Fun and significant.

Rating: 8/10 (24 February 2018)

Black Panther, to which I took foster son yesterday. Like many parents, I've taken him to many superhero movies. He loves them; each time, though, we're sitting there seeing white people/men doing amazing things in America or Europe. How refreshing, then, to sit with my brown-skinned (foster) son and see a cast of people who represent him for a change, doing amazing things in Africa and doing so without white people rescuing them. How refreshing to see a vision of Africa without colonisation; how refreshing to see a hero character who learns something from the villain and where Africa has something to teach and give to the world. How refreshing for a South African audience to hear a South African language in a mainstream movie. How refreshing to hear the round of applause as the audience recognised their stories being told, the laughs of recognition. I don't think my foster son is aware enough of the context to appreciate the significance of this movie, but I was moved and thrilled. As a white Western male I've seen too much of an idealised vision of myself on the screen; I want my children to be able to see themselves in films like this, with inspiring women and the stories of black people being told in films that are both good and fun. More, please.