The Black Panther Movie: A Non-Spoiler-ly Review

The Black Panther movie was awesome! Here is my non-spoiler-ly review. First, you HAVE to see this movie! Second, this movie does more to advance the African-American heritage than any movie has in a LONG time! The good guy in this movie is a GOOD guy! He is thoughtful, strong, honorable, wise… he thinks deeply, he cares deeply. He honors his father, even when he discovers his father is only human and not perfect. He honors tradition… and he is… dare I say it… truly patriotic! He shows that patriotism can be a strength, not a weakness, or a flaw.

The movie unflinchingly shows negative historical events… mistakes of the past, both of people, of cultures, and of countries, WITHOUT leaving it that those mistakes, issues, and problems are insurmountable. You can rise above them, you CAN win over your baser nature!

African culture is shown in a POSITIVE, strong light, but other races are not diminished to do so, rather, the movie shows that ANY culture can rise and overcome, if strong core values are maintained.

“Wakanda,” in the movie, as a nation, is the most technically advanced nation on the planet, but for all their superior engineering, riches, and culture, they end up HELPING the world… not “rubbing the nose” of the world’s other nations in it! They don’t have to scream “we are awesome!” They simply ARE awesome! The very last scene demonstrates this… I won’t give it away. But a gentle smile says it all!

Go see this movie… and celebrate African heritage with our brethren of African origin. This is how art can influence culture positively!