A review of “Black Panther”

The critically acclaimed Black Panther movie gives us an alternate version of a country of Africa, had it not been colonized by white people. It is the latest in a string of Marvel movies, signalling the end of phase 3 and it is a wonderful break from the all-white, male cast of heroes that we will be returning to with Avengers: Infinity Wars. T’challa has returned home to Wakanda to take his place as king when another heir tries to stake their claim on the throne.

It is a powerful and humorous movie, but more importantly it reveals a range of important issues that we cannot ignore.

Heroes vs terrorists. Speaking as a person of colour, I can honestly say that in most media we are presented as the terrorist pit against a strong white hero. But in Black Panther you see a different kind of hero, and ultimately a different kind of villain too. Both T’challa and Erik are perfectly aware of colonialization and it’s after effects. The western world has stolen so much of our intelligence, reclaiming it as their own and downplaying the rest of the world as primitive and ignorant. Watching, I found it difficult to fully side with either character, T’challa’s seeming overly passive, or Erik, who seemed too violent and extremist. As the movie progressed, I even found myself swinging like a pendulum from one view to the other. T’challa was protecting his country, Erik was trying to reclaim his. T’challa’s motives were defensive, whilst Erik’s were of revenge. Yet, what I found most intriguing was that they actually agreed about a lot more than either one would care to admit. They both agreed that the people of Africa were done a huge injustice by the western world. It was their methods that made them who they are, thus, showing that there is a fine line between heroism and extremism, and the mirroring of their Black Panther costume certainly showed as much.

But let’s stop there with the male cast, and let’s give a round of applause to the females who almost claimed this movie as their own. Nakia is kick-ass, intelligent, passionate and has active methods to combat the injustices she knew existed outside of Wakanda. Now, she deserved to be queen. Move over T’challa and Erik, Nakia deserved the throne more than you do. And it isn’t just Nakia, the rest of the female cast of Black Panther is diverse and full of different kinds of role models. Nakia, our freedom fighter, Okoye, the general and Shuri, an innovator. Each showed a different kind of hero, powerful, fighting their fears and social bindings to save the people they love.

As someone who’s heritage has found its way to the UK, I felt a visceral emotional connection to Black Panther. It represents power and strength, and a huge leap forward for diversity. The heroes moved me, their poignant differences giving me hope for the future of representation. So much has already been stolen by the Western world, they have colonized so much, that it’s nice that we got a small refresher before we get thrown back into the pit of white male heroes and difficult to love female characters. Well, at least Black Panther gave us a small amount back of what was rightfully ours, a bit of respect, and with that I hope we can reclaim more.