Quote Of The Week: "You know, I'm gonna get a 3D printer, use it to make another 3D printer and return the first one. I'm no fool". Madam Secretary
  • Home/Film & TV
  • Music Matters
  • Ray & Ishida
  • The Shows
  • Social Media
  • Show Archives
  • About

Black Panther - The Film Review

14/2/2018

0 Comments

 
The most anticipated Marvel film confirmed by pre-sale tickets, finally hits the big screen. But does it live up to the hype? Is Black Panther another worthy film for the Marvel stable or did we just get another Iron Man II.
Picture
BLACK PANTHER ORIGINS
Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1966, the eponymously titled Black Panther actually pre-dates the political party's naming, that so many fragile, reverse racism, idiotic criers, attached to the character's name. Stan Lee cites that the idea for the name actually came from a pulp adventure hero, who as a sidekick had a black panther. Making his debut in Fantastic Four issue #52-53, Black Panther continued to make guest appearances in Captain America and The Avengers, until 7 years later in 1973, BP finally got his own lead story in Jungle Action #5. 
Picture
Picture
THE FILM
The first noticeable element about Black Panther, is that it is very much its own film. There is no urgent rush or pressure to open up with some amazing spectacle and let us know that this film is a contender in the MCU. In fact, BP goes in the other direction. Paced out slowly, the very first significant event in the story, is designed to anchor us through our humanity, setting the tone for how director Ryan Coogler wants us to engage - with emotion before adrenalin. Like the very best story elements in films like Star Wars and The Godfather, it is the narrative surrounding family matters, that sets the stakes higher and taps into our own personal saga. And so with the relationships between father/son, brother/sister and mother/children portrayed so naturally and with their own complexities, there are quite a few endearing moments where I was able to see myself and my own family on screen. The second noticeable element about BP, is that though the events of this adventure take place on Earth, Wakanda itself has a fascinating, other-worldly feel to it, separating it from anything we have seen before.
Picture
Black Panther Vs Erik Killmonger (Film)
Picture
Black Panther Vs Erik Killmonger (Comic)
THE STORY
The story (and it is a good story) manages to address both small and larger issues in a cleverly constructed circle. The smaller family issue directly connects to greater social ones, which in-turn bleeds into worldwide politics and finally completes the circle, by landing us back at the history of Wakanda's formation. The screenplay isn't afraid to talk about the realities of African history, there isn't a head-in-the-sand approach when explaining the fierce guarding of Vibranium-tech from the outside world. Oraclised by historical context, the Wakandan kingdom can forecast what sharing their advances would do, by simply looking at how the rest of the world has related itself to African resources before. And so the concept of protecting their current Afro-futurism, is used as a metaphor to show the real life injustices of a people who have been massively exploited in the past.
Picture
THE ACTION / PRODUCTION
The action sequences in Black Panther vary in their potency, everything about the Dora Milaje is fantastic! I would gladly pay money to see a spin-off just about them. Their fighting style and movement as a unit, their strength, their beauty and their loyalty was a long time coming, much needed visual to be seen on screen. In regards to Black Panther's action, the suit this time around is predominantly CGI controlled and it shows, as there were a couple of occasions, where my eyes couldn't pick up the detail of what over-the-top action was going on. If you watch the Black Panther fight with The Winter Soldier/Bucky Barnes in Captain America: Civil War, you'll find more realism in the movement and better choreography. There were also a couple of moments where the lighting bothered me, as some scenes seemed way too dark, but for the most part all the action was fulfilling and funny. The cinematography in conjunction with the set design was fantastic. As mentioned before, Wakanda has a otherworldly mise-en-scene due to the mix of advanced tech,  African landscapes and traditional patterns. Coogler and team did the African nations proud by displaying what makes the cultures unique and by not being afraid to combine more than one African style. The costumes, rituals and languages all furthered the richness of the overall tapestry.
Picture
Picture
THE CAST
The casting was spot on, every actor played the role they were suppose to. Chadwick led the film gracefully, never overstating his presence, Jordan displayed a seething hatred, born of betrayal and alienation. Lupita sincerely showed her dedication to safeguarding humanity and Danai imbued the notion of duty and command through integrity. I could say something good about every single actor, as not one performance brought the film down.
Picture
Picture
SUMMARY
Overall Black Panther is a good stand-alone film, that should warrant a sequel. There has perhaps been too much hype around it, especially from those who have never engaged with a single BP product or output and therefore are new to every concept, that for the rest of us, have been engaging with since the 20th century. *Makes the folded-arm Wakandan salute*.
REPRESENTATION MATTERS ARTICLE
Picture
BLACK PANTHER - THE ANIMATED SERIES EPS 1-6
Picture
REMEMBERING NEW JACK CINEMA
Picture
0 Comments

Black Panther - The Complete Animated Series

12/6/2017

 
If you can't wait all the way to Feb 2018, to watch the Black Panther movie, console yourself with 6 episodes of this brilliant animation Black Panther animation.
Picture
BLACK PANTHER EP1
BLACK PANTHER EP2
BLACK PANTHER EP3
BLACK PANTHER EP4
BLACK PANTHER EP5
BLACK PANTHER EP6

Marvel's Fringe: Dr. Strange & The Black Panther

13/12/2014

0 Comments

 
Picture
Well it's finally happened. Benedict Cumberbatch has been confirmed to play Dr. Steven Strange for a movie scheduled in 2016. Which means, along side Chadwick Boseman, 2 of the most interesting and unpredictable Marvel characters will...should continue to take the Marvel universe in a new direction.
There is usually cautious speculation amongst studio execs and producers when it comes to green lighting films with leads that aren't from the typical paradigm. But eventually when the normal has been issued and accepted, this leaves the space for the not so obvious heroes to get a turn (Not so obvious to some). Within the Marvel contingency it started with Guardians of the Galaxy which fared well and will be continued with Ant Man. But now we are in for a real treat as a mystic sorcerer and an African chieftain king will be making their own cinematic debut. Of course I'm talking about Black Panther and Dr. Strange, which were probably never going to be pitched as the first productions to launch Marvel's current onslaught at the cinema.

"Do those particular complacent fans know the story yet? No! Did anyone think that the Maori looking, clone army has come to an end and now human beings are now under the masks? No!"

It should be noted that one of the first films, perhaps the first modern Marvel film, to bring an adaptation of a comic book hero to a newer cinematic generation, was in fact Blade, which still holds up today even though it is 16 years old. We can't pretend that the world is still not adopting some negative, ye olde practices when it comes to casting and the ideals of beauty, prestige and representation are still a concern for many. Look at the initial backlash to the casting of John Boyega, after being seen as a Stormtrooper in Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer. Do those particular complacent fans know the story yet? No! Did anyone think that the Maori looking, clone army has come to an end and now human beings are now under the masks? No! Did they ever think that just like Luke and Han in A New Hope, that Boyega's character may have adopted a trooper uniform to escape some sort of peril? No But then they weren't concerned with the story, they were concerned with their ownership of the brand and how they see themselves represented on screen. Bunch of silly Sith lords.

But in a total opposite vein, another actor has received a backlash to his casting because he is too popular. Many don't want to see Benedict Cumberbatch play such another significant role, as he is already Sherlock Holmes, Smaug the dragon from The Hobbit and Khan from Star Trek. Adding Ben Affleck as Batman to the list, I hope all these actors smash their roles and shut their critics up. 
0 Comments

    Authors

    TDD, RC & IK talk: 
    Film, Life & Love 

    RSS Feed

    ARCHIVE

    All
    12 Years A Slave
    3 Days To Kill
    3 MUSICAL BIOPICS OF MUSICAL GENIUS'
    47 Ronin
    80s & 90s Cartoons
    8 Drill Instructors From Hell
    Achilles
    Actor: Joe Morton
    Actor Workouts
    African-Caribbean Cinema
    After Earth
    Age Of Ultron
    American Horror Story
    Animation
    Art Vs Love
    Assassin's Creed
    Ava DuVernay
    Avengers
    AVP
    Ballers
    Ban Cliche Chivalry
    Batman
    Batman Vs Vader
    Battle Of 5 Armies
    BBC
    Beautiful Creatures
    Beverly Hills Cop 4
    Beyond The Lights
    Birth Of Superheroes
    Birth Of The 12 Certificate
    Black Adam
    Black Panther
    Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
    Blindsided
    Boxing Day
    Bruce
    Buying A Lightsaber
    Captain America
    Captain Marvel
    Cartoons To Film
    Casting Couch
    Channing Tatum
    CHING SIU-TUNG
    Chivalry
    Chivalry Is Dead
    Chris Pine
    Cinematic Vigilantes
    Civil War
    Cloak & Dagger
    Cobra Kai
    Comic Book Films/TV
    Confessions Of A Marriage Counselor
    CONTROVERSIAL CASTING
    Crazy Stupid Love
    Creed III
    Cult Vehicles
    Dance
    Darth Maul: Apprentice
    Dawn Of Justice
    Days Of Future Past
    DCs Legends Of Tomorrow
    Deadpool
    Denzel Washington
    Dexter
    Die Hard 6
    Die Hardest
    Directing Firsts
    Director's Chair
    Doctor Strange
    Donnie Yen
    Dracula
    Dr. Strange
    Dr Who
    Eddie Murphy
    Edge Of Tomorrow
    Ender's Game
    Equalizer
    ESCAPE PLAN
    Ethan Hawke's Concept Movies
    Fact & Truth
    Fantastic Four
    Fast 6
    Fast & The Furious 6
    Female Roles On TV
    Film Remakes
    Film & TV Budgets - An Expose!
    Flashpoint Paradox
    Franchise Kings
    Frankenstein
    From Dusk Til Dawn
    Furious 7
    Gambit
    Game Of Thrones
    GET ON UP
    Getting Projects Noticed
    Ghostbusters 2016
    Godzilla
    Harrison Ford
    Health
    HELLBLAZER TV SERIES
    Heroes Reborn
    Heroic Bloodshed
    Homelessness Spikes
    Hong Kong Stunts
    Hoshino
    How To Make An Epic Fantasy Film
    Indiana Jones
    Infinity War Review
    Inside Out
    Ip Man
    Iron Man 3
    Ishida Khan
    Is The High-Concept Action Film Dead?
    Jackie Chan
    Jackie & Donnie
    Jack Reacher
    Jack Ryan
    Jaden Smith
    James Bond
    JAMES BOND 24 - SPECTRE
    James Cromwell
    Jason Bourne
    Jason Mamoa
    Jesse Owens Biopic
    Jet Li
    Jim Carrey
    Joel Kinnaman
    JOHN CONSTANTINE
    John Wick
    John Woo
    Jumping @ Notting Hill Carnival - What U Need To Know!
    Justice League
    Justice League: WAR
    Keanu Reeves
    Kevin Costner
    Killer Joe
    King Richard Review
    Kingsman
    Korean Cinema
    Lady Thor
    Limitless TV Show
    LOTR
    Lucy
    Luke Evans
    Luther
    Mad Max
    Magic Mike XXL
    Magnificent Seven
    Making A Relationship Work
    Male Social Pressure
    Martial Arts
    Marvel Film
    Marvel's Runaways
    Morality Tales
    Mortal Instruments: City Of Bones
    Movie Mash-Up!
    My Everyday Power
    Mystical Weapons
    Neil Cross
    New Jack Cinema
    Notting Hill Carnival
    Oldboy
    Olympus Has Fallen
    One Man Army
    Open Letters
    Penny Marshall
    Philip K. Dick
    Pitch Perfect 2
    Point Break - Remake
    POLTERGEIST
    Predator
    Racism
    Ray Crimson
    Reboots & Remakes
    Relationships
    Revenge Thrillers
    Reverse Racism
    Rhys Wakefield
    Robocop 2014
    Rocky/Apollo Spin-Off: Creed
    Ross Marquand
    Scandal
    Shazam
    Shazam! Fury Of The Gods
    Silmarillion
    Sorcerer & White Snake
    Spider-Man
    Star Trek
    Star Wars
    Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker - The Review
    STEP-UP: ALL IN
    Strange Darling
    Suicide Squad
    Superhero Bowl
    Superman
    Superman Unbound
    Sword Fighting
    Sylvester Stallone
    Tablets
    Taken 3
    Tale Of 2 Wolves
    Temptation
    Terminator 5: Genesys
    That Dude D'Lambert
    The 4 Kings Of Kung-Fu
    The 5 Wizards Of Middle Earth
    The Arrow
    The Conjuring
    The Crow
    THE FEMALE EXPENDABLES
    The Final Girl
    The Flash
    The Hobbit
    The Host
    The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
    The Informer
    THE JAMES BROWN BIOPIC
    The Kerry Washington Effect
    The Last Jedi
    The Minions
    The Outcast
    The Perfect Joker
    The Pyramid
    The Review
    The Rock
    THE WOLVERINE
    This Is The End
    Thor
    Tom Clancy
    Tom Cruise
    Top 10 Disaster Movies
    Top 10 Horror Franchise
    Top 10 Psycho Killers
    Top 10 Robots Gone Wrong
    Top 13 Supernatural Killers
    Top 7 Descents To The Darkside
    Top 7 Foot Chases
    Trailers
    TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION
    TUBE ETIQUETTE!
    TV Actresses
    Tyler Perry's Temptation
    Unique Voices Of Cinema
    United Ramen
    Van Damme
    Viggo Mortensen
    Vin Diesel
    Wanted: Cartoon Adaptations
    Website Builders
    Wesley Snipes
    Who Earns The Most
    WHY THE MALE ARTIST DIES 1000 TIMES PT.1
    WHY THE MALE ARTIST DIES 1000 TIMES PT.2
    Wife & Husband
    Will Smith
    Wonka
    Worst Dystopian Movies
    Writer
    X Men
    X-Men
    XXX
    You're Next

Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture