A full and honest review

Rating: 8/10 (4 March 2018)

PROS
1) A villainous villain?
Killmonger was an interesting twist into what a villain was supposed to be. I felt conflicted as to who support because I understood why he felt this way. Growing up hard in Oakland meant that he wanted to see other people rise up, and he felt Wakanda wasn't doing much to help. This puts him in a grey area - not all bad, not all good. This is very good in my opinion, it wasn't a "I want to destroy the world because I'm BAD!" We actually understand his point and WHY he thinks the way he does, which makes his fights with T'Challa or the Black Panther much more compelling.
2) Wonderful symbolism
The fight scene where Black Panther is "revived" and causes a full blow out fight to happen: What a touching moment when Daniel Kaluuya (W'Kabi) lays down his sword. He doesn't keep on fighting: This is a message that Africans can only move forward when they work together, when they overcome differences. This is how Wakanda has made all their advances.
Black Panther buys the property at the end: Some reviewers on here weren't clear on this, but understand that this is the same town where Killmonger had grown up, where he experienced hardships. Therefore Black Panther bought all this property to give other children a better chance, to rise up as people. You could also see it as honoring Killmonger in a way.
3) Great Score: I know some people didn't like the score, but I found it really nice. The African balance and Kendrick Lamar's songs were a really nice fit in the scenes.
4) Funny lines: Letitia Wright's lines were really funny in my opinion. A really fun character, helping to bring contrast and break ice as Black Panther's character is very serious.
CONS
Where's Killmonger?
1) Killmonger's screentime was, in my opinion, too short. It felt like we were only JUST introduced to him. He becomes King, fights then dies in a blink of an eye. I would have loved to see him be King of Wakanda for much longer, really see him carry out the roles as King and how he would do it, see who he WAS when he was in power. I feel like T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) came in too quickly.
2) Underdeveloped characters
I felt as if the characters were not fleshed out enough. I have not watched the other movies with Black Panther in it, so I do not know if he was fleshed out there, and they simply continued his character expecting us to know what he was like. However, I felt as if he were all serious, and there wasn't much to his character. This goes the same for all other characters, even Killmonger. Yes, we knew his backstory as well, but it would have been nice if he was fleshed out a bit more. We know all the characters' morals, but WHO are they really?
3) Emotion? Emotion!
We needed more gripping scenes. There were some hard hitting ones, but I did feel like some scenes were rushed. I did feel emotion in the scenes where I was supposed to, so that was an obvious plus, but if characters were more developed, then maybe this movie could have hit a goldmine with carrying a strong story, with strong characters, that ultimately gave more good, emotional scenes that could have really fleshed out the story.
SO, ANYWAY, HOW GOOD IS THE STORY?
Very well thought out story. As I said, it goes a bit to quickly in my opinion, with some characters like Black Panther's feeling a bit underdeveloped. However, the story is still a good one. I felt saddened with Killmonger as he saw his father die, when we found out his backstory. I laughed at scenes, and was saddened at others. The fight scenes are also very good, and above all, you understand the story. It is clear. If at some point we get a Black Panther 2, I'd like the story to have a bit more twists and turns - it felt a bit too clear cut and straightforward.
SO FINALLY, WHY AN 8/10?
The pros, in my opinion, far outweigh the cons, and I do think Black Panther is a strong and wonderful movie as it successfully balances seriousness and funniness, and I do think it stands on it's own two feet without a crutch. If anyone is wondering whether to see it or not, wonder no further. Book your cinema tickets and have a watch :)