“Black Panther” is the ultimate reality check for those such as the ignorant entity devoid of class and knowledge about Africa that inhabits the White House and spews lies and hate.
Anyone who was taught in school knows that Africa is the cradle of civilization and read “World’s Greatest Men of Color” by J.A. Rogers knows the Marvel comics’ Wakanda in “Black Panther” is representative of African nations leery of the “colonists” that ravaged African countries by stealing their valuable resources.
Danai Gurira (Okoye) was on point expressing what the film meant to her. “It was very emotional for me being that I’m Zimbabwean. You see the power and the potential of where you’re from because so often you see how skewed it’s viewed by the world, how misrepresented it is, how distorted it is or received by the world.
“So this is kind of a salve to those wounds. To see this world brought to life this way, the things that we’ve been seeing forever around the continent that we see when we’re there; to see all the potential and power of all of the different African cultures, aspects of our lives being celebrated is [phenomenal].”
Chadwick Boseman (Black Panther/T’Challa) was asked about his insistence on having an African accent. “He [T’Challa] actually got his education at home and he would not then assimilate a language that is the colonizer’s language in order to speak to his people. So he spoke with an African accent.”
On the subject of Wakanda’s superiority, Boseman attributed it to isolationism. “I think when you talk about what Wakanda is, and what it would have to be in order to progress to the place that we saw, an unconquered nation that has not been tampered with, the idea of the next generation being smarter, being better is a concept that they evolved to. You see the genius that is inside the people that come after you.”
Lupita Nyong’o (Nakia) says she had been “waiting a long time for this.” The film sends “A very, very powerful message to children,” she continued, “both male and female…I love it that women hold their own space without being pitted against each other.”
Michael B. Jordan (Erik Killmonger) continues to be impressed by the movie. “I couldn’t describe that feeling actually sitting down and watching that film with family and an audience seeing people who look like you,” he enthused, “who are empowered. All the while showing socially relevant themes in a movie that you want to watch and can enjoy. That’s what Marvel does so well.”
Daniel Kaluuya (W’Kabi) intuitive perspective on how T’Challa and Killmonger resolve their issues speaks volumes about the Black psyche in America. “T’Challa and Killmonger are both experiencing pain,” Kaluuya explained. “They’re different people, but they come from the same root. The pain is the same root and that shows the testament of T’Challa’s character and why he is what he is. Killmonger can’t overcome that for whatever reason because he’s in an environment where the pain is viscera. He’s in the western world, a constant reminder of worthlessness at times.”
“Black Panther” opens in theaters and IMAX February 16.
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