Black Panther Movie
After the Obama era, perhaps none of this should feel groundbreaking. But it does. In the midst of a regressive cultural and political moment fueled in part by the white-nativist movement, the very existence of Black Panther feels like resistance. Its themes challenge institutional bias, its characters take unsubtle digs at oppressors, and its narrative includes prismatic perspectives on black life and tradition. The fact that Black Panther is excellent only helps.
Black Panther movie
Many civil rights pioneers and other trailblazing forebears have received lavish cinematic treatments, in films including Malcolm X, Selma and Hidden Figures. Jackie Robinson even portrayed himself onscreen. Fictional celluloid champions have included Virgil Tibbs, John Shaft and Foxy Brown. Lando, too. But Black Panther matters more, because he is our best chance for people of every color to see a black hero. That is its own kind of power.
The movie focuses on the last year or so in the life of Fred Hampton, the chairman of the Panthers' Illinois chapter. He was only 21 when he was killed in 1969 by Chicago police during a raid on his apartment that was planned with the FBI.
At the same time, the movie doesn't shy away from the Panthers' militancy, as they march about wearing berets and openly carrying firearms. They're certainly capable of swift, merciless violence, as we see during an intense shootout with police. And when O'Neal hears about the torture and murder of a suspected mole in the Party, he becomes even more fearful that he might suffer the same fate if his cover is blown. Stanfield's performance is remarkable: O'Neal starts off as an intriguing blank slate and by the end is all but drowning in guilt, sorrow and moral confusion.
For roughly two hours Judas and the Black Messiah sustains the pulse of a thriller, with an atmosphere that harks back to Sidney Lumet's gritty city crime pictures of the '70s and '80s. King, the director, has talked about the challenges of getting a Hollywood studio to greenlight a film about the Black Panthers, and framing the movie as a tense genre piece can only have helped.
Like some other movies that have emerged this season, including Ma Rainey's Black Bottom and One Night in Miami ... Judas and the Black Messiah is an ensemble drama in which Black characters continually ask themselves and each other what form their liberation should take. You could call these movies timely, except that the issues they confront, from the exploitation of Black American culture to white supremacy in law enforcement, have never not been been timely. As Hampton notes in a speech that seems to describe this fractious nation at any given moment: "America's on fire right now, and until that fire is extinguished, don't nothing else mean a damn thing."
In 2016, the #OscarsSoWhite social media campaign forced Hollywood to revisit the issue of representation of diversity on screen, among movies producers and directors, and within the review board of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. According to research from the University of Southern California, African Americans represented 13.6 percent of characters in major film projects, compared to 70.8 percent of white characters in 2017. African American directors were also sparsely reflected at just 5.6 percent when compared to their peers that same year.
Domonic Rollins, senior diversity and inclusion officer: Some educators lament that it is hard to teach about racial inequity and inequality, since slavery, the Holocaust, and the Civil Rights era seem like a distant memory to many young people. Black Panther creates the perfect entry point into lessons on racial discrimination, as these ideas are explicit throughout the film. Educators can draw out the actual themes from the movie and make the connections to our history. This is especially necessary for white students, for whom teaching about this history of racial inequality is more difficult at times because racial inequality is not interwoven into their lived experience.
Parents need to know that Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is the sequel to Marvel's massively popular Black Panther. After the death of the beloved King T'Challa (the late Chadwick Boseman), the kingdom of Wakanda must regroup to protect itself against those who hope to destabilize the country and steal its vibranium. There's also a new threat in the form of a superhuman, underwater-dwelling people descended from Mesoamericans. Expect action-packed fight scenes, law enforcement pursuits, hand-to-hand combat, weapons use, and potentially disturbing scenes of people throwing themselves into the ocean while hypnotized. People die from fatal injuries during battles and from drowning. One death is especially upsetting, as it leaves a character without any family. Language includes just a few uses of "s--t" and "bulls--t," and there's no romance. Viewers looking for applications to the real world can discuss the importance of diplomacy and collaboration, as well as the idea of intergroup understanding among people of color. The movie is dedicated to Boseman, and it fittingly deals with grief and loss even more than the first film. Stars Letitia Wright, Angela Bassett, Lupita Nyong'o, and Danai Gurira all reprise their roles from the first film.
Coogler's interpretation of the canonical characters may not appeal to hardline comic book purists, but viewers who are more familiar with Marvel through the movies will appreciate the director's inclusion of complicated, morally gray antagonists who, while villainous, often make thought-provoking points. When Namor suggests an alliance between Black and Brown nations against the threat of greedy, colonizing forces, it frankly makes sense. Make friends, not foes, he says to Ramonda, even as he blackmails her with an ultimatum. Oscar-winning costume designer Ruth Carter and composer Ludwig Göransson do a phenomenal job of adding Mayan-inspired costumes and music to the proceedings (the soundtrack includes tracks in Spanish and Mayan, as well as "Lift Me Up," a lovely Rihanna ballad). Mexican actor Huerta gives a nuanced performance as the intense Namor, but ultimately this movie belongs to the women of Wakanda, who pull off the nearly unimaginable feat of proving that the story can go on.
Why is representation important in movies, shows, and books? What progress have superhero movies made when it comes to diverse characters? What do you think of the racial and gender representation in this movie compared to that of other superhero films?
How does the movie explore issues related to race? What do you think of the story pitting Black Africans and Indigenous Mexicans against one another? What's the message about what happens when Black and Brown people fight instead of collaborate?
Discuss the role of women in the movie. How are Ramonda, Shuri, Okoye, Nakia, and the other Dora Milaje unique in the Marvel Cinematic Universe? Why is it still uncommon for women to hold positions of power in movies (not just superhero movies)?
Black Panther (an almost entirely stand-alone movie existing in the MCU universe) broke the opening weekend record for a non-sequel/prequel, displacing The Hunger Games which opened with $152 million in March of 2012 (in 2D).
Black Panther's $19.9 million gross on its third Sunday was the biggest gross for any movie on Oscar Sunday (or Oscar Monday) save for the opening Sunday grosses of Alice in Wonderland ($31m on Sunday for a $116m debut weekend in 2010) and The Passion of the Christ ($27.8m on Sunday for an $83m Fri-Sun/$125m Wed-Sun debut) in 2004.
The Black Panther movie was a groundbreaking step forward in representation for both the Marvel Cinematic Universe and film in general. It also received acclaim from critics and earned a well-deserved Academy Awards nomination.
The key point here is that the superlative scientific ability of our hero, and that of his country, has its origins in the well-meaning, but problematic, practice of inventing near or beyond perfect black characters to support stories starring primarily white protagonists. But this is a lemons-to-lemonade story.
Vast audiences see black heroes of both genders using their scientific ability to solve problems and make their way in the world, at an unrivaled level. Research has shown that such representation can have a positive effect on the interests, outlook and career trajectories of viewers.
On March 12, you're invited to join District 5 City of Orlando Commissioner Regina I. Hill for a movie night at Z.L. Riley Park (719 S. Parramore Ave.). During this family friendly event, guests will enjoy a screening of Black Panther along with free food and beverages. The program begins at 6:30 pm and show time is at 7 pm. Be sure to bring a blanket or chair!
On the opening night of the much anticipated "Black Panther" movie, director Ryan Coogler made a special appearance at Oakland's Grand Lake Theatre, talking to fans before the screening. Coogler was born in Oakland, and the film actually begins in his hometown.
In Oakland, the anticipation is palpable. Coogler's ties to Oakland have informed his work. His breakthrough first movie, "Fruitvale Station," was about the last day in the life of Oscar Grant, a young unarmed black man from Oakland who was killed by a BART police officer in 2009. Grant lay restrained and face down on a crowded BART platform when he was shot in the back. That was before Trayvon Martin, before Michael Brown, before Black Lives Matter.
Colonization not only shapes the stories of black Americans, but also the narratives of African countries -- countries where colonizers staged proxy wars and propped up dictatorships so they could continue to harvest rich natural resources. 041b061a72