Black Panther (2018), dir Ryan Coogler

wakanda's mythic grandeur feels authentic like the greek accents in themyscira

I'm w Alfred on the running times is comic movies. every movie is sooooo long for no reason.

yeah, Wilson was an hour forty, could have been an hour twenty-nine easy

I don't care for superhero movies, but I adore Lupita N'yongo - is it a big role?

Yes, although Danai Gurira steals the film.

Unlike other overstuffed superhero movies I've seen, I didn't mind the running time because I wanted to keep seeing more of the world they created.

Yes, although Danai Gurira steals the film.

I was already ready for her to steal the film and she did, so for me the REAL film-stealer was Letitia Wright.

Tempted to check this out, although I'm usually disappointed by the hyped superhero movies. But this one looks more stylish than usual.

Anyway yes there's formula at work of course -- Christopher Priest rightly pointed that out in his otherwise wall to wall rave -- but the comparatively focused Big (Intercut) Battle Sequence at the end works well precisely because of how smallish in scale it is. There's a big group battle but not armies, for instance. The wider implications of what happens if Black Panther and company lose lends it all heft without having to demonstrate it in full.

(And I have to say 'Black Panther and company' rather than the 'good guys' because man do Coogler and company do a hell of a job in setting up Erik Killmonger as damaged product of a society who also has more than one damn good point to make throughout the film.)

Anyway, getting back to Wright, her Q Branch scene alone was top notch. Hell, she should be the next Q if Ben W. wants to do something else.

all bond films are bad so no

plus the Q scenes are always the ones that should be cut first (followed by every other scene)

the REAL film-stealer was Letitia Wright

best Q ever (ready for jodie whittaker's Dr W!)

plus the Q scenes are always the ones that should be cut first (followed by every other scene)

The shade of Desmond Llewelyn is sad!

Tbh most bonds would be most improved by completely eliminating the supervillains

Bond operating in this world of middle management politics and never even sure if it's anything but shadow boxing all emanating from Whitehall

The namesh shmiley, georsh shmiley

the car chase sequence was badass. no fucks given about property damage

all bond films are bad so no

wrong, On Her Majesty's Secret Service is good

Letitia Wright and Lupita Nyango and Danai Gurira >>>> everybody else

Also I love Michael B. Jordan, but his demeanor and the backstory did NOT work for me. In the second part of the film, his MIT educated, special forces thing disappeared into something... less interesting.

Would disagree. I found that to be helpful backstory that made the character and Jordan's portrayal of same more complex. You can only do so much in a two hour film.

I loved the contradiction of him being this man with amazing potential living as a raw nerve. All of the power with absolutely no love for or faith in anything. It made it clear that Wakanda needed to move forward with patience, control, and understanding — all the things he never had

This has to be the only time I’ve known exactly what the credits scenes would be, not because I’d heard in advance what they were but because it was well telegraphed exactly what would have to happen, and they both really worked with the film. Both the one providing a coda to the film’s themes and the one linking the movie to Marvel universe dan service fit really well.

fan service, that is
any dans can weigh in as to their level of service

Marvel universe dan service

Enjoyed the hell out of this
Michael B Anthony thirst is real my god he was mesmerizing 😍

Is this a spoilers thread now asking for a me

spoiler: Susan B Jordan is sexxy in this film

2 xy for Mike thirst

FUCK i meant michael b jordan
my brain fucks up his name all the time & it sucks bcz i have loved him forever

michael b *jordan* thirst is real

holy shit @ Susan b Jordan

Are you

koogin yr jords

would u say xp

the scene between him & sterling k brown killed me, so good

Danai Gurira flying around kicking ass in that red dress in the casino was stellar. So many great women in this movie!! Ugh. Heaven.

sidebar: my coworker was college roommates with exec producer Nate Moore

theater was packed at our noon showing which was awesome

HUGE cheer for the “Oakland 1992” title card

Yeah when that happened and Too Short started playing, you kinda felt the theater click into place.

yeah that was the cherry on top for sure

This has to be the only time I’ve known exactly what the credits scenes would be, not because I’d heard in advance what they were but because it was well telegraphed exactly what would have to happen...

― mh, Friday, February 16, 2018

yeah the setup for the second stinger in particular was very nicely done

Took the kids tonight, we all had a fine time. At one point the (African-American) woman sitting next to me turned to her companion and said, "This is some groundbreaking shit." Really felt like it too -- as familiar as all the superhero trappings are, it makes a big difference to a.) set it mostly in mythical Africa and b.) have pretty much everybody on screen except Martin Freeman and Andy Serkis be black. Loved Wakanda, it's totally the realization of 50 years of Afrofuturism. Great cast, and Ryan Coogler sure knows what he's doing.

i loved when they'd wake up after drinking the flower juice and they were in herbie hancock album covers. that was dope.

I want Danai Gurira to beat me up.

"This is some groundbreaking shit." Really felt like it too -- as familiar as all the superhero trappings are, it makes a big difference to a.) set it mostly in mythical Africa and b.) have pretty much everybody on screen except Martin Freeman and Andy Serkis be black. Loved Wakanda, it's totally the realization of 50 years of Afrofuturism.

based on comics from 46 years ago

the breakthrough is when sun ra's band switched from fezzes to egyptian headgear

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5_it5HlEe6Q/Uy5yahccQNI/AAAAAAAACBY/aiofmgzVTV4/s1600/Sun-Ra-fez.jpg

In my twitter I have mostly seen negative takes, mostly of the this is US imperialism variety.

This is in that mode, and was one of the more convincing:

Black Panther is a deeply evil film. It dangles the idea of global black liberation in front of you, paints that as villainous, then ends in an orgy of the freest black people to ever walk the earth slaughtering each other to protect whites. That shit turned my stomach.

— L. (@leslieleeiii) February 17, 2018

Yeah there are obvious limits to the radicalism of corporate superhero movies. (And with the movie playing out a cartoon version of Martin vs Malcolm, there’s never any question about its sympathies.) But anti-spectacle lefties tend to underestimate the value of representation.

A reason I warmed to what he was saying is that he also likes Blade

the notion that blade has better politics seems… strained

sorry ur twitter peeps didn’t get the Inglorious Panther they were expecting

the point twitter is trying to make is undercut a bit by the fact that the on-screen characters come to the same conclusion

ie, they realize they're fighting their own community due to manipulation by their new king and immediately stand down.

based on comics from 46 years ago

Which were groundbreaking too. But obv there's an enormous gulf between a comic aimed at a subset of superhero readers -- a niche of a niche -- and a big-bash Hollywood spectacular that has probably already been seen by more people than have read a Black Panther comic in the past 50 years.

I mean, it’s never clearly spelled out but the implication is that Killmonger’s plan isn’t about justice at all, and is purely about revenge and power, is there. And he pretty much acknowledges he doesn’t care how Wakanda or any country ends up, he just wants to destroy the current world

yeah, the multitude of governments he destabilized elsewhere weren't really done in the name of liberation