#SuperheroMoviesMatter A review of 'Black Panther'

With “Black Panther,” the industry treads new ground. While not necessarily exploratory of racial issues in America, it does offer a platform and showcasing of African culture, through the lenses of people who actually have roots in Africa — a black screenwriter, a black director, a collection of talented black actors and actresses.

Some might cry “tokenism." I say it’s wokenism.

On the surface, this is an origin story of Black Panther or T’Challa, an interesting mix of Captain America (super soldier) and Iron Man (high tech), and adjunct to the Avengers. He’s also the king of Wakanda, a fictional nation on the continent of Africa.

Basically, Wakanda is Asgard with melanin. It is an advanced, utopian African country untouched by the scourge of colonialism, thanks to the ancient arrival of a meteorite made of Vibranium, an extraterrestrial substance that provides transformative technology to the people.

But as part of their tradition, Wakanda does not display its power and might to the rest of the world, hiding in plain sight as if just a typical third world agrarian society. Behind the facade, however, they are a nation with miraculous technologies that make Elon Musk look Amish. But despite all this tech, Wakanda merges it with the traditional tribalist anthropologies of African culture — the music, clothing, rituals, etc.

As a rule, Wakanda does not get involved in matters outside their borders. They do not invade others, but importantly, they also do not aid them, ignoring the impoverished and troubled people on their continent, and their struggling brethren in other parts of the world.

Clearly, the Wakandans haven’t kept up on their Voltaire or Uncle Ben (from Spiderman): “With great power, comes great responsibility.”

By greenlighting “Black Panther,” it appears Marvel Disney has.

Writer Joe Robert Cole ("American Crime Story”) and director Ryan Coogler (“Creed”) are a perfect pairing for this endeavor. From a technical standpoint, they have made an outstanding piece of motion picture entertainment that matches or supersedes any previous comic book movie made so far.

What’s really stunning is the fact that Marvel Disney gave the keys to the Quinjet to these two politically charged filmmakers. Movie studios just do not invest $200 million in movies that have a strong possibility for controversy or polarization.

And yet here we are, treated to a nuanced supervillain played by Michael B. Jordan, who argues that Wakanda should share its technology and resources to help disenfranchised blacks revolt throughout the world. Another character in a flashback scene in Oakland implores Wakanda to handle its moral duty to help black Americans struggling with urban poverty, over-policing and mass incarceration to fight the power, as it were (a little too obviously, we catch a glimpse of a Public Enemy poster hanging on the wall in another scene).

More unique than the politics and the Afrocentric nature of this superhero movie are the excellent roles for black actors, especially women of color.

Young Brit Letitia Wright steals every scene she’s in as the hero’s sister and Wakanda’s resident genius and gadgeteer (think Q from the James Bond films). Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o (“12 Years a Slave”) plays a Wakandan spy with beauty, grace and deadliness. Danai Gurira (“Walking Dead”) is an intense, fierce Wakandan general and protector of the King. Angela Bassett (“How Stella Got Her Groove Back”) plays T’Challa’s mother with spirit and passion.

None of these ladies need rescuing from anyone.

On the other side of the gender ledger, along with the aforementioned Jordan (you might remember him as Wallace, the moral center of the HBO’s “The Wire”), another powerhouse performance is courtesy of Emmy award winning actor Sterling K. Brown. He doesn’t get much screen time, but the few moments he’s in provides immense gravitas. I daresay he deserves an Oscar nom.

I know it’s odd, but I don’t give the titular character much mention here. But really, the Black Panther -- the lead and superhero -- is only the fifth or sixth most interesting thing about the film. Considering the context surrounding and subtext underlying the movie, I think that may have been the point.

A previous version of this story incorrectly attributed the screenwriter as Ta'Nehisi Coates, who currently writes the Black Panther comic for Marvel.