It is likely no one envied the position of “Black Panther” director Ryan Coogler when the star of his 2018 blockbuster tragically succumbed to cancer two years ago.
By all accounts, Chadwick Boseman perfectly embodied his character, and filming a sequel in his absence could not have been an easy decision.
Coogler revealed that the plot for the follow-up film had to be completely rewritten in light of its star’s demise. “When we lost Chad, the film had to change if we were going to move forward without the character he played,” he said in one interview.
Indeed, the vacuum is sorely felt – not just by viewers, but by the characters onscreen. “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” begins with the death of Boseman’s T’Challa, his sister Shuri (Letitia Wright) distraught.
The audience follows her and her mother, Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), as they lead the funeral procession through the grieving city. “Sombre” describes the opening scene, with even the iconic Marvel opening redone to feature only Boseman instead of the MCU alumni as per usual.
One year later, Wakanda finds itself at the centre of foreign interests. Funnily enough, sitting on a deposit of precious minerals is one way to get the wrong sort of attention from powerful nations.
With everyone wanting to get their hands on vibranium and Wakanda refusing to share, the world begins looking elsewhere for the powerful metal – and discovers the Atlantic Ocean has lots of it beneath its waves.
The problem is, the seas are the domain of Talokan, an isolationist kingdom that is quite aware of the greed of the surface nations. Led by the pointy-eared Namor (Tenoch Huerta), the Mesoamerican-inspired civilisation prefers to stay hidden from the world and is willing to do anything to keep it that way.
Circumstances ultimately put Wakanda and Talokan on a collision course, and it becomes clear Wakanda needs the Black Panther to protect it once more.
Charismatic but dangerous, Namor is adamant in putting his country first, which makes him more akin to an anti-hero than the traditional villain. He certainly is an interesting enough character that is likely to return in future films.
Back on track?
Since the release of “Avengers: Endgame”, there has been a fatigue among critics and audiences when it comes to Marvel movies. While still entertaining, they have become somewhat formulaic, with so many television series and films that it’s hard to keep track of what’s going on in the wider universe.
The Marvel magic that once captivated audiences worldwide was ostensibly dissipating, leading to duds such as “The Eternals”.
“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” is a welcome return to form, being a self-contained story that does not involve a world at risk of annihilation.
It also helps that the characters are not dropping jokes every five minutes, especially during emotionally impactful scenes, à la “Thor: Love and Thunder”.
Indeed, emotionally impactful scenes are aplenty here. T’Challa’s demise is instrumental to the plot, as it has deeply affected the psyche of the Wakandan characters.
Shuri, in particular, feels guilt over her inability to save her brother in spite of her genius. Her mother, Ramonda, mourns in her own way; having lost her husband and now her son, she grows overprotective of her last remaining family member.
And then there’s Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o), T’Challa’s love interest, who could not even bring herself to attend his funeral.
The way the film embraces tragedy as part of its storyline is fascinating and respectful, allowing the characters to grieve and, simultaneously, grow.
And while T’Challa may longer be an active character in the MCU, it is likely his vast legacy will significantly impact stories to come.
The movie is also impressive on a technical level, especially in scenes of the underwater city Talokan. Marvel’s CGI department must have been working round-the-clock to perfect these, given how difficult water is to animate.
All in all, with “Black Panther: Wakander Forever” having much to live up to, it succeeds both as a superhero film and a fitting eulogy for a life that ended far too soon.
‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ is screening in cinemas nationwide.