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Poster Description: The poster is split in half with Shuri (Letitia Wright) on the top with her fists crossed over her chest. One hand is decorated with a tattoo. On her left is Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) with her weaponised discs and M’Baku (Winston Duke) with her clubbed staff. On Shuri’s right is Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett) and Okoye (Danai Guirira), holding her spear. The film’s title rises from water disturbed by the thundering feet of the female warriors, the Dora Milaje. Under the sea is Namor (Tenoch Huerta Mejía) reflected beneath Shuri with his people. His headdress is elaborately spiked, like a lionfish. |
I thought I’d drawn a line under my feelings about Chadwick Boseman’s shocking passing…until the sequel was announced. Marvel’s Phase 4 has been a mixed bag, to say the least, so anything could happen. I was terrified. Did there need to be a sequel at all without Boseman? How?! You can read my thoughts on Black Panther here to avoid repeating myself. It was later revealed they wouldn’t recast T’Challa - hallelujah, the film industry has a heart sometimes! Although it begged why it had been up for discussion in the first place! I knew the film would break my heart, regardless.
Wakanda Forever deals with Boseman’s death as well as to be expected, and T’Challa’s little sister, Shuri, takes the spotlight. Letitia Wright’s performance balances grief and blistering rage perfectly with some chilling, poignant lines. I can't help but feel the new Black Panther’s reveal would have made more of an impact if they hadn’t shown it in the trailer, but…wow. Ludwig Goransson’s incredible score does a lot of the heavy lifting. Angela Basset’s Ramonda is every bit a queen, and Danai Gurira’s Okoye’s character arc is of heartbreaking redemption. However, I would have liked a bit more from T’Challa’s love interest, Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o), but the film doesn’t appear to know what to do with her. Similarly, Winston Duke’s M’Baku offers some comic relief, but his complex relationship with Shuri deserves further exploration.
The multiple plot threads make Wakanda Forever messy and incredibly jarring at times. With an origin story this tragic, the main villain, Namor (Tenoch Huerta Mejía, The Final Purge), should wield as much fury as Black Panther’s Killmonger, yet he appears weirdly restrained throughout. Unfortunately, as the film was released so close to Avatar: The Way of Water, the comparisons between the Na’avi and Namor’s undersea people will be inevitable.
There are surprise appearances, some old and some new, although the film ultimately falls into the same extensive Marvel fight routine in the third act. Although the costume designs are great overall, the CGI and some fighter suits look shoddy and downright ugly – no doubt proof of a mad rush to meet the deadline.
Wakanda Forever does what it can with what it has, and Boseman’s absence is felt throughout. The film explores big, emotional topics, with masterful performances from Wright, Bassett, and Mejía, though it feels tied down by the Marvel formula and a rushed ending. It is, nevertheless, one of the more substantial instalments of Phase 4.
The Verdict: 3.5 STARS OUT OF 5
My Sources:
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever poster - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9114286/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_1
Tenoch Huerta filmography - https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2204178/?ref_=tt_cl_t_6
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