Kaiden Pope
Reporter
“Black Panther” was released for theaters on Feb. 16, 2018, earning $202 million dollars its opening weekend, and making another $108 million its second weekend.
Directed by Ryan Coogler, the film is set in the fantastical world of Wakanda, an isolated, futuristic nation in Africa. Coogler blends traditional African cultures with the highly technological aspects that one expects of science fiction, creating an immersive and distinct culture for the film.
The movie follows T’Challa, the prince of Wakanda, five days after the death of his father, T’Chaka. T’Challa must take up the mantle of kingship and deal with many political challenges throughout the movie, including challenges to his status as King, whether or not to give foreign aid to other countries, and how to handle violent opposition.
T’Challa’s main antagonist is his cousin, Erik Killmonger. Killmonger’s Wakandan name is N’Jadaka and he claims to be the rightful inheritor of the Wakandan throne.
Many of the conflicts layered through the story are centered on the main conflict for the throne between Killmonger and T’Challa. T’Challa represents the traditions of Wakanda and he initially values their privacy and isolation.
T’Challa wants to keep things as they have been, believing that the world is not ready for the resources that Wakanda has to offer, namely, a versatile and powerful metal ore called vibranium.
Killmonger was raised in California and feels deeply about the struggles of African Americans in the United States. He is affected by conflicting ties between his birthright of Wakandan culture and his sense of self as an American black man. He values justice, and represents the Black diaspora and the anger of those who have been displaced from their culture and been beaten down by the effects of exploitation.
The movie centers on the fact that Wakanda has never been colonized and has never had to deal with the effects of colonization.
Killmonger is highly swayed by a desire to use the power of Wakanda to reverse the negative effects of colonization on black people worldwide. Killmonger wants to send vibranium weapons to people who have been downtrodden by colonial exploitation and to free them from their metaphorical chains. His methods, however, are extremely violent and T’Challa and his supporters attempt to stop Killmonger before he causes war to erupt around the world.
Many of the themes of the movie are layered in storytelling. T’Challa, with the mantle of king, takes on the burden of power that comes with becoming the superhero: the Black Panther. Much of the imagery is strongly reminiscent of the Disney film “The Lion King.”
The themes in “The Lion King” include the conflict between male family members, one of whom believes in maintaining a culture’s tradition and inheritance and the other who wishes to usurp that power for personal gain. In “The Lion King,” these positions are held by Simba and his uncle, Scar, respectively.
Another theme in “The Lion King” is the ongoing conversation between Simba and his deceased father Mufasa. In “Black Panther,” we see a similar scene where T’Challa has a dream or trance sequence where he is on the African Saharan plain talking to his father, who has recently died.
In “Black Panther” the viewers see much of the conflict that exists within T’Challa and his desire to do the right thing. The question of whether the right thing is to share vibranium with the world or whether it is to keep Wakanda isolated, is brought to the surface throughout the film.
The questions raised in the movie are highly relevant to today’s political sphere. The U.S. has struggled with whether or not to give foreign aid to other countries and if so, what kind to give. The film also sheds light on using isolationism to preserve a unique culture, rather than striving for a diverse, global, multi-cultural nation.
The film touches on more than the experience of being black in the U.S., although that is the main point. It also discusses and displays the main issues with ruling and political decisions that mirror the U.S.’s own foreign policy.
However, unlike the U.S.’s choice to arm other nations, the message of T’Challa and Wakanda is altogether more peaceful and potentially better in many ways.
Wakanda’s final choice, after learning from Killmonger’s influence, is to share their resources. The message at the end of the film is one of hope and diplomacy over that of vengeance and war. It does not address, however, the questions raised by Killmonger about racism and the inequality facing African Americans.
The film acts as if the powers of vibranium will automatically shift the power imbalances. It is exciting to think about the possibilities of shifting power imbalances in the U.S., and about the hope that the story of Wakanda offers to American audiences.
