Quincy’s Spoiler-Free Review of ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’

It’s opening weekend for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, the sequel to Marvel’s 2018 hit, Black Panther.

We were invited by Disney to attend the opening night event for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever at AMC Theatres in Disney Springs. Now, I’m here to share a spoiler-free review. At its heart, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is a worthy sequel to a popular Marvel movie — and an earnest tribute to the man that helped to make Black Panther so loved.

The sequel has generated a lot of buzz lately. With the film on track for a massive opening weekend, there has been a lot of anticipation surrounding it. Much of the conversation has centered around what the Black Panther franchise will look like without the star of its titular role; Chadwick Boseman passed in August 2020 after a private battle with colon cancer.

Disney confirmed relatively early on that King T’Challa (Boseman) would not be recast. Instead, the sequel focuses on the characters that surrounded T’Challa, most notably his sister, Shuri (played by Letitia Wright).

Wakanda Forever holds up as a worthy sequel to its predecessor. When Black Panther first hit the screens it wowed audiences with its complex characters, stunning design, humor, and less-traditional techniques. I clearly remember how shocked I was to see the shot of Killmonger walking into the throne room that started upside-down in the first film.

Wakanda Forever brings back many of the characters that we’ve grown to adore. Aside from Shuri, Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), M’baku (Winston Duke), Okoye (Danai Gurira), Agent Ross (Martin Freeman) and more familiar faces grace the screen. The acting performances in the film are excellent and at times, especially the scenes discussing T’Challa, it’s hard not to see the emotion as real and coming from the actors themselves.

A particularly stunning performance comes from Wright as Shuri. The character grapples with an incredible range of emotions and Wright keeps up deftly and in earnest. In one of the most difficult scenes of the film, Shuri’s reactions are heartwrenching to watch.

But it isn’t just the old characters that breathe life into the sequel. There are a number of new faces who join the ensemble and seem to mesh almost immediately. The villain in the film lives up as one of the more complex villains Marvel has brought to the screen — something that the cinematic universe is known for after telling the stories of characters like Loki, Killmonger, and Thanos.

And, yes, the design is just as jaw-dropping as it was in the first film. The location design — including an entirely new city setting — is comprehensive and enchanting. The sound and music design is unique. My personal favorite piece of the film is in the costume and hair design. There are unbelievably intricate, interesting, and downright cool costumes at every moment of the film. I want Shuri’s entire wardrobe so if anyone knows how I can make that happen, LMK.

My biggest qualm with the film and perhaps one of the few things that don’t feel like they equal Black Panther are the fight scenes. Though exciting and interesting, the choreography of the scenes is less airtight. I love a fight scene in a hero movie and with so much going on, many of the fight scenes are not as easy to follow. Black Panther also had a number of those satisfying Marvel moments during the bigger fights (I remember many of them courtesy of Wakanda’s Dora Milaje) where Wakanda Forever was lacking in meaningful vignettes during the combat.

Still, there are mechanics in the fights that make them feel fresh — an important aim in a world of superhero saturation. Add the varied fighting styles of the involved characters and the scenes are still exciting if a little disorganized.

Now, where the film truly excels is as a tribute to Boseman. I was skeptical that a superhero movie was going to be able to tastefully handle the grieving of and tribute to one of its stars but I had no need to be. Wakanda Forever is filled with moments that speak to just how loved T’Challa and Boseman were. I recommend having tissues on hand. On several occasions over the course of the movie, I found tears streaming as the film acknowledged its loss — right down to the end-credits scene. The credits roll with a message: “Dedicated to Our Friend Chadwick Boseman.”

Overall, the movie has the potential to go down as one of the best Marvel sequels. With an almost three-hour runtime, it shockingly didn’t drag and hardly felt like such a lengthy film. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever achieves what it sets out to: closing the door on Black Panther, transitioning to the next phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and thanking Chadwick Boseman for everything he brought to Wakanda.

Post a Comment