Warning: This articles contains spoilers

This week marks one month that Black Panther has been in theaters and one month that it has been making history. The highly awaited movie premiered on February 16, and on that day and the days following, the Rocky Mount movie theater parking lot was packed. Black Panther made an important impact on the movie industry with a big historical moment. With a primarily all-black cast, this movie introduced the first ever major screen black superhero. For this reason, Black Panther received lots of hype and was highly awaited for months. Unlike most movies, the buildup of excitement did not lead to a let down after the movie’s release. Across the board, Black Panther is being ranted and raved about.

If you have seen Captain America: Civil War, then you have an idea of the backstory for Black Panther. In Captain America: Civil War, Prince T’Challa of Wakanda, the Black Panther, is introduced. During a UN meeting, T’Challa’s father, the king of Wakanda is killed during an explosion. Black Panther picks up after the death of the king with T’Challa’s succession to the throne of Wakanda. Wakanda is seen by the rest of the world as a third world country that rejects aid, but in reality it is a highly advanced society with technological developments that surpass all other countries. The country sits on a source of the world’s strongest metal, vibranium, which allows the country to make all of the developments that it has. All of these advancements hide behind a forcefield that shields Wakanda from the rest of the world and keeps it a mystery.

There is only one outsider of Wakanda, or so it seems, that knows the secret. This is Ulysses Klaue, who stole a portion of the vibranium source a few decades before this movie takes place. The old king, T’Challa’s father, spent a lot of time and effort trying to track down this sworn enemy of the country. During Black Panther, Klaue is once again after the precious vibranium and is now working in kahoots with a young American named Erik Killmonger, who seems to know a lot about Wakandan culture. With Klaue back on the hunt for what belongs to Wakanda, T’Challa is faced with an important decision with his new role as king. Does he embrace his warrior role as the superhero, Black Panther, alongside a team of his most trusted friends and allies to finally bring Klaue to an end, or does he stay in Wakanda to rule as the king? T’Challa ends up making the choice to go after Klaue, which is a journey that takes many interesting turns, and involves T’Challa in a battle for his throne.

Black Panther is a wonderful and revolutionary movie for many reasons. The representation in this movie is a major step in the right direction for the film industry. While the Marvel and other superhero franchises have seen representation for the black population in minor roles, like the character Warhawk, there has never been a black superhero before. This has actively left a large population out from being represented in a large and growing industry in America. It is important for people of America, and especially children, to see people like themselves represented movies, TV, books, etc., and especially to see positive representations. In this movie, T’Challa is very honorable man, king, and superhero who makes some mistakes, but learns along the way and always tries to do what is right. Black Panther provides representation for the black community, gives young children another positive role model to look up to, and overall is an important part of the continuing growth of our country and society.

In addition to having extremely powerful representation for the black community, Black Panther also has a wonderful representation for the female community. Other than T’Challa, the majority of the strong warriors and thinkers in this movie are women. The best warrior of Wakanda, and the one who is always there for T’Challa, is Okoye, a female warrior who is seen kicking butt on many occasion in this movie. She even steps in to save T’Challa more than once. In one very big girl power moment, she and her love end up on different sides of a battle. When she holds up her weapon to him, he asks if she would actually kill him. Her answer is yes, she would do it for her country. In addition to Okoye, T’Challa is also aided by Nakia, a very talented spy and the woman he loves. She rejects the position of queen so that she can continue doing what she loves and serving the people of the world. T’Challa’s sister, Shuri, heads all of the STEM related projects and all of the technological advancements for Wakanda. Showing powerful women like these on screen who are strong warriors, advocates, and thinkers is important for young girls, and Black Panther does this so well.

While Black Panther is such a wonderful movie because of the ideas that it expresses and the changes it has made to the movie industry, it is also just simply beautiful. Much of the movie is set in Africa, but scenes were filmed all over the world. Busan, South Africa, Zambia, Uganda, and Iguazu Falls are all places where footage was taken. Obviously, much of the film was produced in studios and with CGI in Pinewood Studios of Atlanta, but the beautiful scenes that make Black Panther stand out so much were filmed in these across-the-world locations. Black Panther features an epic and very intense car chase that was filmed in the port city of Busan, South Korea. This car chase took 150 cars and over 700 people to execute. Throughout the movie, jaw-dropping aerial shots of beautiful land are showcased on the big screen. These shots were taken in various parts of Africa, including South Africa, Zambia, and Uganda. And finally, one of my personal favorite parts of the movie, the footage of the waterfalls, was taken in Argentina of the Iguazu Falls.

Overall, Black Panther is a movie that deserves all of the hype it is receiving. Although it is different than the average superhero movie, it still fulfills the desires of a frequent movie-goer. The powers and actions of the Black Panther are seen all throughout the movie, and there are plenty of action scenes that capture the strength that this character possesses. Every character in this movie receives time to shine and be developed, even including the antagonist. The diversity showcased in Black Panther sets it apart from other movies and hopefully the new qualities that it is bringing to the industry will set precedent for the future.

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