Black Panther (2018)

If you love comic book movies then I'm pretty darn sure Black Panther was/is one of your most anticipated movies of 2018. I was beyond excited for this --the cast being one of the many reasons-- and I'm very happy to say it did not let me down.

After the events of Captain America: Civil War (don't worry, there's a little recap at the beginning), T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) is crowned king of Wakanda, the isolated but technologically advanced African nation he's from. But soon a powerful old enemy (Andy Serkis) reappears and T'Challa is forced to join forces with CIA agent Everett K. Ross (Martin Freeman) and members of the Dora Milaje, the Wakandan special forces, to prevent his country from being dragged into a war.

The overall plot is quite simple and rather predictable --there's some sort of twist though-- but it's got enough going on to keep you entertained and engaged from start to finish. Also, the plot is more serious than your average Marvel movie. As expected, politics play an important role in the story and an important message that can be applied to our world is delivered in a very effective way, which is something blockbusters usually fail to do.

But enough with the political side of the film. Let's talk about the truly surprising aspect of Black Panther, its characters. Though not all of them have a proper characterization or development, they feel real and really make you care about them and make you feel like you're part of Wakanda. T'Challa/Black Panther is a well-developed and likeable leading character and Chadwick Boseman gives a good performance, highlighting very well T'Challa's intelligence, sensibility and pride. Shuri, T'Challa's youngest sister and tech genius, is so sweet and witty, and Letitia Wright's performance truly elevates the character (and the film). Danai Gurira's Okoye, the head of the Dora Milaje, is such a badass, and Lupita Nyong'o's Nakia is a character that I'm definitely looking forward to seeing again.

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

However, my favourite character --and probably the best in the film-- was the villain. Someone at Marvel must have realised it was about time to focus a little bit more on their villains and here they finally deliver a memorable one. I'm talking about Michael B. Jordan's Erik Killmonger. The film explores his origins too, and although the development feels a bit rushed towards the end, we feel some sort of compassion for him and deep down we care about him --I hell did, and some of his scenes moved me. Also, this is a villain with an actual motivation. And at last but not least there's Jordan's strong performance which makes Killmonger my favourite Marvel villain along with Tom Hiddleston's Loki. I did have an issue with this though, he wasn't given enough screen time and the character becomes really relevant only in the second half.

Deserving a mention are the gorgeous cinematography, the score and the pretty awesome action (it's pretty obvious the filmmakers were influenced by Kingsman's action). I particularly enjoyed the sequence in South Korea (maybe because the bright colours, the music and all reminded me of a movie I love, Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift). The CGI though doesn't look that good for a 2018 movie.