movie, and armored rhinos and exotic chase scenes need to happen.
- That said, I also feel like it did the "legacy of the father" thing better than Thor:Ragnorak, and the "sibling squabble" thing better than Cap3:Civil War. (Well, most things are better than Cap3:Civil War.) The moment when Okoye steps in front of W'Kabi's charging rhino: THE BEST.
- I love the women SO MUCH. BLESS the creators for passing the Bechdel test so hard you barely see it in the rear-view mirror. Shuri's precocious energy and enthusiasm. Ramonda, grappling with her own loss but ever the queen. Nakia, so much passion and resolve. Okoye's loyalty and side-eye. I love Nakia and Okoye's conversation about serving/saving the country. I love the moment when Shuri and Nakia check in with each other and are like "hey you okay? cool, let's go." I love Ramonda and Shuri's grief of losing T'Challa on the heels of T'Chaka. I love that T'Challa is clearly someone who has grown up around strong women. I love that the conflict was really resolved by the women of the tribe (Nakia's decision to steal the herb and go to the Jabari, Okoye's decision to denounce Killmonger, Shuri's technology that enabled Ross to shoot down the planes, and Okoye confronting W'Kabi). Basically, the T'Challa vs. Killmonger panther fight was almost an after-thought. Like, if T'Challa didn't win, the united tribes would have stopped Killmonger anyway.
- Ritual combat doesn't seem like a terribly good way of choosing the next absolute leader, just sayin'.