Black Panther (5 Stars)

Farewell to Chadwick Boseman, the actor who so magnificently brought King T'Challa, the Black Panther, to the big screen. This film was nominated as Best Film at the Academy Awards. Eat your heart out, Martin Scorsese. Just because you don't like super-hero films, it doesn't mean that nobody else does.

Where does the Black Panther go from here? A sequel was already in pre-production, but it was delayed because of the Coronavirus pandemic. Now the lead actor is no longer available. Can anyone step into his shoes? Even if a suitable actor can be found, seeing a new face will be uncomfortable to the audience.

Actors have already been changed over the course of the first three phases of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Don Cheadle replaced Terrence Howard as James Rhodes (War Machine) in "Iron Man 2" after Terrence Howard was fired for demanding too much money. Mark Ruffalo replaced Edward Norton as Bruce Banner (the Hulk) in "The Avengers" for reasons that vary, depending on who's telling the story. The replacement of James Rhodes went smoothly, because the two actors looked similar enough for the MCU to get away with it. The replacement of Bruce Banner jarred, because the two actors barely look alike. In my mind I exclude "The Incredible Hulk" from the MCU, because it just doesn't seem to fit in with the rest of the films.

While watching the film today I concentrated on Chadwick Boseman and the subtleties of his performance. His character has been fleshed out from his appearance in "Civil War". We see that he's rooted in African tradition, and we also see a humorous side to his character, revealed in an occasional sly grin.

T'Challa is a king and a warrior. Wakanda might be the technologically most advanced country on Earth, but it remains a part of Africa.

This is the first time T'Challa cries "Wakanda Forever", the battle cry repeated over the next few films, while crossing his arms in the same salute used by Bob Geldof in "The Wall". When I watched "Black Panther" dubbed into German, I was shocked to hear it translated into "Wakanda über alles". For me that has negative connotations.

When the film was first shown in the cinemas in early 2018 it was a rallying point for black people on both sides of the Atlantic. It made them proud of their race and skin colour. It was their film. For a few months it became common for young black people in England to greet one another with the words "Wakanda Forever". I understand. People of colour have been under-represented in Hollywood for decades. Here was a film with only a few white actors in minor roles. Nevertheless, the Black Panther shouldn't just be a black African hero. I would be proud to have a king like T'Challa, if he were vaguely like Chadwick Boseman. Who needs corrupt elected officials if we can have a benevolent monarch?

I find it curious that this film is difficult to buy in America. For a long time it was unavailable on disc, and now it's very expensive. The Blu-ray costs $32 in America, compared with £5 (about $8) in England. I hope that this isn't politically motivated. Maybe it's just a business decision; the streaming services want to keep the film for themselves.

Chadwick Boseman
November 29, 1976 – August 28, 2020

Success Rate:  + 4.4

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