Black Panther (2018): Review

I am super excited to say that I really enjoyed the most recent Marvel Cinematic Universe movie Black Panther.  I have been looking forward to seeing this movie and was intrigued to see what they would do with this character Black Panther after introducing him in Captain America: Civil War (2016). Although the MCU character Black Panther, played by Chadwick Boseman, was introduced previously I do not believe that it is necessary to have watched Civil War prior to seeing Black Panther. For the most part it stands on its own within the MCU. It was very good and besides a few things I really liked it and thought it was worth the hype.  At times, it became a bit preachy with its message, which isn't what I am seeing a big budget action/ superhero movie for, but it wasn't too much to take away from my enjoyment of the movie.

Black Panther follow the newly crowned King T'Challa of Wakanda, as he takes the thrown following his father King T'Chaka's, played by John Kani, death.  The movie explores that background of the Wakanda and how it has developed it technology and secrecy from being over a mine of Vibranium.  After becoming King, T'Challa works to keep the secrets of his county while seeking down a man who previously store some Vibranium during the reign of his father. Secrets come out and the future direction of Wakanda is uncertain. Also staring; Letita Wright as T'Challa's sister Shuri; Danai Gurira as General Okeye, the head of Wakanda warrior women; Lupita Nyong'o as Nakia; Michael B. Jordan as Erik Killmonger; Andy Serkis as Klaue; and Martin Freeman as Agent Everett K. Ross.

Black Panther has an amazing overall cast and I love the interplay and chemistry between the different actors and characters. There was the right amount of serious characters and those who made jokes. Those who added comedy or drama were consistent with their characterizations and all their actions felt natural  and made sense for who they were.  There was some development for the main characters and the motivation of the supporting characters was there enough to drive forward what was happening. There were a few missteps but they were minor like with W'Kabi played by Daniel Kaluuya.  I didn't liked Zuri, played by Forrest Whitaker but this probably has more to do with my not particularly caring for Forrest Whitaker as an actor and that he always seems to be these weird characters that take me out of the movie and story as it has been set up with tone and feel.  Angela Bassett as T'Challa's mother Ramonda was fine, but I don't really see what she added to the movie and nothing would have changed with her being completely removed.  The one thing that she actually does could have easily been done by someone else more integral to what was happening. 

I really liked that there were kick ass women in this movie, that the little sister was the tech person, and that T'Challa aka Black Panther was supported by two amazing strong women; one who was basically a spy and the other the head of his secret service and band of Amazonian-esk warriors. It is always nice to see well develop, strong, stand on their own women.

Usually with the MCU movies I complain about the opening action sequence and think it is too much, too hard, too fast, but I liked how it was done with Black Panther. There is a bit of backstory and set up so it takes a few minuets to get into the action sequences and it is on a smaller scale, with a single purpose so it doesn't become too more or feel like I want to know why this huge action sequence is happening and why cant I see that.  I actually liked all of the sequences and even later on in the movie when there are jumps between different locations within the climax it works with how it is weaved together.  I will complain that I didn't not like the close up, quick jumping editing during most of the fighting sequences. I feel like I have complained about this type of editing and filming of fight sequences and I will continue to complain about them because I  think they are distracting and lazy.  Show me the sequences and the cool choreography. The tech during the sequences was really cool and I enjoyed how technology was incorporated and not really addressed, just treated as normal and a tool.  

The main thing that I was not impressed with in Black Panther was the CGI.  I expect more from a Marvel movie and this CGI was not up to par. It was obvious and at times distracting. CGI is suppose to make the shot better not distract me because it jumps out as computer generated.  There were quite a few CGI on CGI which to me makes it look more fake and distracting. This is where the things in the foreground and background are both CGI, it works better when it is one or the other. Also the people on the terraced cliff looked crap.  Although a lot of the CGI was obvious there was a lot a scenes and shots that were beautifully done and gorgeous, especially when it was background sky/landscape. Overall I liked the cinematography and when the focus was on drama and enhancing what was going on it was done really well. Just stop with the everything on screen is CGI, movies are not video games.

I liked the music and how the movie used both more modern and more traditionally themes.  It added to what was happening on screen and helped me to be drawn into the story.  The story made sense and was pretty straight forward. There was nothing shocking about what was happening but there was a plot that kept a forward momentum.  I really appreciate this. There are lots of action/ superhero/ big budget movies that try to do too much and go off in too many directions that it doesn't make sense or feel like one cohesive story. Even thought the movie stands on its own it had a nice transition to how it will be incorporated into the MCU.  I also really liked that it makes sense why other superhero's or the Avengers were involved in what was occurring in this movie. 

Overall, I really enjoyed this movie and am looking forward to seeing it again. I was focused on what was going on and didn't notice the time slipping by. This is a must see for fans of the MCU, action/ super hero movies. This is a good MCU movie to watch even if you have not been keeping up with the complicated multiple movie/different character storylines. 

My Rating: 3+

P.S.  I liked the Stan Lee cameo and how it was worked in.

P.P.S. This is a Marvel movie so make sure to stay to the end as there are two extra scenes. One midway through the credits and the other at the very end.

What do you think?  Did you like this movie as much as I did or is it one that will fade into the middle for you? 

Fifty Shades Freed (2018): Review

 

*** Contains some spoilers***

This weekend the last installment of the Fifty Shades movie trilogy came out and it was basically exactly how I expected it to be. High production value, poor chemistry between the leads, bad dialogue, and cringe worthy sex scenes. If you don't know anything about the story or haven't seen the previous movies, I would recommend seeing the other two movies first as it expects you to know and remember what has already happened, who all the characters are, and it moves quickly through the story which doesn't give time to figure out the holes.  It really seems like these movies in general and this installment in specific is really made for someone who has read the books and know basically what is going on.  There is no suspense to what is happening and even myself, who has read the books and is familiar with the story, had difficulty following the jumps and no build up pace of this movie.



Fifty Shades Freed continues where Fifty Shades Darker (2017) leaves off and begins with the wedding of Anastasia Steel, played by Dakota Johnson, and Christian Grey, played by Jamie Dornan. It follows them on their honeymoon and then back into their lives as they adjust to being a married couple and Christians want to control Ana, and Ana wanting to be independent and live her life. While they are working on this the situation with Jack Hyde, played by Eric Johnson, comes in as he is mad at Ana for getting him fired in the previous movie. 

This movie in no way will stand on its own and it is truly necessary to know what has happened in the previous movies and remember the other characters to know who is who and what their relationship is to either Ana or Christian.  These characters are there but there is no real development or anything that doesn't really matter. The only one with real lines or involvement are Kate, played by Eloise Mumford; Elliott, Mia, played by Rita Ora; and Elliott, played by Luke Grimes;.  They are needed for some of the plot or they would probably been treated like Grace, played by Marcia Gay Harden; and Jose, played by Victor Rasuk.  If you don't remember who these characters are or what they have done, I recommend watching Fifty Shades of Grey (2015) [read my review here http://myreviewsbyjane.blogspot.com/2015/02/fifty-shades-of-grey-2015-review.html ] and Fifty Shades Darker (2017) [read my review here http://myreviewsbyjane.blogspot.com/2017/02/fifty-shades-darker-2017-review.html ] before going to this one.

Fifty Shades Freed is on par with the previous two movies so if you liked/ enjoyed them you will like this one. I do need to continue to criticism and state how there is NO chemistry between Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan and it felt like it was worse than in the previous two movies but I will. I remember thinking that the two of them didn't play well off each other but were at least okay when they weren't together in the first movie and the second one was a bit better as an overall movie, but in this one there just isn't anything.  Dakota Johnson continues to be alright as Ana and you can see her trying to make it bearable but Jamie Dornan was just horrible. I couldn't find anything appealing or likable about him as Christian and this is the movie where he is suppose to finish his transformation/ rowth and became "freed" from his background and issues. I was part of the #NotMyChristian group but I at least wanted him to do well in the role as I want all movies to be good.  You know that it is  really bad when there is more chemistry between Ana's bodyguard Sawyer, played by Brant Daugherty, and her assistant Hanna, played by Ashleigh LaThrop who were only on screen together for the most a few minuets.  Their chemistry was instantaneous and showed through immediately, I wanted more of them.



One of the things I didn't understand in the book and it also appears in this movie, is that is has less sex scenes then the previous two.  Fifty Shades Freed gets to one faster but then doesn't show the whole thing.  It is just a total let down for me in this department.  I did think the movies had gusto for some of the shots there took it really close to actual pornography to the point where it was like really they are going to allow that in a Rated R movie. I will admit that I am more aware of this type of thing ever since I started reviewing movies and am more familiar with what determines each category of movie ratings. If you liked the sex scenes in the previous two movies you will probably like the ones in here, but again if you don't know the story and don't understand what is going on with the dynamic of the characters at the points in the story of each scene you may not understand what they are doing. The movie as a whole felt rushed, this includes the sex sequences (except maybe the ice cream one).

The production value of this movie is great and it was beautiful to watch. I an tell that a lot of time, effort, and money went into the filming the movie and its locations. During the honeymooning there is a lot of nice locations and it shows how great it would be to travel with money and be swept away by a rich, handsome millionaire to travel the world in style.  I also liked how music was used in this movie and it added to the atmosphere of what is going on on screen and how you should be feeling as the story goes on.  This is consistent with the previous two movies.

There is little growth for the main characters and as it is suppose to be how Christian is able to leave his past issues behind and find comfort with Ana as his motivation to better himself, it doesn't show this.  He continues to be as he is and then Ana makes weird choices.  Something that really doesn't matter but I noticed was that Ana wears power suits/ clothes in this movie.  This is against what she does in the books because she mentions needing to get some flowery skirts to better fit in with her work environment and that this is the feel of the office that drew her to SIP. I also liked how the female bodyguard Prescott, played by Kristin Alter, got to be the one who kicked some ass.



Overall this movie is exactly as I expected it to be.  If you liked the previous movies you will enjoy this one.  It continues with the story but expects you to know what is going on.  To anyone already planning or excited to see Fifty Shades Freed, you will like it. If you didn't like the previous ones you wont like this one, and if you haven't seen either of the previous two movies I highly recommend seeing them first.

My Rating = 2-