Director (and co-writer) Ryan Coogler’s follow-up to the 2018 Marvel masterpiece may not be quite as spectacular as the original—the gaping hole left by Chadwick Boseman’s passing is palpable—but it still emerges as one of the better Marvel entries of the past decade. Letitia Wright (Shuri), Lupita Nyong’o (Nakia), and Angela Bassett (Queen Ramonda) lead the way in a film that, despite needing another week or so in the editing room (it clocks in at a noticeably long 161 minutes), transcends standard ‘comic book fare’ for something very special.
4.5/5 stars