Page 4 - Twice-Told April 2018

Page 4 Twice-Told Tale

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised

By Nick Nimkoff

“T he world is changing. Soon there will only be towards the beginning of the film. It also
the conquered and the conquerors." To say that Black helps to develop the culture of
Panther is another boring Marvel movie would be a Wakanda, with what kind of technology
huge insult to the time and effort that was clearly put they are using.
into it by director Ryan Coogler and the rest of the cre- The main and supporting cast
ative forces behind it. Boasting an absolutely stellar of heroes is also fun, with T'Challa, little
cast, an amazing setting to play around in, and one of sister Shuri, Dora Milaje general Okoye,
the greatest villains I can remember, Black Panther girlfriend Nakia, and Everett K. Ross.
creates something that finally feels a little different Shuri in particular is the character the
from the rest of the Marvel fare. film's target audience is most going to
Black Panther's story revolves around T'Chal- connect with. She is a teenager who acts
la, played by Chadwick Boseman, who is the king of like a total snob, but the audience loves
the fictional nation of Wakanda, and the Black Panther. her for exactly that reason. Okoye, who
The Black Panther is the protector of Wakanda who has is the leader of the King's Dora Milaje
been enhanced with an herb that grants him heightened (an all-female elite guard force), plays
senses, increased strength, and endurance, this title is the part of the conflicted loyalist who
passed down along with the title of king. Wakanda is protects whoever is on the throne.
built on a giant meteorite made of Vibranium, a fiction Nakia, played by Lupita Nyong'o, is
bulletproof metal with a lot of other capabilities, which another strong female sidekick who is (Above) One of the cooler things to happen to T’Challa in the comics is his mar-
gives the nation amazing technological advances. The also the love interest for T'Challa. Final- riage to Storm of the X-Men. They make one of Marvel’s most powerful couples
main conflict revolves around whether this secluded ly, Everett K. Ross, played by Martin and couldn’t be done in the movie for legal rights reasons. However now that
nation should step out the shadows and provide some of Freeman, is a character we were intro- Disney has bought Fox, and as a result the X-Men, we might see a relationship
between the two characters in the future. In one scene T’Challa’s mother has
the vast aid resources they have or to remain in the duced to in Captain America: Civil War white hair and may even remind some viewers of the weather manipulating mu-
shadows as a seemingly third-world country. T'Challa who plays a man discovering all tant. Photo courtesy of Matooke Republic.
Wakanda has to
offer just as the audience is. portrayed as being prosperous. The Vibranium tech we
They all do a really great job of can see in the background is also very interesting, like a
bringing to life some key char- light monorail, beads that act as a smartphone, and a
acters ripped straight from the sand that can morph into different solid objects. There
comics. is even a point where animals are used in a battle and
My biggest compliant with appear enhanced by Vibranium armor. In all, Wakanda
the movie is that it works best in is a place that I can't wait to visit again in May in
its slower moments. It felt like a Avengers: Infinity War.
lot of the action was very gener- The music feels like something completely
ic and for the most part, could different from the generic scores that the MCU movies
be found in any other Marvel tend to have. It has an African spice to it, with a heavy
movie and it wouldn't really use of drums as well as vocals in African languages that
make a difference. Don't get me can be heard in the background. It helps to elevate it
wrong; most of the sequences past the usually dull music that feels like an after-
are well done, and despite some thought in some of the other movies. The album that
very distracting CGI in a few accompanied the film, Black Panther: The Album -
(Above) One of the interesting things to think about with Black Panther is if it can get scenes they almost all look Music From and Inspired By, featuring 14 original
any major nominations at next years Academy Awards. While it most likely won’t get good. I just feel like if we get songs from artists including The Weekend, Vince Sta-
awards for acting, I expect a lot of technical awards and a fighting chance at winning one more black SUV chase I'm ples, Khalid, and many more spearheaded by Kendrick
Best Picture. Photo courtesy of Business Insider. going to lose my mind. This is a Lamar, is one of the best albums put together for a
movie where we should have movie PERIOD. If one hasn't heard any of it, please do
believes they should provide aid, but the film's main had something much better to showcase than what feels so whenever possible.
antagonist Erik Killmonger, brilliantly played by Mi- like the tenth SUV chase in the MCU. Overall, I would call Black Panther a really
chael B. Jordan, says that they should instead arm those The set design is one element that really great movie. I maybe wouldn't push amazing on it as it
who are oppressed and fight the powers that be. shines. The setting of Wakanda is really unique and has a few problems here and there, but it is a really sol-
While it may seem logical to side with T'Chal- interesting, and probably the best big screen adaptation id movie throughout. Making the most memorable
la, the film gives a very strong argument to root for of the look of "Afro-Futurism"- being futuristic tech- MCU villain to date, adding in an amazing new land-
Killmonger. Black Panther has no doubt created the nology infused with very traditional African culture. scape to explore in future movies, and putting together
most complex, and in my opinion best, villain in the For instance some of the buildings are skyscrapers, but a cast of some of the best Marvel movies have seen,
Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). He has not only a the audience can still see hut-like structure sticking out one would have to really hate these movies to miss
very justified, but understandable motivation, which is of them. This helps build the world of Wakanda, giving Black Panther. My final score for Black Panther is a
very rare for a movie of this caliber. He was orphaned empowerment in a way to a continent that isn't always B+.
as a boy when his father, a spy for Wakanda living in
Oakland, and was killed. This left Erik alone in a world
that didn't treat him well, making him seemingly prom-
ise off-screen to enact his revenge on those who would
stand against him. The theme of colonialism is a heavy
undertone throughout the movie with Killmonger tak-
ing a Malcolm X approach to the systemic oppression
faced around the world, and T'Challa taking a Martin
Luther King approach. This makes the film a much
more complex look at the world than any other Marvel
movie so far. Everything has been pretty cut and dry in
the past films, but Black Panther might have the audi-
ence sympathizing with Killmonger at times.
The other antagonist, Ulysses Klaue, is played
by Andy Serkis (not a CGI character for once) and in-
troduced in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Every single sce-
ne he has is a joy to watch because he is really playing
up the crazy, and the audience can see he is having a
good time on set. He has replaced his missing arm that (Above) The African culture littered through Black Panther is one element that pushes the movie past the formula of its prede-
he lost in Age of Ultron with a Wakandan mining tool cessors. It retains the feel one would expect, but it really does take one out of the moment when the audience gets to explore
whose power has been maxed out. This comes in handy the politics of a country, or have a little down time with the characters as they walk the streets of Wakanda. There are also
for fighting the Black Panther in one of the big battles several different tribes in Wakanda that we get to meet, all of them having a deep rooted influence in the culture of Wakanda.
Photo courtesy of Indie Wire.