Black Panther (2018)

[baumer]

Discuss

[Mrwick]

Warmonger was cheated, he was entitled to and deserved that crown. 

[BardCrank]

LONG LIVE THE KING 

I'll try to keep this spoiler free 

What can I say ? this is on hell of an entertaining movie ( Marvel is getting too good at this )  . Boseman just exudes charisma , no really, this man can make a silent movie look fun . MBJ is so great and so is his role too  

here is one thing I can think of about the movie that is not positive ( or negative ), it doesn't seem like it is set in the MCU , somehow it feels like it's an independent movie . The connection doesn't flow naturally IMO ( then again this was also the case with Dr. Strange )

Over all it a very exhilarating movie that keeps you at the edge of your seat for the significant majority of the time but I gotta say this is not ground breaking ( and I'm talking about the movie itself not it's implications on the world of movie making ) I think it is on par with Winter Soldier IMO which makes it one of the top marvel movies . 

4.5/5 

[aabattery]

It's cool as shit.

[Ethan Hunt]

Shot was good 

[Cap]

I have so many feels, but right now it's just kind of SHURI SHURI SHURI 

Edited February 16, 2018 by captainwondyful

[Chewy]

Ppl always say "best villain since Heath Ledger Joker" and it's always total horseshit but like, Killmonger is an actual character in this? With a real arc and real emotional stakes, things of that nature

 

Anyway this movie absolutely rules. World-building for days, characters with functional, diverse POVs, and also some shitty CGI that rivals Justice League lmao

[somebody85]

Really good but not quite the masterpiece that I heard it was for weeks.

Great characters (loved the sister), excellent world building, strong score (something that Marvel is not usually good at) and one of the best soundtracks for a film in years. 

The Michael B Jordan stuff felt rushed though. A lot of his backstory came through exposition from Martins character and lines like "This world took everything from me!" didn't land for me. The world didn't take anything from him but Wakandas technology could have saved him if he lived in poverty. I just thought that was poorly worded. His character needing a helicopter to get to Wakanda didn't really make sense either or why he waited so long to go...I guess he thought he needed the training first? Again most of this was all told in exposition instead of being shown.

I loved the themes at play and feel they would have been explored a lot stronger had this been rated R. But as is, the film bears a lot of resemblance to The Lion King which isn't a bad thing.

They don't really explain how Tchalla got the powers back though? Every other time he became Black Panther he had to drink that purple liquid. I guess the flower concoction they whipped up before the 3rd act was enough.

I dunno it kind of felt like two films in one. And the characters in the first film were disposed of really quickly (like Killmongers girlfriend who I'm not sure had any lines). Andy Serkis was a blast though.

Some of the choreography felt a bit sloppy too. That first jungle set piece was hard to see but it got a lot better as it went on. Final act felt ripped right out of a video game. I could imagine playing every one of those parts from Black Panther to Martin flying that ship.
 

It's a lot of fun though and definitely has a lot of rewatchability. Should do great with the GA. Totally felt like a summer film.

One of Marvels better offerings. Ready for Infinity War.

B+

[aabattery]

1 minute ago, somebody85 said:

They don't really explain how Tchalla got the powers back though? Every other time he became Black Panther he had to drink that purple liquid. I guess the flower concoction they whipped up before the 3rd act was enough.
 

 

The purple liquid is made from those flowers. They were very explicit about it.

[somebody85]

Just now, aabattery said:

 

The purple liquid is made from those flowers. They were very explicit about it.

Yeah that's what I was guessing. They just never showed them pouring the liquid in his mouth again which they did throughout the rest of the film. I figured that's what that meant though.

[aabattery]

2 minutes ago, somebody85 said:

Yeah that's what I was guessing. They just never showed them pouring the liquid in his mouth again which they did throughout the rest of the film. I figured that's what that meant though.

 

I'm pretty sure they did show them pouring it in? Then they buried him under the snow like they did with the sand all the other times. And then he went back to the pretty spirit world.

 

I'm, like, 95% sure they did show it going down his gullet again. I remember thinking "man they've made poor Chadwick drink that purple shit a lot in this movie."

[somebody85]

1 minute ago, aabattery said:

 

I'm pretty sure they did show them pouring it in? Then they buried him under the snow like they did with the sand all the other times. And then he went back to the pretty spirit world.

 

I'm, like, 95% sure they did show it going down his gullet again. I remember thinking "man they've made poor Chadwick drink that purple shit a lot in this movie."

I don't think they did man, but I easily could be wrong. I think they showed his mother crushing the flower into a pot and then quickly burying him. Then the film switched to the dream area where he asked his father why he didn't take his brothers son back and Tchalla told him he couldn't stay. Then he was alive again which led to all the preparation of the third act starting with a joke about a coat or something.

 

[aabattery]

2 minutes ago, somebody85 said:

I don't think they did man, but I easily could be wrong. I think they showed his mother crushing the flower into a pot and then quickly burying him. Then the film switched to the dream area where he asked his father why he didn't take his brothers son back and Tchalla told him he couldn't stay. Then he was alive again which led to all the preparation of the third act starting with a joke about a coat or something.

 

 

This is the cotton stuff all over again haha. We'll just have to agree to disagree

[somebody85]

Just now, aabattery said:

 

This is the cotton stuff all over again haha. We'll just have to agree to disagree

Haha no I didn't think that hurt the film or anything. I figured the flower was the same thing. 

My main issues I had with it had to do with Killmonger and his motivation....and all of that feeling sort of rushed when I feel like it could have been fleshed out a lot more. I would have liked to see his past (especially in Oakland after the death of his father) instead of told everything because he was a good villain. As a viewer you could see his side like all the best ones.

[RobinHood26]

-

Edited August 8, 2020 by RobinHood26

[BadAtGender]

miiiight be the best MCU film yet.

 

5/5

[marveldcfox]

I think BP had some really GREAT moments, but also some mediocre stuff. BP, himself, wasn't all that interesting. He was okay. Kill Monger was the best thing. I liked the gangsta style, born and brought up in a hood sympathetic villainy that MBJ brought. I wish we had gotten more of him. MBJ+ Ryan coogler is a match made in heaven. I liked the whole look of the Wakanda and tech stuff, but more could have been done. The other clans were fun. The costume work in this is superb. The cinematography was good in places. Action scenes were okay. Music/Score was very unique awesome mixture of African/Indian. Some of the dialogues was ehhhhh, but I think the female cast did the best they could..I liked the sister and general the most. Lupita and Angela were okay in their respective roles. Storytelling/theme was mostly solid, but the last 30-40 mins felt a bit rushed. MBJ comes to wakanda and within a day Wakanda is back to T'challa. LOL. I really want to give this a high rating, but there are issues. You could tell that Ryan Coogler was struggling b/w his roots and big budget film making..still he somewhat delivers. 7.5-8/10. 

 

Will still beat Infinity War at the domestic boxoffice even if IW gets a bigger opening weekend. 

 

MBJ + RC ranking

 

1. Fruit vale Station (10/10)

2. Creed (9.5/10)

3. Black Panther (7.5/10)

[robertman2]

it was pretty good

[Captain Craig]

Grade:   B+

Could go up on a rewatch, we'll see. Initial reaction below.

Middle and End Credit sequence, last one is of importance.

 

Another very solid outing from Marvel Studios. However, the overhype train is in full affect. I feel a year from now similar conversations like Wonder Woman will be going around. Why isn't this up for Best Picture? It's very, very well made film. Hear me on this knee jerk reaction posters.

 

Pros:

Boseman -  is captivating and fun to watch on screen. I really like his calm, cool and collected approach with interactions he has for 98% of the film.

Michael B Jordan - the scene stealer or owner in I'd say every scene he's featured. The character had a very realized arc that you couldn't miss. There was that one scene near the end that reminded me of Last of the Mohicans (also colonizers there) quote from Hawkeye before the Huron sachem "Magua would become that which has twisted him" when discussing Killmonger's desire to use Wakandan tech vs the world. Killmonger works as a fully realized character because you can sympathize with him, much like you might Magneto. Largely because the atrocities that shaped their upbringing can be related to in some way by any educated person.

Triple Threat - Okoye, Nakia and Shuri were all great! I'm sure I'll learn all their actual names in time, I know the Michonne actress is Okoye. I never felt Shuri was in danger cause Marvel plays the long game. The long game has Shuri becoming Black Panther at some point.

M'Baku - again, don't know the actor enough yet but was impressed. My understanding is in the comics he is actually one of T'Challa's top tier foes. Here they were more respected adversaries so I'll be curious to see where this relationship goes as it evolves. 

Serkis - sad to see Klaw dead. I like the actor and had hoped to get him into some version of his comic looking villain suit. Best line, "Hey, I made it rain!"

Agent Ross - while not some outstanding performance you'll never forget what I like about it is how Ross is the surrogate for the audience. He's observing, learning and impressed with Wakanda, it's leaders and peoples at the same time we are learning of this great location within the MCU as well. 

Support Cast: Basset and Whitaker deliver solid moments that add to full richness of the film. T'Chaka, for a dead man he had quite a few scenes and they were important.

 

 

Cons:

Near zero character growth for T'Challa in the film. He does gain insight into one aspect of his Fathers life that is central to the plot but is that truth actual growth? What does he gain from his near death experience? Is he any better a man, king, companion, brother, son beating Killmonger "supered" up than losing to him as "just" a man?

 

That Killmonger ultimately ended up in another Black Panther suit. So the battle was between the hero and his "evil reflection" trope. At least they paid some homage to his actual comic look in the second act.

 

We know that the "magic" purple flower isn't all gone. Some fail safe is in place. I felt like I was getting my visual for "some men just want to watch the world burn" moment. That moment felt cheesy to me. 

 

 

If the film can be up for any awards I think a number of technical ones are on the table. Unless the terrain is all cgi, which I didn't notice, then the sweeping scenery of Wakanda was majestic and beautiful. Worth your big screen dollar.

 

**Re: T'Challa healed - yes indeed they do show Shuri handing the purple flower to his mom, who grinds it up and pours it down T'Challa's throat. They then quickly cover him up in the snow.

 

[Rorschach]

For me, it ranks up in the Top 5 of the MCU. The nation of Wakanda is surprisingly captivating and the history behind is nothing short of fascinating. All the actors do fantastic jobs in their roles. Boseman is great in the lead and Michael B. Jordan creates one of the most compelling Comic-Book villains I've ever seen. The supporting players add a lot to the film as well. From Shuri who is one of my new favorite supporting characters in the MCU to Okoye, who is simply put badass, they all bring their A-game. The action may not be the best ever put on screen but its done very well here. Its still exciting and many of the setpieces are hugely entertaining. (Don't get me started on the amazing soundtrack, song, and score-wise).

 

For me, the film didn't feel like an action movie or your typical Marvel movie. It felt like a big-budget drama with action setpieces sprinkled throughout and you know what? I'm completely fine with that. I'll take a well-developed, interesting story with great characters and emotional conflict over action any day (although this film has both drama and action in spades so no complaints here).

 

I do have some minor complaints that didn't really affect my overall experience. Jordan is a great villain but near the beginning, he felt slightly under-utilized. His beginning introduction is genuinely great but then he disappears for like 40 minutes or so. Not a glaring issue since he's focused on very well in the second half. I just wished there was more of him. Also, the CGI in a few places looked a little unfinished. The scene in the climax where T'Challa and Killmonger were falling and fighting in the air did harken back to the Spider-Man and Venom fight scene from Spider-Man 3. Although I think the scene looked a lot better here than it did in that film, it still looked a little weir.

 

I always go into each Marvel movie extremely hyped out of my mind to see them. Lately, they've been solid/good but none of them have really met high expectations. They've mostly been hanging in that 6-8 rank range for me. I can gladly say that this was the first in a long time to have exceeded my expectations. To me, it ranks up there with the first Iron Man, the first Guardians, Winter Soldier, and the first Avengers as one of my favorites of the MCU. It truly deserves all the praise it gets and I cannot wait for Infinity War.

9/10