Heart-felt Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Delivers

The much-anticipated Black Panther: Wakanda Forever premiered on Nov. 11 with a bittersweet feeling. After the passing of actor Chadwick Boseman, who played T’Challa in the first Black Panther, many fans were worried about who would rise to the role in the second movie. The movie, which covers the genres of action, superhero, drama, and adventure, has earned $750 million at the global box office as of Dec. 12.

The film begins with the life of King T’Challa hanging in the balance, and Shuri (Letitia Wright), T’Challa’s sister who Black Panther fans already know is a young genius, trying to recreate the extinct, heart-shaped flower which is the key to bestowing the powers of the Black Panther, and hopefully, saving T’Challa’s life. Unfortunately, he dies before she is able to recreate it.

One year later, Queen Ramonda, the ruler of Wakanda, is in a meeting with the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. Other countries have begun to pressure Wakanda to share their Vibranium, the world’s strongest metal which can only be found in Wakanda, but Queen Ramonda continues to decline. After the discovery of Vibranium outside of Wakanda and the arrival of a new threat, the Black Panther must come back to defend its country. But who is worthy to take T’Challa’s place?

One of my favorite things about this sequel is how they tied up T’Challa’s death. Many fans were worried T’Challa would simply disappear upon Boseman’s death, but making his character die as well serves to essentially honor the legacy of both Boseman and T’Challa. The moving funeral scene is by far one of the most beautiful in the entire film and made me, a very unemotional person, shed a few tears. I think the writers, director, and actors all do a fantastic job of portraying the very personal emotions that came from an icon’s passing.

Another aspect of the film I enjoyed was the interactions between Namor (Tenoch Huerta), a semi-demi-underwater god with villainous tendencies who mysteriously appears in Wakanda, and Shuri. I feel like Namor isn’t a true villain and is only trying to protect his people and home, but just goes about it the wrong way. Huerta’s portrayal of Namor is perfect in the sense that he makes his character very relatable and understandable, to an extent, as a villian. Wright’s performance as Shuri is just as incredible. The emotions she expresses throughout the entire film regarding her brother’s death are amazing and you really feel her sorrow and pain. And when both Huerta and Wright are on screen, their chemistry is unmatched.

I didn’t have any major issues with the movie; however, I feel like there is a bit of irony with Namor’s character. Namor’s major goal is to keep his people hidden, yet he constantly sends them out into the surface world, potentially exposing them. If Namor wants to keep his people safe, then why continuously send them out to do his bidding? He could’ve just gone and done the work himself without risking his people. Nobody ever saw his people, but what if they did? Namor could’ve exposed his entire kingdom and put them into serious danger. Other than this I still throughly enjoyed Namor’s character.

Overall I really enjoyed this movie. It was both heartbreaking and beautiful at the same time which made for an emotionally complex film. I would rate it a 9/10 stars. This is a heart-jerker of a film, so tissues are a must.