Film Preview: Black Panther (2018)

Page Revisions:

(June 11, 2017) Original
(October 22, 2017) New Trailer (#2) / New Posters (#2-#3)
(February 11, 2018) New Posters (#4-#20)

Release Date:

February 16, 2018

Synopsis:

From IMDb: “T’Challa, the new ruler of the advanced kingdom of Wakanda, must defend his land from being torn apart by enemies from outside and inside the country.”

Poster Rating: B- / C+ / A / C (11) / C- / C / B+ / C / C+ / B

SEE ALL POSTERS BELOW
Review: (#1) A rich, gold-and-black design that has a lot of detail, but is also unnecessarily simplistic.

(#2) A king surveying his land, it has an almost Lion King vibe, which isn’t the best connection they could have made. (#3) Brilliant colors, careful balance, opulent detail. It’s the strongest poster design Disney/Marvel has generated yet.

(#4-#14) This series of character posters has an awful background, but are each quite distinctive in terms of character poses and costuming. (#15) This looks to be a part of the prior set of character posters without the character of a face, just a mask. (#16) A still image that’s a reinvention of a scene from the trailer, but with excessive extra details and visual flourishes that destroy rather than improve. (#17) While the background isn’t great, this is an excellent visual design with angular details, fitting poses, and a sense of style. (#18) Black Panther in watercolor on a dull white backdrop. It’s a failure. (#19) Similar to poster #16, but with a more detailed background, but not more realism. (#20) The blank space in the background isn’t great, but the drawn images and the spattered accents help embellish what could have been a mediocre design.

Trailer Rating: B / C+

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Review: (#1) Plenty of stunning images in the trailer, but a limited exploration of plot and a ham-fisted approach to world building make for a sometimes uneven, though enticing experience.

(#2) While it would seem like there’s lots of action and drama to this trailer, a broader, careful review reveals that the action elements aren’t much more pronounced than its predecessor and the visual splendor of the first trailer has been replaced with something more generic and with less plot.

Oscar Prospects:

There’s a lot of compelling design choices displayed in the trailer, but this isn’t the type of Marvel film that typically gets recognized by the Academy.