Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
The constant games of football have finally pulled me back into the cinema. Into the dark where I can envelop into someone else’s story for a couple of hours. Life recently has been hectic but now it is settling down I am finding more space for my own thoughts and with that the creative person inside of me is breaking out. I am finding time for myself and time to breathe and being able to venture to the cinema is such a relief for me.
The screen tonight is quiet but then the film has not been out for too long for a big crowd. Screen 8 at Cineworld is quite big for a screening this late in the run but I don’t mind. If I ignore the people behind me it is like I have my own private cinema.
I decided to go for Black Panther as it is the only Marvel product I have yet to consume and although my appetite is waning it is still there with hope it can take me out of the superhero malaise I currently have.
Now that I am home after a icy drive home I can say that the superhero malaise continues. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever sits in at around 2hr 41 minutes and you really feel it. It is incredibly pedestrian in its pacing and gets itself lost in side characters stories that have open strands that it doesn’t follow up with. For example there is a whole side story with Martin Freeman’s Everett Ross going on in the background that introduces his ex-wife and her subterfuge around their relationship in the film. Yet there is no conclusion to this strand which I find utterly frustrating. Marvel are getting to the point now across the cinematic universe and across their TV shows where they would rather tease something for a future project rather than actually conclude an arc within the film itself.
What is commendable is the dedication of the film to Chadwick Boseman who was the shining beacon of the Black Panther franchise. These moments were the only moments that felt real and raw. It brought out the best in the cast.
Letitia Wright does a good job of taking up quite a mantel as the lead in this film but just doesn’t have the command of the screen like her predecessor. This isn’t helped by a character arc that is confusing and contradictory throughout. This coupled with the tortoise pace of the film makes for a really disappointing and dull instalment.
In general I do think that the superhero genre is starting to hit a wall that surely only an X Men/Fantastic 4 introduction can save.
