Wakanda Forever: A Reflection of the Modern World
This article contains spoilers for the film Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
“In my culture, death is not the end” — a famous quote by T’Challa, after the death of his father. It is that very quote that fans of the MCU ruminate on after the death of Chadwick Boseman who played the infamous Black Panther.
With that said, marginalized groups experience more trauma and death at a much higher rate than others. However, it is not commonly shown in shows or movies. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is a sci-fi movie that features the story and experiences of marginalized groups after experiencing tragedy and trauma.
The movie was made in a unique circumstance after Boseman passed away from colon cancer while working on the film. Typically, when that happens, the director chooses to recast the role and reshoot some scenes or work a recast into the plot. However, they decided not to do that and to instead use the film to honor Chadwick Boseman’s memory. Due to this, the filming process and overall theme of the movie were very emotional as the cast and crew were grieving Chadwick Boseman’s death in real life as well.
In the opening scene of the movie, T’Challa dies from an unknown illness off-screen. The audience then sees Shuri, T’Challa’s sister, working desperately to save her brother by trying to recreate a heart-shaped herb but fails. In fact, she was so busy trying to save him that she was not at his bedside when he passed. Following that, the story of the movie revolves around Shuri as she works through her grief to become the Black Panther for her people whilst eventually accepting the death of her brother and mother.
Other than that, the movie also allowed the representation of communities of color on the screen. As seen in an interview with the cast, Danai Gurira (actress of Okoye) said “We’re both dealing with an aspect of being Indigenous people that are trying to preserve that, in a world that comes and destroys that”. She then relates it to the Talokans and Wakandans who are trying to find their place in the modern world whilst finding their strengths and “preserving their specificity of self”. Gurira hopes that message would “be powerful for all of us who want to retain who we are in a world that tells us to be something else.”
The main fight of the movie is between the Wakandans and Talokans as Namor wants to ally with Wakanda to wage war against the rest of the world while Shuri and Queen Ramonda, before her death intend only for peace. This is mainly due to the fact that both their kingdoms have access to Vibranium (MCU’s strongest metal) and the rest of the world wants to seize it from them. This reflects real-life colonialism where colonizers stole resources from third-world countries.
Moreover, the fight between the Wakandans and Talokans also reflects the real-life society of Black and Latino people who both suffered the effects of colonialism and slavery and are pitted against each other while their White oppressors aren’t affected.
In conclusion, Black Panther is an amazing movie that sheds light on the experiences of marginalized groups through its themes and plot points. The movie not only shows the process of grief experienced by the characters and cast, but it also shows the reality of exploiting nations for one’s own gain.
By: Liew Yik Xuan
