Film Review: Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

It stands to reason that Black Panther: Wakanda Forever would be a different type of film for Marvel. While there have recasting, losing Chadwick Bozeman after the late actors battle with cancer, presented an incredible challenge for the people who loved him and for the storytelling. They have risen to the task at hand to provide an enjoyable, if overlong, film that’s full of life.

The plot of the movie sees Wakanda reeling from the loss of their King and what it means not just for their kingdom, but the world at large. Queen Ramonda has taken up the mantle as ruler and is inundated with the diplomatic legacy her son started upon revealing the country had vibranium. Shuri, meanwhile, is all but chained to her grief for not being able to save her brother. She spends time in her lab trying to solve the riddle of the heart shaped herb and generally not getting to live her full life.

An offshore discovery of vibration brings both women and their kingdom into conflict with Namor, the ruler of the underwater Talokan. Much like previous Wakandan leaders he wants to remain hidden. Unlike those, he tasks them to find the scientist who created the machine and deliver them, lest they feel the wrath of him and Talokan. This kicks off the plot in earnest once on a mission, Shuri and her mother trying to decide what their place in the world will be and the actions of both communities lead to a showdown of epic proportions.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is certainly in the running to be the MCU’s most melodramatic film. Ryan Coogler and co-writer Cole fill the film with a rich emotional tapestry and gives the characters a lot of space to operate. The actors all carry, but this movie belongs to Letitia Wright and Angela Bassett, whose performances really help hold the movie together even as it takes some big swings. Everything about this movie is epic and as such we get everything heightened to the max.

In particular, juxtaposing the kingdoms of Wakanda and Talokan is a particularly fascinating discussion. Much of the conflict drives from the fight of a kingdom who does not want to be discovered versus a kingdom who spent much of their history as an isolationist. It’s well within rights of both kingdoms to operate how they do, and making both sides justifiable in their approaches. I applaud them for making this movie have real siesmic stakes, for all the destabilization Killmonger tried, Wakanda was still going to stand strong but Namor and his people are a whole different breed of antagonist.

Though the movie is very serious and emotional, Coogler’s best asset as a director is his sense of wonder and play. With his Oscar winning tech crew back (Ruth Carter, Hannah Bechler, and Ludwig Goransson), the movie paints with an even more fantastical brush. From the sterling costumes (Namor and Attune win the day here) to the amazing visuals, the movie continues the trend of the Black Panther films being a cut above the rest of the MCU.

While this bigger canvas allows Ryan Coogler and company to give full range to the melodrama, the movie does struggle to support all of the various elements. This movie has a run time of two hours and forty one minutes; that is a startling run time and despite the fact that it tells a lot of story and accomplishes much in its run time, there are key scenes and moments that feel thrown away or misused. Little bits here and there such as locations of battles, character motivations, and plot beats slip and feel like tremors. Mainly as it concerns the tendrils to other MCU projects, the movie is hit and miss. Siri Williams’ intro into the MCU is a lot of fun but for much of the narrative is a political pawn and doesn’t quite get to rise fully to the occasion. Also, there’s a large subplot set in America that speaks to larger ramifications within the world of the MCU but does not have real impacts in this film nor is any action levied against America in the movie (the biggest attack outside Talon comes from a different country). Furthermore, it saddles the movie with its least interesting plot line.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is certainly a lot of movie and a fitting tribute to the legacy of Chadwick Boseman. While some mileage may vary with the pacing and plottiness, the movie does provide a thrilling entry in the saga of Wakanda.