Courtesy of Marvel Studios
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is the 2022 sequel to Black Panther directed by Ryan Coogler, and stars Letitia Wright, Lupita Nyong’o, Angela Bassett, Winston Duke, and Tenoch Huerta in this emotional conclusion to Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In this film, T’Challa is dead, and everyone wants to get their hands on vibranium. A new kingdom called Talokan emerges with vibranium and wants Wakanda to help them or they are enemies as well. This film was made under the worst circumstances. Around the time Ryan Coogler was finishing the first draft of the next Black Panther film, Chadwick Boseman passed away and they had to change the film around. They decided not to recast T’Challa and not to use a digital double. How does the film hold up without Boseman?
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is one of the more serious and emotional films in the MCU. With what he was given, Ryan Coogler did the best job that he could without Chadwick Boseman. The film does a great job of paying tribute to the character T’Challa. Ryan Coogler does well with striking a serious tone, as shown in some of his previous films like Black Panther and Creed.
The acting in Black Panther Wakanda Forever is terrific. The best performance of the film came from Angela Bassett as Ramonda, who fans believe should be nominated for supporting actress. Letitia Wright also stepped up big and gave a great performance She went from a supporting character that provided some comedic relief in the first film to now having an emotional character arc in this film. Lupita Nyong’o as Nakia is great as well and plays a bigger role in this film.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever introduces two new characters in the MCU in Namor, and Riri Williams, also known as Ironheart. Namor is played by Tenouch Huerta and is the main antagonist of the film. While he doesn’t stand out as much as Michael B. Jordan’s Killmonger did, Huerta’s performance as Namor was very good. Riri Williams is played by Dominique Thorne and she does a very good job playing her. She made me more excited for the Ironheart Disney + series.
The special effects are not perfect, but way better than the special effects in the last couple of MCU movies. The action is some of the best in Phase 4. The final fight is one of the better, more emotional final fights in an MCU movie. The design of Wakanda and the costume designs are still great. The score is good and captures the emotion of the film well.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is not a perfect film though. While it’s one of the better Phase 4 projects, it does have some flaws. Chadwick Boseman’s presence was missed in this film. The film is longer than it should have been, at 2 hours and forty-three minutes. The film felt like it has several endings, similar to The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. It feels like a lot of the Namor set-up should have been used for a Disney + show or special presentation that should have come out before the movie. The underwater scenes are sometimes hard to see and too dark.
All in all, Black Panther Wakanda Forever is one of the better films of Phase 4. The performances in this film were excellent. The emotion and serious tone of the film were done right. It will be interesting to see what happens with some of these characters in the future, especially Namor. I highly recommend you check out Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Final Grade-A-
What did you think of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever? Let us know in the comments down below.