Getting It Right (3)

 

And… action! Here, I must offer a minor criticism. The action sequences set in dark environments during Black Panther (2018 Disney Marvel, directed by Ryan Coogler) were hard for my older eyes to follow. Some of the still shots from these sequences were iconic, but the flow of the action was choppy in places, probably due to the quick changes of camera angle. This was my major visual frustration.

Those scenes shot in full light were a different matter. They were easy to follow, impressive, and visually satisfying. This was especially true of the climactic battle scene.

As for the setting, I liked the blend of rural, mountainous, and urban areas in the kingdom of Wakanda. As I wrote a couple of weeks ago, idealism is a major goal in what I consider the best fantasies, and portraying an African nation as technologically advanced was something I don’t believe I’ve seen done in any other movie. I’m a biology professor at a women’s college, so I applaud the positive portrayal of science and technology with role models for women and minorities. Our fantasies encourage us to imagine possibilities, and this should not be exclusively reserved for white males. This also made for a very touching ending which I will mention again next week in my wrap-up.

So I must say something here. Why would a compassionate, technologically,  advanced, and ethical society use potentially mortal combat as a means of choosing its ruler? This struck me as an inconsistency, but it was good for the storyline.

One last quibble: What happened to resolve the conflict between the warring factions? Obviously the rightful king was back on his throne, but the interim between the battle and that outcome was not shown. I hope that this gets visited in the sequel, which I hope will be given to the same director.

Well, I’m going to get lazy and let the visuals do more of the talking for now, so check in next week.

Getting It Right (2)

 

So… how good was Black Panther (2018 Disney Marvel, directed by Ryan Coogler)? It lived up to its hype, which is saying a lot. The cast was typically  impressive for the MCU and included Chadwick Boseman in the title role, Letitia Wright as his delightfully uppity and precocious little sister, Michael B. Jordan as Killmonger,   Lupita Nyongo as the love interest, Danai Gurira, Forest Whitaker as a Wakandan priest/shaman, Daniel Kaluuya, Angela Bassett, Andy Serkis, Martin Freeman, Winston Duke as the king of a different Wakandan clan, and Sterling K. Brown as Killmonger’s father. The length of the previous sentence hints at the tedium of reviewing each fine performance, so I will limit myself to the performances which stood out most for me.

 

Obviously, Chadwick Boseman was excellent. I had previously been impressed by his turn in Captain America: The Civil War. I have already mentioned Letitia Wright. Let me explain that I’m a city transplant to a smaller, more rural community. The people sitting nearest me in the theater were white – okay, we were all white – and one said, “She’s my favorite character,” during one of Letitia Wright’s turns on screen. The same goes for me. Lupita Nyongo played a strong counterpart to the Black Panther and complemented his qualities well.  Angela Bassett performed well as a convincingly wise matriarch, and in fact, all of the women were strong. I grew up in a family of strong men and strong women, so it was refreshing for me to see this on the big screen. Neither gender was reduced to being a foil for the other.

 

By the way, the costumes (especially for the women) were beautiful, and I heard a spot on NPR where the designer mentioned her use of African fabrics, patterns, and re-imagined traditional styles.

 

Not that it isn’t obvious, but I want to call attention to Michael B. Jordan’s portrayal of Killmonger. Marvel has a history of writing nuanced villains with mitigating back stories, and this was a well-written character. The acting made him very affecting, especially during one scene which I will mention in a later post.

 

Although he wasn’t on for very long, Sterling K. Brown really impressed me with his acting chops and his screen presence, as did Winston Duke. I first became aware of these fine actors while watching Person of Interest on television. Since then, I have seen each of them in varied roles, and these men can flat out act. Andy Serkis and Martin Freeman were also their consistently good selves.

This movie had other redeeming virtues. My wife mentioned the sense of dignity and honor which pervaded the story and the characters (something which we found lacking for much of Thor: Ragnarok, which came across at times as a pangalactic fart joke despite the fact that I liked the overall film). There were also themes of forgiveness, compassion for one’s adversaries, community, and global responsibility.

I don’t want this post to go on for too long, so I’ll save some more for next week.

Getting It Right (1)

Credit: Disney Marvel

I have mentioned in a post series titled Recovering Ideals (under the category of Graphic Mythology – black strip on the left) how my friends and I emulated Superman in our play. While looking at some recent talk show videos on Youtube, I really began to understand how important it was for the black community to have the same thing. I saw children and adults alike beaming, proud, and geeky about Black Panther (2018 Disney Marvel, directed by Ryan Coogler) and the fact that it was even made, and it occurred to me that this was very healthy. The Disney Marvel universe has already incorporated positive images of black heroes and superheroes in its films. Take, for example, the following: Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Anthony Mackie as Falcon, and Idris Elba as Heimdall. But this is the first time we have seen a superhero movie whose primary character is black, whose cast is predominantly black, and whose director is black (not to mention many other production personnel). This makes Black Panther an important pop cultural property for the black community, regardless of who owns the film rights.

Was the movie historically accurate or revisionist? Were its portrayals realistic and plausible? Ultimately, it doesn’t matter. I don’t see accuracy and realism as the purpose of fantasy. It’s about idealism, and the movie delivers on this score. An artistic product which has widespread appeal and which makes positive portrayals of an often stereotyped culture is invaluable, and the same can be said for role-modeling. I keep reminding myself that a majority of blacks in this country, including some people whom I count as friends, are descended from ancestors who did not come here of there own volition. Being white, I know I cannot fully appreciate what effects that has had, and I am reminded of various people and events from history.

When Jack Johnson was boxing his way through a series of great white hopes, black communities all across America were celebrating. This man, despite his flaws, was shattering the lie of white supremacy.

FILE — In this Aug. 14, 1936, file photo, Jesse Owens competes in one of the heats of the 200-meter run at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. One of the four Olympic gold medals won by Owens at the 1936 Berlin Games is for sale in an online auction that runs from through Dec. 7. (AP Photo/File)

Jesse Owens did the same thing at the Berlin Olympics in 1936, prompting Hitler to leave the stadium. I was touched by the fact that Owens was befriended by a German rival.

Jesse Owens (center left) and Bill Garrett (center right)

 On a somewhat more personal note, I have previously included the names of Bill Garrett, who broke the color barrier in Big Ten basketball, and Dr. James Roberson, who placed fourth in the Olympic decathlon trials and who was one of only a few blacks admitted to the Indiana University Medical School upon graduating from college. Both of these men were friends of my father from his days at Indiana University. Dr. Roberson’s family  slept in our home, and we  slept in theirs. I have mentioned this in a previous post, Breaking The Color Barrier, under my Graphic Mythology category (black strip on the left).

Now the Black Panther has been added to the modern pantheon, so … “Long live the king.” Role models, both real and fictional, are important. They were important to me as a child. They are important to me as an adult. As I have aged, I have grown to realize how much I took this for granted and how some demographic groups have felt under-represented.  There have been two recent films which I felt the producers really had to get right. One was Wonder Woman. The other was Black Panther. Okay, I know I should actually get around to reviewing the latter, so I will return to this topic next week.