First, minimizing "issues." From Iron Man to Civil War, Marvel movies eschew addressing real world issues in exchange for being "fun." This has been one of the most frustrating things for me about the MCU. For me genre films are at their best when they are speaking to our real world in some way. Marvel avoids that to ensure maximum popularity. Panther goes the other way, directly confronting issues of colonialism as one of the central questions of its plot. How refreshing.
Speaking of plot, that's the second. Marvel movies often keep the plot simple as a way of stringing together big action set pieces. In Panther the plot is foremost while the action sequences serve the plot. They remain a little on the Transformers side of outrageous spectacle but they still serve the plot more than the other way around.
Third, weak villains. Other thank Loki Marvel villains capital S suck. Here Andy Sirkis' Klaue is charismatic and entertaining while Michael B. Jordan's Killmonger is a villain with a strong impact. Reminiscent of Magneto, he is one of those villains who "has a point" and the movie struggles with the clash of ideas presented by his character.
Fourth, weak female characters. Sorry Black Widow but please. Tessa Thompson's Valkyrie in Ragnarok perhaps being the sole exception. Here that is no problem. From Lupita N'yongo's Nakia to Danai Gurira's Okoye to Letitia Wright's Shuri (even the underused Ramonda played by Angela Bassett) this film is dripping with strong female characters who hold their own.
Bland art direction, costumes, music. The Marvel movies haven't been a wealth of artistry when it comes to the technical aspects. Hum one Marvel theme... right? While the cartoony worlds created for the Thor movies are pathetic, the remainder of the films (with the general exception of the first Captain America movie) are blandly designed. The whole tech budget gets blown on the Transformers style special effects. It's really the only thing anyone ever says about Doctor Strange. Here the world of Wakanda is a gorgeous feast for the eyes. From hair to costumes to sets, Marvel has finally made a beautiful movie stylishly filmed. Okay, the music remains as forgettable as the rest of the MCU. Oh well, nothing's perfect.
And finally silliness. The Marvel movies have been on a lowest-common-denominator trajectory towards being as irreverent and ridiculous as possible. The leap frog by Guardians of the Galaxy into the silly-zone lead us towards the most ridiculous film so far Thor Ragnarok, a film which gave up any semblance of taking itself seriously in exchange for basically being an Austin Powers movie. Panther has some humour but it is organic, it comes from the story. It isn't an attempt to lead from one fart joke to the next. It was so nice to see a Marvel film take is subject seriously for a change.
So Black Panther was a surprising treat, an entertaining adventure that has something to say, something to wrestle with. I hope this represents a new direction for the MCU, one that can actually keep me entertained. It did this by not being like the other Marvel movies so my hope is tempered with realism that mass popularity will rule out in the end. But if Black Panther is as financially successful as it appears it is going to be perhaps the suits at Disney will let them make more movies of this ilk.
Here is my one complaint about the movie. The film makers took a lesbian character and muted that aspect of her for no apparent narrative reason. This erasure is disappointing, perhaps even more so in a movie which goes so far to focus on representation of gender and racial issues. Watching the film, I felt let down the filmmakers felt it was necessary to not just ignore the sexuality of one character (while heterosexual characters have plenty of representation throughout) but to actively change and erase it. If the film hadn't taken such strides this would be even less egregious. Sigh.
Still, this film ranks high for me on my MCU list. I hope it will mean good things for the future of the MCU.
Black Panther
Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita N'yongo, Danai Gurira, Daniel Kaluuya, Letitia Wright, Martin Freeman, Winston Duke, Angela Bassett, Forest Whitaker, Andy Sirkis
Director: Ryan Coogler
Writers: Joe Robert Cole, Ryan Coogler
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