09 Nov Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Review

BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER

dir. Ryan Coogler, starring Letitia Wright, Tenoch Huerta, Danai Gurira, Angela Bassett, et al

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will be forever remembered as The Movie Without Chadwick Boseman. This is an unfortunate shadow that casts a pall over the film’s entire first act, but the title Wakanda Forever means exactly that: though the king has passed, and it’s possible another of his skill and ability may never walk this Earth again, Wakanda is more than it’s monarch. Such is the time-honored creed that has forever defined both Hollywood and the stage, the show must go on, so must the daily business and politics of the world’s most advanced nation.

Wakanda Forever shows the leaders of the technologically enhanced country fighting a war on two fronts. The first stems from the inevitable fallout of King T’Challa revealing Wakanda to the world in the first movie’s end credits. Reminiscent of the senate hearing in Iron Man 2, albeit with far more gravitas and regality than the glib camp of Tony Stark, Queen Ramonda must fend off the other nations who seek vibranium for themselves. The idea of no good deed goes unpunished is prevalent throughout the film; the entirety of the movie stems from the seemingly in-the-moment savvy move from T’Challa as he decides to start Wakandan outreach programs. With the loss of King T’Challa, and Killmonger’s decision to burn the heart-shaped herb, Wakanda is left without its protector. Without the Black Panther, the sharks are circling as nations are making their moves in obtaining the Earth’s rarest and most coveted material.

What unfurls from there leads to death, destruction, and the rising of a new villain in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Namor. The film’s primary threat, Namor quests to make sure his people below the surface are undisturbed as nations hunt frivolously for more vibranium. It’s Namor’s initial demands that a young woman named Riri Williams pay for her unintended actions that forces him to cross paths with Wakanda and its leaders. From there, after some first act table setting and pausing to pay respects to Boseman, does the film take off.

Of the many questions surrounding the film, one of the main ones is how Coogler, Kevin Feige, and the production machine that is the MCU handle the death of Chadwick Boseman. In short, it’s handled respectfully. Wakanda Forever at times falls in the trap of leaning a bit too heavily on Boseman’s death, not gently tugging but forcefully yanking on the audience’s heartstrings. These factors juxtapose what’s easily some of the most emotional beats of any MCU film while also at times weaponizing the audience’s grief to manipulate their emotions.

This Black Panther sequel comes close to its predecessor, but doesn’t quite match the same cultural high of the first. Complete with pulse-pounding action, an emotional core that resonates and is frequently revisited, and stunning visuals that do at times outpace the first, Wakanda Forever is easily the best movie of Phase Four. Ending what some consider to be a lackluster outing after the near-perfect cap on the Infinity Saga, the film sees this stretch of movies go out with not a whimper but a bombastic and enthusiastic bang.

Wakanda Forever is not without its faults. Aside from a few wonky elements of CGI that have plagued the MCU throughout this entire phase, the film’s reach at times exceeds its grasp. Introducing a new villain, continuing to further explore many of the film’s female characters while also doing a small bit of overall cinematic worldbuilding in the background doesn’t always fully mesh into one cohesive story. While Shuri and Queen Ramonda are the film’s best handled characters, the reintroduction of Lupita Nyong’o’s Nakia, as well as the introduction of Michaela Coel’s Aneka are clumsily handled. With such a large ensemble, not to mention adding Namor and Riri Williams, it’s almost impossible for Coogler to give proper love and care to each one and, try as he might, a few do slip through the development cracks.

While Coogler’s directorial skills have to be lauded and showered of well-deserving praise, it’s his storytelling acumen that takes a hit here. The first Black Panther is incredibly concise and purposeful in its storytelling, providing the MCU with one of its greatest villains ever; Wakanda Forever takes a step back in that regard. Though Namor is quite charismatic in his own right, and shown to be a consummate leader to his people, his character lands in the same pitfall as both Thanos and Killmonger 3 years earlier: he identifies a verifiable problem, but the core of his solution is inherently flawed. With that flaw being the base of his motivations from the second act on, this leads to what is ultimately a flawed villain, and not one in the great Greek tragic way. As an idea for a great antagonist, Namor checks all the boxes. As an execution, it’s one of the film’s biggest faults, a captivating villain with a weak motivating factor.

There also exists within the film a plotline that serves only to remind the audience that a certain character is lurking about in the background. While the reveal is a surprise (and a welcome one, to be sure), removing this plotline, and all characters contained within it, would have very little impact on the overall plot or forward progression of the story. The removal of these scenes would definitely help to trim some of the excess fat off the film’s girthy runtime, creating a leaner, more straightforward narrative that, again in Hollywood terms, would cut straight to the chase.

Starring Leticia Wright as Shuri, sister of King T’Challa, Wakanda Forever is easily the finest work of her career. Shouldering a large slice of the pie, the film is centered on her as she turns to her technology as her coping mechanism after the passing her brother. The movie is almost completely focused on her journey to acceptance and recovery while attempting to deal with the threats from beneath the waters. Her journey throughout the movie is remarkable to behold; thanks to both her acting and writer/director Ryan Coogler’s handling of the character, Shuri’s road takes the audience in a number of unexpected twists. Wakanda Forever manages to do in one film what it took three Star Wars prequels to accomplish, but in a far more concise and engaging manner. This is due in large part to Wright’s command of the screen; while slight in stature, her performance is mighty. Her expressiveness, as well as her ability to deliver an inward performance that shuts every other character out, is Wright’s strongest suit, and she plays it well.

Angela Bassett turns in a Best Supporting Actress-worthy tilt here as Queen Ramonda, nation leader. As queen, no one is better suited to project a sense of regality and strength than Bassett. Alternatively, in the story’s quieter moments with Shuri, Bassett’s vulnerability makes for some of the film’s best character work. Relegated to the background throughout most of Black Panther, here Bassett takes a huge leap forward, radiating a power and ferocity not seen since What’s Love Got to Do with It.

Introducing Tenoch Huerta to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Namor, the story’s antagonist, Huerta’s regality matches both Shuri’s and Ramonda’s; it’s the comparisons and contrasts between the two civilizations that makes Wakanda Forever a great thematic film. Unfortunately, it’s Namor that is also one of the biggest detractions from the film, not due to his performance but with the character itself. Huerta does a wonderful job as the intense yet still charming leader of the subcontinent, but sadly the quality of the material falls short of the quality of the actor. The core of who Namor is in the comics, the abrasive, perennially arrogant antihero who sometimes sides with The Avengers if it suits his purposes and at other times will stab them in the back without a moment’s hesitation, isn’t present here. Instead, moviegoers are given a more thoughtful, reserved character that, while keeping in accordance with his publishing history as a ruler who will go to great lengths to protect his people, is stripped of the haughtiness that makes him such an enjoyable read. Regardless, Huerta continues to prove that Kevin Feige and Marvel’s casting directors know how to fit the right person with the right role.

As far as right roles go, Dominique Thorne as Riri Williams is spot on casting. Possessing no small amount of confidence in herself and her abilities, Riri is a gust of fresh air, a shot in the arm the MCU was sorely lacking. An MIT student that creates her own suit of armor reminiscent of Tony Stark, Riri’s Ironheart gives the MCU one of its newest legacy characters. Thorne and Riri works best when pitted against Shuri; the two are so obviously alike in a number of ways but couldn’t be farther from different. It’s through these dissimilarities that Coogler explores both characters and Thorne and Wright’s chemistry in their scenes together couldn’t be better.

Partially written and fully directed by Ryan Coogler, Wakanda Forever shows him operating yet again on a grand scale. Taking full advantage of his $200 million budget, the excursion feels lavish and grandiose on a scale that makes the original Black Panther almost feel small. The expansion to new locations, while also opening up the scope of Wakanda itself, helps lend credence to the fact that the once recluse country has revealed itself to the world for what it truly is: a technological marvel that continues to awe and astound with every establishing shot. To that end, Coogler spared no expense with continuing to mine a world rich in both culture and history, with one foot firmly rooted in its comic book origins and one foot in real life traditions and respect to the various cultures of Africa. The film’s visuals outpace the first movie, with the recurring theme of using white as the color of mourning instead of black a perfect backdrop for every other color to shine off of. Proper respect must be given to costume designer Ruth E. Carter for outdoing herself in the design of Namor and the Talokans, mixing in Aztec culture with Jack Kirby-like influences that give the underwater civilization a feel that, while still very much a comic book movie, demands that it be taken seriously by any who scoff at the genre. The vibrant costume design and set design are captured impeccably by cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw; Wakanda Forever is rife with mesmerizing images that manage to detail the regal nature of both civilizations. Aided by returning (and now Oscar-winning, thanks to the first) composer Ludwig Goransson, the music manages to make a number of sonic callbacks to Black Panther while still striving to enhance and enrich both Wakanda and Talokan. Capped off by a soulful performance from Rhianna performing ‘Lift Me Up,’ the end credits music is sure to leave more than a few in the audience a blubbering mess.

Overall, Wakanda Forever, while not as strong as its predecessor, still stands as a bold and audacious story told by Ryan Coogler, his cast, and his crew. A deeply enriching story for Shuri and Ramonda, both Leticia Wright and Angela Bassett steal the show, delivering some of the most memorable performances in the MCU to date. Technically strong, the film is a marvel to behold, presenting one dazzling meticulously crafted scene after another, but unfortunately the visual feast isn’t enough to fully plaster over the film’s weaker elements. A charming but mishandled villain, along with the story’s overreliance on leaning on the memory of Chadwick Boseman (along with the entire Everett Ross storyline) makes the movie a bulky affair, storytelling wise. While the action is still as top notch as before, the muddied motivations and oversentimentality wear a bit thin, making the story that’s 19 minutes shy of three hours feel its length. Wakanda Forever is in theaters November 11th.

Review by Darryl Mansel