An entertaining film with a strong cast that tells a different type of superhero story, but suffers a bit from pacing issues. The story takes a while to get going. The opening sequences ends anticlimactically, and although there is a good payoff later, it doesn’t jump start the film with enough urgency. In fact, it’s quite some time before the movie establishes its threat for our heroes. Fortunately, the strong cast and beautifully designed environments make the more mundane aspects of the story spring to life. In particular, Chadwick Boseman and Danai Gurira give strong emotion and conflicted performances, while Andy Serkis just has a ball being villainous. Michael B. Jordan’s Killmonger has a great and tragic backstory, but his overzealousness and callousness make it harder to sympathize with him. While the design of Wakanda is fantastic, the reinterpretation of vibranium as a glowing purple, almost-magical metal, seemed like an odd choice. The action sequences are good, but the CGI shows too much, especially when enhancing the Black Panther’s movements. And his final fight wasn’t as physical as I would’ve liked. There is a mid-credits and a post-credit scene. Neither is really worth sticking around for unless you just want a bit more story.
***1/2 out of *****