Surpassing one billion dollars in sales and with a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 97 percent, “Black Panther” is a groundbreaking, exciting blend of action, innovation and culture. It takes superhero movies to the next level by taking an interesting story and combining it with a message of black empowerment and several thought-provoking ideas.

The Marvel film, directed by Ryan Coogler, depicts the fictional, technologically advanced African nation of Wakanda. The Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) is King T’Challa of Wakanda. The film follows the story of King T’Challa taking his rightful place on the throne after his father’s death and the events that happen when his conspiracizing cousin Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) comes to Wakanda with a claim to the throne. T’Challa, with the help of his family and close friends, must protect Wakanda and do everything in his power to make sure Killmonger is unable to fulfill his dangerous goals.

The characters face several different conflicts and enemies which makes the story interesting because when there are several conflicts to be handled, the viewer never knows what will happen next. The film has a good balance of comedy and dialogue in between the action scenes, which include hand-to-hand combat, one on one battles and a high-speed car chase. An example of comedy in the film is the relationship between King T’Challa and his younger sister Shuri, who are always joking and messing around with each other in a way that is relatable to many people with siblings.

“Black Panther” represents African culture without being stereotypical, as Wakanda is a fictional nation. This film is groundbreaking because it has an almost entirely black cast and it portrays the story of an African nation whose great wealth and resources were hidden from the outside world and therefore not destroyed by slave trade and colonialism. It includes detailed costumes and traditional dances. Representation like this is important because it shows that superheroes can be any color and of any culture and makes the film more impactful and meaningful.

Black Panther also has a message behind it about how there is a pattern in history of black people being oppressed all over the world and not having the resources to fight their oppressors. Systemic racism and oppression is a topic that is often avoided in Hollywood, and the fact that it is addressed in a film that appeals to so many people on such a large scale is really refreshing to see.

The acting is another aspect of the film that made it notable. Killmonger is a standout character and not a typical villain because Michael B. Jordan does a phenomenal job showing that Killmonger feels misunderstood and overlooked. He is dangerous but it is hard to hate him because his motives come from a desire to better the world and help oppressed people.

The diverse soundtrack, which has spent seven weeks so far among the top three on the Billboard 200 chart, includes several popular black artists such as Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd, SZA, 2 Chainz, and Khalid. It is very fitting that Kendrick Lamar is featured on nearly every track, as he is known for using music to speak out about social issues that plague the black community, like institutional racism and inner-city violence. The album is diverse because it has several different sounds, from upbeat, fast-paced rap like “King’s Dead” to chill, pop songs like “All the Stars”. Having rap songs in a superhero movie soundtrack is rare, but it worked very well in the film and emphasized the theme of black power and culture that is portrayed throughout.

“Black Panther” had all the action and excitement of classic Marvel superhero movies, while also bringing relevant world issues and representation to the big screen in a way that hasn’t been seen before in such a popular movie. I would recommend the film to everyone, as I think it has something that appeals to people who aren’t typically interested in superhero movies.