Black Panther (2018)

[Raja]

20 hours ago, dusang said:

I just wrote a long post detailing the overall insanity of the MCU timelines -- they can travel halfway around the world in like two hours it seems -- 

We can, just accept that the quinjets of the MCU (and the Wakandian ones are better than the SHIELD models), while they may take off vertically and have the fans underneath the wings at top speed are more SR-71 Blackbirds than Osprey tilt rotors. Even if to paraphrase Spider-Man they defy the laws of physics.

Edited February 24, 2018 by Raja

[HunterHunted]

Something that someone in the comments of a YouTube video mentioned struck me as very curious. In Black Panther, the War Dogs in New York, London, and Hong Kong were the most supportive of Killmonger's new militarized strategy. Not only are those the locations of the 3 magical sanctums, but New York is the location of the Chitauri invasion/Battle of New York and London is the location of the Dark Elf battle. It made me wonder if the War Dogs in those locations were acutely aware of the crazy magical and outer space shit coming and knew that hiding was not going to be an option going forward. As Spider-Man Homecoming and Item 47 (one shot) make clear, there is alien technology floating around among civilians and foreign governments and Wakanda doesn't really have the luxury of cutting itself off anymore.

[Wynterwolf]

12 minutes ago, HunterHunted said:

there is alien technology floating around among civilians and foreign governments and Wakanda doesn't really have the luxury of cutting itself off anymore.

Yeah, I expect that's going to be a major theme in IW and Wakanda tech is uniquely able to combat that.   

[Lugal]

32 minutes ago, HunterHunted said:

Something that someone in the comments of a YouTube video mentioned struck me as very curious. In Black Panther, the War Dogs in New York, London, and Hong Kong were the most supportive of Killmonger's new militarized strategy. Not only are those the locations of the 3 magical sanctums, but New York is the location of the Chitauri invasion/Battle of New York and London is the location of the Dark Elf battle. It made me wonder if the War Dogs in those locations were acutely aware of the crazy magical and outer space shit coming and knew that hiding was not going to be an option going forward. As Spider-Man Homecoming and Item 47 (one shot) make clear, there is alien technology floating around among civilians and foreign governments and Wakanda doesn't really have the luxury of cutting itself off anymore.

It also makes me wonder, with their advanced technology of the Wakandans have any kind of space program.  After the Chitauri battle, I could see T'Chaka starting one.

[Silver Raven]

I do wonder if there is any significant effort to find out just where that vibranium-laden meteor came from.

[Lantern7]

1 hour ago, Silver Raven said:

I do wonder if there is any significant effort to find out just where that vibranium-laden meteor came from.

You know, I read an speculation piece on CBR suggesting the lode might be an Infinity Stone in of itself. Hey, why not? The worse case scenario would be Thanos knocking out T'Challa and absorbing his suit to fill the Gauntlet, leaving the Panther naked. Cut to Cap: "AND GET THIS MAN SOME CLOTHES!!!"

ETA: Whoops, it was AV Club.

Edited February 24, 2018 by Lantern7

[Dee]

Disney's 'Black Panther' Playbook: A Peek at the Marketing of a Phenomenon

Quote

“The look and feel and timing of the marketing was extremely effective," says Patrick Corcoran, vp of the National Association of Theater Owners. "It announced that this movie was different. Ryan Coogler was eloquent on how movies mattered to him. Everything about the way the movie was marketed built excitement and interest in seeing it. This mattered to the African American community. Diversity sells tickets."

[Raja]

10 hours ago, HunterHunted said:

Something that someone in the comments of a YouTube video mentioned struck me as very curious. In Black Panther, the War Dogs in New York, London, and Hong Kong were the most supportive of Killmonger's new militarized strategy. Not only are those the locations of the 3 magical sanctums, but New York is the location of the Chitauri invasion/Battle of New York and London is the location of the Dark Elf battle. It made me wonder if the War Dogs in those locations were acutely aware of the crazy magical and outer space shit coming and knew that hiding was not going to be an option going forward. As Spider-Man Homecoming and Item 47 (one shot) make clear, there is alien technology floating around among civilians and foreign governments and Wakanda doesn't really have the luxury of cutting itself off anymore.

I don't think there was any MCU connection in the choice,  Director Coogler is reported as given a free hand so things like Sergeant Barnes was all him and not Marvel/Disney orders setting up the future. New York, London and Hong Kong were the economic centers of the colonizer. While Hong Kong has gone back to China its wealth is a legacy of the colony.

[Dee]

Why ‘Black Panther’ Is a Defining Moment for Black America

Quote

The expectations around “Black Panther” remind me of the way I heard the elders in my family talking about the mini-series “Roots,” which aired on ABC in 1977. A multigenerational drama based on the best-selling book in which Alex Haley traced his own family history, “Roots” told the story of an African slave kidnapped and brought to America, and traced his progeny through over 100 years of American history. It was an attempt to claim for us a home, because to be black in America is to be both with and without one: You are told that you must honor this land, that to refuse this is tantamount to hatred — but you are also told that you do not belong here, that you are a burden, an animal, a slave. Haley, through research and narrative and a fair bit of invention, was doing precisely what Afrofuturism does: imagining our blackness as a thing with meaning and with lineage, with value and place.

“The climate was very different in 1977,” the actor LeVar Burton recalled to me recently. Burton was just 19 when he landed an audition, his first ever, for the lead role of young Kunta Kinte in the mini-series. “We had been through the civil rights movement, and there were visible changes as a result, like there was no more Jim Crow,” he told me. “We felt that there were advancements that had been made, so the conversation had really sort of fallen off the table.” The series, he said, was poised to reignite that conversation. “The story had never been told before from the point of view of the Africans. America, both black and white, was getting an emotional education about the costs of slavery to our common American psyche.”

To say that “Roots” held the attention of a nation for its eight-consecutive-night run in January 1977 would be an understatement. Its final episode was viewed by 51.1 percent of all American homes with televisions, a kind of reach that seemed sure to bring about some change in opportunities, some new standing in American culture. “The expectation,” Burton says, “was that this was going to lead to all kinds of positive portrayals of black people on the screen both big and small, and it just didn’t happen. It didn’t go down that way, and it’s taken years.”

Here in Oakland, I am doing what it seems every other black person in the country is doing: assembling my delegation to Wakanda. We bought tickets for the opening as soon as they were available — the first time in my life I’ve done that. Our contingent is made up of my 12-year-old daughter and her friend; my 14-year-old son and his friend; one of my oldest confidants, dating back to adolescence; and two of my closest current friends. Not everyone knows everyone else. But we all know enough. Our group will be eight black people strong.

Beyond the question of what the movie will bring to African-Americans sits what might be a more important question: What will black people bring to “Black Panther”? The film arrives as a corporate product, but we are using it for our own purposes, posting with unbridled ardor about what we’re going to wear to the opening night, announcing the depths of the squads we’ll be rolling with, declaring that Feb. 16, 2018, will be “the Blackest Day in History.”

This is all part of a tradition of unrestrained celebration and joy that we have come to rely on for our spiritual survival. We know that there is no end to the reminders that our lives, our hearts, our personhoods are expendable. Yes, many nonblack people will say differently; they will declare their love for us, they will post Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela quotes one or two days a year. But the actions of our country and its collective society, and our experiences within it, speak unquestionably to the opposite. Love for black people isn’t just saying Oscar Grant should not be dead. Love for black people is Oscar Grant not being dead in the first place.

This is why we love ourselves in the loud and public way we do — because we have to counter his death with the very same force with which such deaths attack our souls. The writer and academic Eve L. Ewing told me a story about her partner, a professor of economics at the University of Chicago: When it is time for graduation, he makes the walk from his office to the celebration site in his full regalia — the gown with velvet panels, full bell sleeves and golden piping, the velvet tam with gold-strand bullion tassel. And when he does it, every year, like clockwork, some older black woman or man he doesn’t know will pull over, roll down their window, stop him and say, with a slow head shake and a deep, wide smile, something like: “I am just so proud of you!”

This is how we do with one another. We hold one another as a family because we must be a family in order to survive. Our individual successes and failures belong, in a perfectly real sense, to all of us. That can be for good or ill. But when it is good, it is very good. It is sunlight and gold on vast African mountains, it is the shining splendor of the Wakandan warriors poised and ready to fight, it is a collective soul as timeless and indestructible as vibranium. And with this love we seek to make the future ours, by making the present ours. We seek to make a place where we belong.

Edited February 25, 2018 by Dee

[wanderingstar]

Saw this again on Friday night, and I can't believe that I loved it even more the second time around. I sat in the theater excitedly anticipating all my favorite parts (the sequence in South Korea is such fun).

I'm also just in love with Chadwick Boseman and Michael B. Jordan's performances. Some of the reviews I've read have said T'Challa isn't as interesting as Killmonger, but I so disagree on this. I found T'Challa's arc incredibly compelling, and I think CB did a fantastic job portraying it. MBJ's portrayal has been deservedly lauded, but on my second viewing, I noticed how much pain and vulnerability he brings to the role. He makes me sympathize with Killmonger, despite the fact that he's basically a despot in training.

Also, I can't say enough about Lupita Nyongo's Nakia. I loved her character so much. Love that she is a woman of principle, sensitive, thoughtful, confident and loving. And she just looked beautiful. 

I am just in love with this film.

[truthaboutluv]

17 minutes ago, Gillian Rosh said:

MBJ's portrayal has been deservedly lauded, but on my second viewing, I noticed how much pain and vulnerability he brings to the role. He makes me sympathize with Killmonger, despite the fact that he's basically a despot in training.

With almost everyone I have spoken to personally who have seen the film, the line they all reference as sticking with them the most and one of the most powerful moments of the film for them was when Killmonger says to just throw him in the ocean like his ancestors who knew that was better than a life spent in chains. 

[Katsullivan]

7 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

With almost everyone I have spoken to personally who have seen the film, the line they all reference as sticking with them the most and one of the most powerful moments of the film for them was when Killmonger says to just throw him in the ocean like his ancestors who knew that was better than a life spent in chains. 

It sounds really woke... until you realise that Wakanda's system of justice is being equated to straight-up slavery.

Which is a big problem I had with this movie. Probably even the only problem I had with this movie but a really big one: The narrative cleverly couches the persecution of Africans and Black people as Wakanda's fault for being isolated and not "fixing" this problem, and side-steps the fact that the persecution was caused in the past and is being sustained by White Europeans/White America. 

[truthaboutluv]

1 minute ago, Katsullivan said:

It sounds really woke... until you realise that Wakanda's system of justice is being equated to straight-up slavery.

Which is a big problem I had with this movie. Probably even the only problem I had with this movie but a really big one: The narrative cleverly couches the persecution of Africans and Black people as Wakanda's fault for being isolated and not "fixing" this problem, and side-steps the fact that the persecution was caused in the past and is being sustained by White Europeans/White America. 

I didn't view the story in that way at all because if that were the case, T'Challa and his supporters wouldn't be portrayed as the heroes, which they clearly were and Killmonger the villain, as he was clearly portrayed. I thought what the movie was saying is that there aren't always easy answers to most major social problems and these issues are hardly black and white. As many have said, while on some level Killmonger had a point about Wakanda hiding in their beautiful world with so much military and technological tools at their disposal, while so many of their fellow ancestors suffered and were mistreated around the world, was kind of fucked up.

His solution for them to essentially arm nations and basically declare war on the world was short sighted in that all that would likely happen is that it would result in millions of innocent lives being destroyed, including some of their own. Not to mention that Wakanda, with all its wealth, still wasn't powerful enough to take on the world. That said, the end of the movie, with T'Challa buying the buildings in L..A. and sharing the truth about Wakanda to the U.N. showed that he realized that their way of simply hiding in the shadows also couldn't continue. 

I completely disagree that the movie side stepped that the persecution of Africans and many black people was caused in the past and being sustained by White Europeans/Americans. Killmonger's plan was clear that it was to arm those nations and black populations to rise up against white oppression. YMMV but I thought it was very clear that the oppressors were considered the enemy. Killmonger and his father before him just felt that Wakanda should have stepped up long before in that fight. 

[tennisgurl]

I really loved this movie, and I have a LOT of thoughts on it, but before I get them all straightened out, I need to stop laughing about this guy in my theater. During the scene where Okoye stopped W’Kabi and his awesome war rhino, some guy in my theatre whispered (to whoever he was with I guess, but it carried) “He’s gonna be on the couch for the next 100 years”. 

[wanderingstar]

1 minute ago, tennisgurl said:

I really loved this movie, and I have a LOT of thoughts on it, but before I get them all straightened out, I need to stop laughing about this guy in my theater. During the scene where Okoye stopped W’Kabi and his awesome war rhino, some guy in my theatre whispered (to whoever he was with I guess, but it carried) “He’s gonna be on the couch for the next 100 years”. 

OMG, that is too much! I love it!

[Katsullivan]

22 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

T'Challa and his supporters wouldn't be portrayed as the heroes

T'Chaka and his ancestors were portrayed as villains.

T'Chaka, the Black Panther, cannot stop his brother without outright murdering him, leaves his body to rot in the US of A, and abandons his son to become a self-fulfilling monster. Similarly, the other Wakanda ancestors were portrayed as villains for "looking away" while Africa was left to rot.

24 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

As many have said, while on some level Killmonger had a point about Wakanda hiding in their beautiful world with so much military and technological tools at their disposal, while so many of their fellow ancestors suffered and were mistreated around the world, was kind of fucked up.

 

What was fucked up was that White Europeans decided to exploit Africa. Which again, is my problem, with this movie. The movie frames what Europe, and its extension, US of A, did to Africa as "Something That Happened" and frames Wakanda's decision to isolate as a method of survival as Wakanda Making A Choice.

24 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

Not to mention that Wakanda, with all its wealth, still wasn't powerful enough to take on the world.

Look, it's either one or the other. Wakanda could take on the world and stop White Europeans from exploiting Africa - or it could not.  

[Katsullivan]

31 minutes ago, doram said:

It's an over-simple understanding of history to assume that it was only military/technogical advantages that enabled Europe to invade, enslave and colonise most of African, North and South America, India, and Australia. They deployed underhanded tactics, "divide and conquer" methodologies, broke treaties with impunity, refused to play by even the most basic rules of engagement, and most of the time used the excuse of Christianity/Conversion to justify/whitewash their actions. 

Thank you. 

If Wakanda was a real country that had just revealed itself to the world, it won't last a year. Europe and America would set their well-oiled machinery of destabilising governments and invading countries into motion and the narrative would be that they were liberating Wakandans from a communist, totalitarian monarchy and protecting the world from Wakanda's arsenal of weapons of mass destruction.

[VCRTracking]

I'm just thinking in real life if that Vibramium meteor landed in Ancient Rome I'd be wearing a toga right now.

The Wakandans could've been assholes and conquered their neighbors and forced them to worship their cat god but they didn't.

Edited February 25, 2018 by VCRTracking

[DearEvette]

Not sure if it is just because I am intensely interested in it so it just seems like the movie is spawning more thinkpiece type articles than normal big blockbuster movies do (maybe except for LOTR which comes which a deep history of that sort of thing and possibly Star Wars) , but it does feel like everyday I am seeing yet another article taking a slightly different tack to try to delve into some of the themes about the movie.  Mostly I am kinda surprised by the non-Hollywood, non-movie and non-entertainment industry articles I am coming across.  For instance Scientific American did an article on the Shuri Effect.  Christianity Today talks about what Black Panther Means for Christians, a few museum studies organizations have gotten into the mix to discuss the Erik Killmonger museum scene, and hilariously, National Geographic just wants us to understand real black panthers.

[Wynterwolf]

7 minutes ago, DearEvette said:

but it does feel like everyday I am seeing yet another article taking a slightly different tack to try to delve into some of the themes about the movie.

It's like the proverbial onion... the storytelling is so very deep and layered, and each viewer brings their own perspective.  It's fascinating and all the discussions, even the difficult ones, are incredibly enriching.  

[truthaboutluv]

4 hours ago, doram said:

It's an over-simple understanding of history to assume that it was only military/technogical advantages that enabled Europe to invade, enslave and colonise most of African, North and South America, India, and Australia. They deployed underhanded tactics, "divide and conquer" methodologies, broke treaties with impunity, refused to play by even the most basic rules of engagement, and most of the time used the excuse of Christianity/Conversion to justify/whitewash their actions. 

Yes, which is why there was another part of my comment that you quoted. 

 

Quote

 

T'Chaka and his ancestors were portrayed as villains.

T'Chaka, the Black Panther, cannot stop his brother without outright murdering him, leaves his body to rot in the US of A, and abandons his son to become a self-fulfilling monster. Similarly, the other Wakanda ancestors were portrayed as villains for "looking away" while Africa was left to rot.

 

YMMV because I thought T'Chaka was portrayed as an ultimately good person who made a terrible choice that at the time he thought was for the best. He didn't just brutally murder his brother in cold blood. He killed him while trying to save another person's life, who his brother was about to kill. 

And again, the only people who seemed to consider the ancestors villains for looking away while Africa was left to rot was Killmonger and his father and their supporters and again, considering they were clearly depicted as the "bad guys" if you will, I cannot agree that Coogler and the other writers were sending the message that we were meant to agree with them. 

I just think it's a little simplistic to limit the film to these bare bones. As I said, I think the story was clearly meant to be more complex than that. Like the fact that yes, T'Chaka made a bad decision abandoning his brother's kid and basically acting like it never happened and he never existed. But one bad decision doesn't automatically make a person a villain or a bad person. And similarly, while the Wakandans had very legitimate reasons for their way of life and shutting the world away, T'Challa at the end realized that there is room for a compromise and a middle ground. And that's what I thought the film was really showing. But of course YMMV.

Edited February 25, 2018 by truthaboutluv

[Dee]

The Afrofuturistic Designs of ‘Black Panther’

Quote

How do you outfit an African queen? For Ruth E. Carter, the costume designer for “Black Panther,” it involved a Zulu hat and a 3-D printer.

In her 30 years in film, Ms. Carter has made her career putting images of African-American history and contemporary culture onscreen, from Spike Lee’s canon to “Selma” and the recent remake of “Roots.” For the Marvel blockbuster “Black Panther,” she got to envision a futuristic African alternate reality — made up of diverse tribes and untouched by colonizers.

“I really wanted this movie,” Ms. Carter, 57, said. She didn’t know much about the Marvel universe when she met with the director and co-writer, Ryan Coogler, but she liked the comic books’ portrayal. “You saw people with little kufis,” she said. “You saw a tribal council happening and someone was sitting there in a suit, and then they’d have a big Maasai headdress.”

To imagine the fictional African nation of Wakanda, without the influence of the Dutch, the British and other colonizers, Ms. Carter borrowed from indigenous people across the continent. During six months of preproduction, she had shoppers scouring the globe for authentic African designs, like the traditional stacked neck rings worn by the Ndebele women of South Africa. Textiles were sourced to Ghana, but many African fabrics are now printed in Holland; Ms. Carter rejected those. “I wanted to create the fabrics, and I wanted them to feel very superhero-like,” she said.

There was a strict color palette, drafted by Mr. Coogler: Chadwick Boseman, who plays T’Challa, the Wakanda royal who is also the Black Panther, wears black; Danai Gurira, as the warrior Okoye, and her band of female fighters, the Dora Milaje, are in vibrant red; and Lupita Nyong’o, as the spy Nakia, part of the river tribe, is in shades of green. (Black, red and green are also the colors of the Pan-African flag.) For Mr. Coogler, blue “represented the police and authority.” She dressed Michael B. Jordan, as Black Panther’s rival, Erik Killmonger, in it.

She also leaned on a visual bible created by Hannah Beachler, the production designer, which laid out the districts and culture of Wakanda. The merchant tribe is inspired by the Tuareg, ethnic Berbers of the Sahara, Ms. Carter said. The mining tribe resembles the Himba of Namibia, known for their red ocher body paint and leather headpieces. And for the artsy Step Town district, she scoured looks from an Afropunk festival in Atlanta, where “Black Panther” was shot.

“She has everything you want in a collaborator,” Mr. Coogler said. “She’s experienced but still youthful and energetic, still curious and open to trying new things.”

Ms. Carter said this was not the most complex production she’d ever done; “Malcolm X,” set across several eras, was even more involved. But the chance to explore Afrofuturism with “Black Panther” was meaningful to her. “It is the reason why we have a sense of pride as African-Americans,” she said.

The movie “connects everything that I’ve done about slavery and about how Africans came to this country, and what happened to their culture,” she said.

Edited February 25, 2018 by Dee

[tennisgurl]

To me, this movie definitely lived up to the hype. It had everything I've come to love about MCU properties (funny one liners, great acting, badass fight scenes), but with a LOT more to chew on then many of their movies. I generally think people short change the MCU in how deep its movies can be, but this movie has so much going on, so much about history and culture and what is the best way to rule a country, motivations of the characters, its just a movie that I cant wait to watch again and again, to pick up on all the themes and character beats. 

As others have said Erik AKA Killmonger was a great villain (the MCU films have actually been stepping their villain game up lately), who was excellently played, tragic, but also threatening. He was a villain who you can understand and feel bad for, but the movie still makes sure the audience knows that, for all his solid points, Killmonger is a bad guy, who went about everything the wrong way. He made some good points about how Wakanda stood by and let the people around them to enslaved and oppressed to keep themselves safe (even if thats rather unfair to them), even if they could have helped, and maybe going out into the world isn't a bad idea (more on that later), and he certainly has every right to be pissed. However, not only is giving people even more weapons and starting violent, murderous uprising, and possibly become just like the oppressors they hated so much, not exactly the best way to liberate oppressed people from around the world, but its clear to me that Erik is more angry at the world than he is a revolutionary. Yeah I think he is somewhat genuine in thinking the Wakandans should do more to help black people around the world, but when he destroyed the Wakandans magic flower garden, it became clear, I think, that this guy wants the world to burn, because he hates the whole world, including Wakanda, and wants to strike back against a world that screwed him over so many times. That being said, his death still felt tragic, because you could see how much potential was lost with him, and it makes you wonder what could have been if T`Chaka had just taken the kid with him to Wakanda. Maybe it would have ended badly (just ask Odin how raising an enemy's kid worked out for him), but maybe he could have become a decent person, who used his great intelligence and strength for the good of Wakanda, or even all the world eventually. He and T`Challa could have been friends and cousins and fought side by side, instead of Erik becoming consumed with anger until he became a monster, and his death really was heartbreaking, even after all the clear evil he had done. It really sucks that he was killed off, as I would have loved to see him return. 

Speaking of, I could understand both the isolationists in Wakanda, as well as the people who wanted to join the rest of the world. Their country survived colonialism and slavery and all manner of horrors due to their isolation (and their super tech, of course), and whenever they go out there, bad things DO tend to happen (the Wakandan relief workers who were killed, and T`Chakas death) and when everyone knows who they really are, things could take several bad turns very quickly. But, on the other hand, is it wrong to leave the rest of the world to suffer out of self preservation? There is a lot to chew on here, and I think lots of people will see this movie in a lot of different ways, but to me, I think T`Challa made the right call in announcing their awesomeness to the world. Things might go badly, but they seem quite confident that anyone who wants to come screw with them will have to deal with their literal mountains of super tech, and that its more important to help people than just stay on their own, and that everyone needs to put away any US vs THEM mindsets if the world wants to move forward. Will this end well, or horribly? Who knows, but I am very interested in seeing what happens to Wakanda next. Plus, we know that the Flying Purple Planet Eater is on his way right now, so its going to be a pretty big All Hands on Deck moment for everyone on Earth who can help. This kinda affects everyone. 

In a way, I think bringing Ross to Wakanda helped T`Challa decide what he wanted to do, in addition to everything that happened with Erik. Ross is the last kind of person that he should want to show Wakanda to. He isn't someone he knows very well, an outsider, and an intelligence agent of one of the most powerful countries in the western world. But, T`Chella and Nakia just couldn't leave him to die after he took a potentially fatal shot for Nakia, they just found the idea to be morally wrong, so they helped him anyway. When T`Chaka left behind Erik to keep Wakandan secrets (his own nephew!), he ended up creating a monster who would almost destroy his family and his country. But when T`Chella brought Ross in (a practical stranger and a member of a foreign government) in just because he thought it was right, even if it put his secrets at risk, Ross ended up giving them lots of important information on Erik, and even risked his life to help stop Eriks plan to destroy the world, and its implied that he will go on to become an ally in the international community in the future. Granted, they were certainly lucky that Ross seems to be a decent guy (of course, a non decent guy probably wouldn't have taken the bullet in the first place), and that all could have gone much worse, but when T`Chella helped someone at the risk of their secrets, it turned out pretty well, while when T`Chaka refused to help someone to keep their secrets, it went horribly. So maybe T`Chella hoped that this would mean that if they opened their country up, even a little, to help people, this will help more in the long term than continuing to keep secrets. Again, just my ramblings, other people could have read the whole thing differently, but this seems like a movie that has a lot to talk about, hence the billions of Think Pieces that keep popping up on my Facebook feed. 

I really liked T`Chella in Civil War, but I loved him here. He was dignified, but not boring, good, but not a push over, regal and intelligence, but also very relatable and sympathetic. Chadwick Boseman is just freaking awesome, he commanded every scene he was in. And I loved his relationship with Shuri, who I also adored. She was so funny and adorble, but also competent and smart, and I cant wait to see her interacting with the rest of the MCU. 

 Lupita Nyong'o is so beautiful, I can hardly stand to look at her sometimes. Plus, shes a great actress and all, but wow, she is so lovely, I just cant stop gushing about her. Plus, Nakia was an awesome character, and I thought she and T`Chella were a really shippable couple. They had cute chemistry, and their personalities are different enough to keep each other on their toes. When T`Chella saw her on her undercover mission, and just awkwardly said "hi" while in full costume, I just died. What a dork. Of course, I would probably just giggle awkwardly for ages if I ran into Nakia OR  Lupita Nyong'o in real life, so who am I to judge? 

M`Baku was surprisingly memorable, and he stole every single scene he was in. For a character who started in the comics as such a cliche Scary Black man, he really came across as honorable and complex, with a pretty hilarious sense of humor. "ARE YOU DONE?!?!" I love this guy, and I cant wait to see him again. 

Anyway, before I ramble on until Infinity War, I will stop myself, just saying that Wakanda itself was so cool and colorful, I need to watch this several times, with extra vibrant lights on my screen. I especially loved the shot of everyone standing on the mountain with their tribes colors on when T`Chella had his King fight. It was just a great shot, I actually think I gasped. I just really, really liked this movie. 

Edited February 25, 2018 by tennisgurl

[JessePinkman]

5 hours ago, DearEvette said:

Not sure if it is just because I am intensely interested in it so it just seems like the movie is spawning more thinkpiece type articles than normal big blockbuster movies do (maybe except for LOTR which comes which a deep history of that sort of thing and possibly Star Wars) , but it does feel like everyday I am seeing yet another article taking a slightly different tack to try to delve into some of the themes about the movie.  Mostly I am kinda surprised by the non-Hollywood, non-movie and non-entertainment industry articles I am coming across.  For instance Scientific American did an article on the Shuri Effect.  Christianity Today talks about what Black Panther Means for Christians, a few museum studies organizations have gotten into the mix to discuss the Erik Killmonger museum scene, and hilariously, National Geographic just wants us to understand real black panthers.

A true cultural phenomenon.

[scarynikki12]

5 hours ago, DearEvette said:

Not sure if it is just because I am intensely interested in it so it just seems like the movie is spawning more thinkpiece type articles than normal big blockbuster movies do (maybe except for LOTR which comes which a deep history of that sort of thing and possibly Star Wars) , but it does feel like everyday I am seeing yet another article taking a slightly different tack to try to delve into some of the themes about the movie.  Mostly I am kinda surprised by the non-Hollywood, non-movie and non-entertainment industry articles I am coming across.  For instance Scientific American did an article on the Shuri Effect.  Christianity Today talks about what Black Panther Means for Christians, a few museum studies organizations have gotten into the mix to discuss the Erik Killmonger museum scene, and hilariously, National Geographic just wants us to understand real black panthers.

As they should.  Big kittehs always deserve the attention.

My favorite editing decision in the movie is after Erik throws T'Challa over the waterfall.  It cuts to him walking into the throne room and the shot begins upside down.  I don't know if Coogler is a Hamilton fan, but damn if that doesn't automatically cue "the world turned upside down" from The Battle of Yorktown, so I loved that.

[tennisgurl]

2 hours ago, scarynikki12 said:

As they should.  Big kittehs always deserve the attention.

 

You know, I appreciate that they didn't really do the "T`Chella is a cat guy" stuff that a worst writer would have done...but I did snicker at the beginning when T`Chella, in Black Panther gear, was in a tree with a dog barking at him. I mean, yeah dogs just bark at stuff regardless of their big cat theme, but I still laughed a tiny bit. 

I so desperately want their to be a scene in the future where Shuri, Tony, and Rocket are all working in Tony's lab together, while everyone else stands around looking nervous, and glancing at the fire extinguisher, with the occasional explosion, followed by someone inside yelling "Do that again, but with more lights!" 

[Dee]

Box Office: ‘Black Panther’ Rules With $108 Million in Second Weekend

Quote

Disney-Marvel’s “Black Panther”is dominating the box office with an astounding $108 million at 4,020 North American locations — the second-highest second weekend ever behind “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”

“Black Panther,” starring Chadwick Boseman, has now grossed $400 million domestically in its first 10 days. Only “The Force Awakens” has reached that milestone faster. It’s also grossed $304 million internationally.

The superhero film, the 18th in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, declined only 46% from its opening Friday-Sunday — underlining the film’s massive appeal among moviegoers. “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” set the second weekend record with $149 million in 2015, and “Black Panther” topped the second weekends of 2015’s “Jurassic World” at $106.6 million, and 2012’s “The Avengers” with $103 million.

“Black Panther,” directed by Ryan Coogler, has caught on with moviegoers this month in a way that few other titles have in Hollywood’s recent history — blowing past last month’s tracking that showed it would open in the $100 million to $120 million range. It’s notched an A+ Cinemascore — becoming only the second Marvel film to do so — and has dazzled critics with a 97% “fresh” score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Edited February 26, 2018 by Dee

[Silver Raven]

X rated reactions to Winston Duke and M'Baku (remember, some of these are X rated, so warning)

https://www.buzzfeed.com/morganmurrell/these-x-rated-tweets-prove-mbaku-is-the-black-panther-gift?utm_term=.cqGlZzey5#.xeByjV7YJ

[phalange]

I'm glad I managed to stay spoiler free, because T'Challa and Erik being cousins was something I didn't expect. Their last scene together, when T'Challa takes Erik to see the view of Wakanda before he dies was really emotional, as was Erik's scenes with his father. He was definitely one of the more sympathetic of the MCU villains. Even though he went about dealing with it the wrong way, his anger was understandable. 

For me, Shuri, Nakia, and Okoye totally stole the show, however. During the fight in the casino, when Okoye took off her wig and tossed it at the guy, I lost it. Shuri had so many great lines I can't decide which one's my favorite. "Another white boy for me to save" is up there, as is, "No, we're in Kansas." 

[Schweedie]

I really, really loved this movie. It doesn't quite knock Winter Soldier off its perch as my favourite MCU movie, but it's right up there. The worldbuilding was beautiful, I absolutely loved the beginning and the imagery showing how Wakanda came into being. Great touch having it be Erik and his dad and not T'Challa and his - in hindsight it's heartbreaking to imagine Erik wanting to hear the story about 'home' again.

Interesting discussion above about how it was made to seem a bit as if the depletion of Africa was just something that *happened* to it - it wasn't something I noticed when I watched it, but you're right, that chafes now that I think about it. A lot more focus was placed on how Wakanda could've intervened than how the rest of the world could've seen what they/we were doing and put a stop to it. It shouldn't have been up to Wakanda to begin with.

Out of everything I think the South Korea sequence was my favourite part. It was brilliantly shot and played - the reason Winter Soldier is my favourite MCU movie is that it's sort of a spy thriller with superheroes, and this sequence felt like that, too. Andy Serkis was clearly having the time of his life in this role (almost a shame to lose him), Okoye fighting, Nakia fighting... All brilliant. And the crowd roared at the end when Nakia came gliding down the street still sitting in the driver's seat. (And speaking of which, the women in this movie. I adored them all.)

Michael B Jordan was brilliant (I still can't believe he's Wallace from the Wire all grown up) and his delivery of his last line was poignant, but... At the same time I was like, buddy, you're comparing the plight and fate of innocent people sent to slavery with yourself being sent to prison (presumably) for attempting to become a dictator and kill a whole lot of people.

[wanderingstar]

18 hours ago, DearEvette said:

Not sure if it is just because I am intensely interested in it so it just seems like the movie is spawning more thinkpiece type articles than normal big blockbuster movies do (maybe except for LOTR which comes which a deep history of that sort of thing and possibly Star Wars) , but it does feel like everyday I am seeing yet another article taking a slightly different tack to try to delve into some of the themes about the movie.  Mostly I am kinda surprised by the non-Hollywood, non-movie and non-entertainment industry articles I am coming across.  For instance Scientific American did an article on the Shuri Effect.  Christianity Today talks about what Black Panther Means for Christians, a few museum studies organizations have gotten into the mix to discuss the Erik Killmonger museum scene, and hilariously, National Geographic just wants us to understand real black panthers.

I'm loving how people are using the movie as a springboard to have deeper conversations. One teacher in Chicago has created the "Wakanda Curriculum".

[ChelseaNH]

On 2/25/2018 at 10:39 AM, Katsullivan said:

T'Chaka and his ancestors were portrayed as villains.

They were shown as being wrong, but I didn't see the villain treatment.

[Dandesun]

This came across my Facebook feed a few minutes ago:

Unexpected Benefit of Black Panther: my local pet shelters went from having something like 50-60 black cats between them to having NONE, because they've all been adopted out and named after the characters. "T'Challa" is the most popular, but there are a fair number of "Okoye"s and "Shuri"s as well.  ...and one very confused Elderly Humane Service Volunteer wondering why someone would name such a sweet cat "Killmonger."

 

So this makes me so freaking happy because, as a mini house panther owner myself, I know that black cats have a hard time getting adopted due to bullshit superstition. If this movie helps find homes for many adoptable black cats then it's ripples continue to be felt.

[Pink ranger]

Killmonger alluded to how African people had been subjected to long term oppression.   While they didn’t spend time explaining the ugly real life details with the European   I think that the film makers assumed that the audience where aware of it. I didn’t take it as cleansing history. Killmonger wasn’t claiming that  Wakandas purposeful isolation was a crime as equal to those of Europeans but that it was still wrong. 

[Lantern7]

3 hours ago, Dandesun said:

This came across my Facebook feed a few minutes ago:

Unexpected Benefit of Black Panther: my local pet shelters went from having something like 50-60 black cats between them to having NONE, because they've all been adopted out and named after the characters. "T'Challa" is the most popular, but there are a fair number of "Okoye"s and "Shuri"s as well.  ...and one very confused Elderly Humane Service Volunteer wondering why someone would name such a sweet cat "Killmonger."

Awwww. And I'm sure the last kitty will be nicknamed "Kilmy." Or maybe "MBJ."

I went to a small comic show yesterday. I don't usually buy loose sketches, but I would up getting talked into buying this for $10. It just speaks to me, you know?

ETA: I am a dope. You’d call that kitty “Kilmo.” “Erik” works as well.

Edited February 26, 2018 by Lantern7

[Athena]

Please keep it civil. If you disagree, do so politely , or ignore and move along. Thank you. 

[Matt K]

1 hour ago, Dandesun said:

This came across my Facebook feed a few minutes ago:

Unexpected Benefit of Black Panther: my local pet shelters went from having something like 50-60 black cats between them to having NONE, because they've all been adopted out and named after the characters. "T'Challa" is the most popular, but there are a fair number of "Okoye"s and "Shuri"s as well.  ...and one very confused Elderly Humane Service Volunteer wondering why someone would name such a sweet cat "Killmonger."

 

So this makes me so freaking happy because, as a mini house panther owner myself, I know that black cats have a hard time getting adopted due to bullshit superstition. If this movie helps find homes for many adoptable black cats then it's ripples continue to be felt.

I had no idea black cats had issues getting adopted (my two cats are both black and one of them is very much a ninja too).  That's sad.  

 

On topic, apparently Build a Bear has a Black Panther bear that's pretty cute.  I might pick one up for my son who's due in May.

https://www.buildabear.com/black-panther-bear/025831.html?cgid=collections-shop-by-character-marvel#start=1

Edited February 26, 2018 by Matt K

[IOU Payne]

Now I need to adopt a house panther and name it Killmonger.  Squeeee!  

[Silver Raven]

The producers of Black Panther are going to donate $1 million of their profits to Boys and Girls Clubs.

[Dee]

‘Black Panther’ Box Office Success Has Theater Owners Asking for More Diverse Superhero Movies

Quote

More “Black Panthers” and “Wonder Womans,” please.

That’s the message that John Fithian, the top lobbyist for the exhibition industry, is hoping to convey to studios in the wake of the two superhero movies’ blockbuster success. Their massive box office hauls confirm something that Fithian, head of the National Association of Theatre Owners, has been pushing for years. Diversity is good for business.

“Theater owners have been asking for more diversity in movies for a long time, and by diversity we mean diversity in casting and diversity in times of the year when movies are released,” said Fithian, who notes that “Black Panther” is barreling toward the $1 billion mark at the box office, despite debuting in February.

“The traditional norm is that big movies only go in the summer and winter holiday,” Fithian said over a glass of wine at Coffee Shop, a diner and bar in Manhattan’s Union Square. “‘Black Panther’ proves if you’re good, people will come out and see you any time of the year. It also shows that a movie with an all-black cast and a black director can break records. It’s not the race or the sex of the actors in a movie, it’s the quality of the movie that matters.”

There’s been a myth that movies starring women won’t appeal to teenage boys and that movies with black actors won’t appeal to overseas audiences. Films such as “Wonder Woman,” however, have been able to draw male and female ticket buyers in big numbers, while “Black Panther” has done an impressive $304 million overseas. Fithian hopes that the grosses will embolden studios to bankroll more movies with diverse casts and to champion stories with female and black protagonists.

“We want these movies to set a precedent and not be one-offs that people forget about,” Fithian said. “We’d like to see this more and more and more. There should be a Latino superhero movie or an Asian superhero movie. The more you have different types of people in these movies, the more you appeal to different types of audiences.”

Edited February 26, 2018 by Dee

[Raja]

4 hours ago, Pink ranger said:

Killmonger alluded to how African people had been subjected to long term oppression.   While they didn’t spend time explaining the ugly real life details with the European   I think that the film makers assumed that the audience where aware of it. I didn’t take it as cleansing history. Killmonger wasn’t claiming that  Wakandas purposeful isolation was a crime as equal to those of Europeans but that it was still wrong. 

Peter Parker "when people can do the things that we can do but don't then we are responsible"

[charmed1]

4 hours ago, Dandesun said:

This came across my Facebook feed a few minutes ago:

Unexpected Benefit of Black Panther: my local pet shelters went from having something like 50-60 black cats between them to having NONE, because they've all been adopted out and named after the characters. "T'Challa" is the most popular, but there are a fair number of "Okoye"s and "Shuri"s as well.  ...and one very confused Elderly Humane Service Volunteer wondering why someone would name such a sweet cat "Killmonger."

 

So this makes me so freaking happy because, as a mini house panther owner myself, I know that black cats have a hard time getting adopted due to bullshit superstition. If this movie helps find homes for many adoptable black cats then it's ripples continue to be felt.

Wasn’t allowed to adopt mine in the month of October and had to wait until November because humans are assholes.

[toomuchtv47]

5 hours ago, Dandesun said:

So this makes me so freaking happy because, as a mini house panther owner myself, I know that black cats have a hard time getting adopted due to bullshit superstition. If this movie helps find homes for many adoptable black cats then it's ripples continue to be felt.

I adopted my little black panther almost 7 years ago and I love her to pieces. I think it's great that this movie has done more than just entertain people. I was at the hospital today and overheard some workers discussing the movie.  Some of the things they said made me think they didn't quite get what this movie was about which is too bad.  

[tennisgurl]

I read an article around Halloween about how black cats are less likely to be adopted than other cats, and it made me super sad. My tiny house panther is pushing 10, and is still leaping and sneaking and stalking stray pieces of string! It makes me really happy that the movie is inspiring people to find their own cute little house panthers!

[MisterGlass]

I hope everyone adopting is adopting for life, and is prepared for the adventure.  My black kitty passed a few years ago.  He was wonderful and I still miss him. 

[JustaPerson]

I hope some of those ppl are naming those little black panthers Bast after the panther goddess!

Edited February 27, 2018 by JustaPerson

[Raja]

11 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

I read an article around Halloween about how black cats are less likely to be adopted than other cats, and it made me super sad. My tiny house panther is pushing 10, and is still leaping and sneaking and stalking stray pieces of string! It makes me really happy that the movie is inspiring people to find their own cute little house panthers!

I think that shelters would not allow black cats to be adopted as Halloween nears out of fear that they were going to sacrifices for those followers of what we consider occult practices

[magicdog]

2 hours ago, Raja said:

I think that shelters would not allow black cats to be adopted as Halloween nears out of fear that they were going to sacrifices for those followers of what we consider occult practices

True unfortunately.  They won't adopt out any black animal until after Halloween.

As for the movie, I just couldn't enjoy it.  Too many plot holes and complete lapse in logic.

[JessePinkman]

A 'Black Panther' Ride Could Be Coming to a Theme Park Near You

Quote

Disney CEO Bob Iger recently spoke at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference about the film's "important moment in culture," while alluding to the fact that a theme park ride could be on its way. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Iger told investors that there is currently a one-hour wait for the official meet to "meet the Black Panther walkaround character" at Disneyland. When asked if there would be a ride, he could only offer optimism. "We haven't had a chance to build a ride," the high-powered exec told a reporter. "Though I'm sure there are people who are working on it."

I told my friend after seeing the movie the first time that there will be a Wakanda in one of the parks in the next decade.

[Dee]

‘Black Panther’ Becomes Third-Highest Marvel Cinematic Universe Release

Quote

Disney-Marvel’s “Black Panther” has become the third-highest grossing Marvel Cinematic Universe release of all-time domestically, behind only “The Avengers” and “Avengers: Age of Ultron.”

“Black Panther” took in $8.1 million on Monday, lifting its domestic total to a sensational $411.7 after only 11 days. Its international gross on Monday was $10.9 million, lifting that total to $316.2 million.

“Black Panther” has gone past “Iron Man 3” at $409 million and “Captain America” at $408 million to reach 22nd place on the all-time domestic chart, just behind “Wonder Woman” for the 21st slot. It will likely pass “Avengers: Age of Ultron” for the 13th spot at $459 million during the upcoming weekend and has a decent shot at matching “Avengers,” which is fifth on the list at $623 million.

Edited February 27, 2018 by Dee