Even with COVID cases being at an all-time low locally, I still don’t get out to the movies as often as I’d like. However, I finally did get to see Black Panther: Wakanda Forever the weekend after Thanksgiving. Due to the passing of actor Chadwick Boseman, it’s by necessity this Black Panther movie that does without a Black Panther for much of its running time and compensates for his absence by inserting far too many characters, plots, and sub-plots into its 2-hour 41 minute running time.
In spite of all of this overcrowding, the film still has to introduce a major new character, and in a less-than-ideal situation, Mexican actor Tenoch Huerta does a stellar job as Namor. Naturally, there was some online resistance to the idea of changing the Greco-Roman Namor and Atlantis to the more Mayan K'uk'ulkan and Taloka. But for me the only thing that matters is whether the changes make Namor a more interesting character; and as far as I’m concerned, they do. He’s also a lot more visually appealing. You really have to admire the inventive way the MCU has found to over-accessorize a nearly naked man.
I’m not what you’d call a big fan of movies with a director’s cut, it's been my experience that longer isn’t necessarily better. But, supposedly there’s a version of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever that is a nearly five-hour cut. I wouldn’t mind seeing that on Disney+ if it means I’ll be seeing more scenes of Martin Freeman as Agent Ross and Winston Duke as Lord M’Baku.
I’d also like to blame its failure on a remarkable lack of marketing. I was pleased when I discovered that, like a lot of recent Disney/Pixar productions, Strange World had a graphic novel. Unfortunately, I went to Amazon I discovered that Disney Strange World: The Graphic Novel wasn’t set for release until February 14, 2023, which to me seems kind of late for scheduling a media tie-in.
The opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff of ICv2.com.
