Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

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This is what it's all about

Only a few seconds more and Shuri could have saved her brother’s life. With him dies not only a loved one and the King of Wakanda, but also the last Black Planther. The king’s mother now takes over the business and cares for the people. Since Wakanda has revealed its secrets to the world, many powers have tried to gain influence and get their hands on the Vibranium in order to use its power to pursue their own interests. But the country has to realise that they do not only have to protect themselves from the USA, France and other states, but that their diplomatic skills are also required, because another nation is also getting ready to fight back and Shuri and Queen Ramonda have to decide whose side they will fight on and which stand they will take. But will they be able to overcome these challenges without the Black Panther?

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Review

Just a few months ago, comic book giant Marvel announced that Phase 4 of the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) would end early. With BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER, that conclusion has now been reached. But given the massive criticism that the franchise’s recent films and series have had to endure, the obituary for the first part’s lead actor, Chadwick Boseman, who has since passed away, is on shaky ground and has to be able to deliver in more ways than one. Even the earlier film did not escape unscathed, even though it is one of the most successful works in the fictional universe. In fact, many positive receptions have come from the PoC sectors, who see this series as another success in the seemingly hopeless fight against oppression. Black Panther in particular gives African people a voice in the global film industry market.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Filmstill

A big burden for a single film. So big, apparently, that Ryan Coogler, who has already realised the 2018 film and is both a screenwriter and director advocating for the PoC community, saw no choice but to develop the second longest film of all 30 Marvel films. He uses this time to introduce audiences to entirely new worlds, provide more insight into life in Wakanda and address foreign policy issues that were already announced in the previous flick. In addition, we get a tribute to Boseman that far trumps the obituary to Stan Lee in the film series, but without mucking up the legacy and dishonouring the death. Mind you, the film devotes itself intensively to this theme twice, with the second scene overshooting the mark somewhat.

Much talk for nothing

Much does not always help much. And so, after an immediate start without a prologue, the 161 minutes of running time sometimes become a tedious and annoying ordeal, even if the time flies by. BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER could have been shortened by about 50 minutes without losing any of its content. Not infrequently, dialogues are unnecessarily drawn out in order to develop a pseudo-dramaturgy that is not actually there. Moreover, the deceptive impression is created that the additional time could be spent to introduce the fantastic new worlds, but in fact this only happens quite briefly and mostly so sombrely that it is quite difficult to enjoy the full splendour. Moreover, many scenes and plot developments are reminiscent of AQUAMAN, IRON MAN, AVATAR and, horribly, even THE GREAT WALL, whereby Coogler puts the hurdle of comparability in his own way and fails at it again and again.

But the sequel is not a fundamentally bad film. In fact, it can almost be considered a highlight of the fourth phase of the franchise and, moreover, as one of the few new releases, integrates itself appropriately into the Universe again without losing its independence. In addition, the production offers us a fantastic insight into African culture. Rituals, music, art, dances and fighting techniques are strongly oriented towards the customs of the BPoC and will thus once again create a lot of hype. Many otherwise typical Americanisations are left out and even turned on their head by discreet criticism of the exercise of power by international and especially US governments and governmental organisations. Coogler remains surprisingly gentle, however, and prefers to lash out at the French rather than present the US as the sole culprit.

Hard-to-recognise goosebumps

Behind the camera, Autumn Durald Arkapaw, who has worked as a cinematographer for LOKI and countless short films, gets her big opportunity to showcase her skills. Despite great landscapes, exciting tracking shots and great emotions generated by long and unrelenting takes, she unfortunately fails to convince. Many scenes have an appalling sharpness problem and make one wonder why no one noticed this or scheduled an appropriate reshoot. After all, it is clearly recognisable that these are not artistically effective blurs, but actually work counterproductively to the rest of the visual experience. Mastermind Ludwig Göransson, who was also responsible for the score for the first part, again shows his skills here in contrast to the camera.

Coogler presents us with the full range of emotions and lets us laugh, cry, sympathise and cheer along. Even the one or other goosebump moment is represented. However, this only happens in a few moments and is overshadowed by long monotonous plot lines that even provoke narcoleptic dropouts. Meanwhile, the ghost of Chadwick Boseman hovers over the entire work – which should actually bring praise, but falls on the team’s toes here, because at no point does BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER manage to let go and free itself from this burden. At the same time, countless characters are re-established and written out of the film again, so that the red thread is searched for in vain and finally conjures up a rival relationship that is completely superfluous and is resolved even more irrelevantly.

Wright’s delays in shooting do not affect her talent

It’s clear to see that a large part of the cast cares incredibly about this film, allowing the cast to call on all of their talent and perform with full passion, especially in the culturally-tinged scenes. Dressed in grandiose costumes, Letitia Wright, Lupita Nyong’o, Danai Gurira and Florence Kasumba give absolutely everything with their acting to regain the attention of the audience lost due to the story shortcomings. In combination with Martin Freeman, who now takes on a much more important role than in previous Marvel films, the result is a wonderful dynamic that is only overshadowed by the fact that it is easy to lose track of the many characters and their ever-changing roles in Wakanda’s hierarchy.

Conclusion

Black people of colour will love this film, because Coogler doesn’t fail to draw attention to the community in a big way, atmospherically and content-wise, and to give them a distinctive voice in a multi-million dollar project. Women in particular are shown a lot of attention and are portrayed in a multifaceted and elemental way, even if the tendency to subordinate them to the male present and absent characters shines through again and again. But the excitement about the relevance of this film quickly belies the lack of quality in storytelling and technical execution. Much like THE WOMAN KING, the cinematographic and directorial miss will thus become meaningless. We would have loved to see the PoC community not only get a relevant flick, but also a fabulously staged and thoughtful one.

How did you like the movie?
(6 Bewertungen, Durchschnitt: 3,83 von 10)