A couple of people asked me to do this, but I took my time, sieving through positive and negative reviews and comments about the movie. Obviously, I knew the story-line by heart and had watched it more like a movie critic than anyone else. I will however bore you with these details:

1. THE LIFE-LINE
For everything people look out for in movies, I look out for lines or phrases that is so true about life. For me it was: “…you are a good man, but it is very hard for a good man to be a king”

2. STORY
The script was excellent. I am not a fan of superhero movies, and was one of those boys that never did comics, but this one is for keeps. It was one of those stories that had less focus on people flying, but more on assumed imaginative possibilities. The thinking and decisions of it’s characters made it very human.

3. THE INTERPRETATION
I really saw no one acting out of roles. T’Challa has been singled out and ‘power-shamed’ by critics for being too ‘weak’ a king, but he was strong, being able to win the stronger battle of decisions.

4. A BIT OF ALL OF US
Everyone expected it to be a black supremacy film. It was not, but its biggest selling point for me is that it contained a bit of all of us. There was always something you could relate to, from music to names, dressing to mannerism. Wakanda was nowhere, but it is in all of us.

5. NAME, LANGUAGE AND ACCENT
Watching it a day after a ten year search for a Nigerian panther yielded results and thus excitement, I knew that the name was right. Panthers are one of the most secretive animals on earth, so was Wakanda amongst nations.
The language was developed but looked real but it was the rich accents that I admired. I have not seen so many in Hollywood getting it so right in a single movie.

6. CULTURAL RELEVANCE
It is a marvel that this Marvel’s movie should pull so much crowd as far as Argentina. The movie stirs curiosity and satisfies it.

7. MORAL LESSONS?
I heard it was intended for that, and it surprisingly did fulfil the intention.
Morality is not just about plain good against blatant evil, it is about decisions and choices forged by the past, exhibited at present but affects the future. There were very many true-to-life struggles about decisions, loyalties, emotions, believes and all. Just be good to everyone, you never can tell their part in your future.

8. WHICH CHARACTER PLAYED ME?
A playful BBC test had said Shuri, and my workmates and those who know the pun side of me will readily agree. I am not too sure though. Shuri was however my best character. She exhibited my philosophy: there is more fun to life than what we make it seem.

8.5. RATING
An 8.5 for me because of its ending. No, not that it did not end well, but as Itoro Obobikpe noted: one was left feeling empty at the end when one realises that it isn’t real, that one ‘is not in Wakanda and T’Challa is not his king’

• watch it if you have not
• local fabrics will do
• life is a fight with decisions

 by Effiong Samuel (written March 2018)