Black Panther Review – no Spoilers

I have always been a Marvel superheroes fan—not to the point of going to Comic-Con or dressing up, but simply going to watch them at the movies or on TV. I must admit that Black Panther was never really on my radar. But when I heard it was in the works I knew I wanted to see it.

My husband and I went to see this movie on the 3rd day of its release and the theater was packed. I loved seeing how we came out to support this movie and the actors/actresses.

I went to see the Black Panther with a preconceived notion that I might not like it and it would be cheesy—I am happy to say the movie proved me wrong. It was well done, not cheesy and it even brought a tear or two from my eyes. Why? Well, because, I think we are in agreement that we are tired of the slave movies, movies like The Help, or down-trodden Black women movies, I know I am.

So anytime I can see a movie about a Black character that is not a stereotype is a breath of fresh air to me.

Black Panther was a thrilling experience to the senses. The movie takes place in a fictional African country by the name of Wakanda. To the outside world it looks like a third world country, but in another dimension it is really a vibrant, modern and rich country closed off from the rest of the world.

I loved how the movie kept traditional African Elements but infused it with modern technology. I absolutely loved the cohesiveness of the Black country—the love, the respect and strength of the Black race—in this case untouched by slavery and years of the civil rights movement. These people are self-sustaining and proud.

I loved the fact that they used Black actresses that looked Black and not racially ambiguous. Certainly not hating and no disrespect to racially ambiguous women or actresses, but come on, be fair with it then. They rarely use racially ambiguous Black men to portray Black men.

Chad Boseman (T’Challa/Black Panther) is becoming my new favorite Black actor—move over Denzel (still love you though 😉 ) Chad was perfect, he had vulnerability and a strength about him which kept your eyes glued to the screen. Plus he is not hard on the eyes at all.

I also enjoyed the cute little banter between him and his sister (Shuri) played by Letitia Wright.

Lupita Nyongo was stunning as his love interest. I would love to see her and Chad in a nice romantic movie. It’s about time to showcase a love story with melanin rich people in love in a sweet romance. I won’t hold my breath that it will happen, but one can dream, right?

Danai Gurira as Okoye. I’m a fan of hers anyway because of The Walking Dead. There is so much that can be said about this movie and I will probably revisit this article as more people watch the movie and make their comments.

I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Pros

Chad, Chad, oh and Chad.

Cons

Fake African accents.