As Marvel blockbusters go, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is a dark movie. On top of the loss of Chadwick Boseman casting a shadow over it, the superhero sequel has strong themes of grief and loss, a no-nonsense villain in Namor, and a tragic character arc for Angela Bassett’s Queen Ramonda that earned her a ground-breaking Best Actress Oscar nomination. And yet, now that the film is finally available to stream on Disney Plus, fans are finding it a dark watch for a whole other reason.
After the longest gap between its theatrical and streaming releases since the platform began, over 80 days in total, Wakanda Forever is at last free to watch from the comfort of your couch for anyone with a Disney Plus account. However, now it’s here, it seems many are struggling to get through the movie. Not because it’s such an emotional experience (although that too) but because they literally can’t see what’s going on in front of them.
Yes, social media is being flooded with reactions from frustrated fans who’ve been eagerly anticipating Wakanda Forever‘s D+ debut only to be met with a murky mess that they can hardly decipher.
During any nighttime scenes, it’s anyone’s guess what’s happening.
It’s enough to make folks convinced they’re accidentally watching DC’s own gloomy 2022 blockbuster on HBO Max instead.
When we were glued to the movie upon seeing it in theaters back in November, obviously the downcast lighting director Ryan Coogler decided to go with didn’t affect the viewing experience, but outside the confines of the theater it seems the dark color palette is proving to make Black Panther: Wakanda Forever an even harder watch than it already was. It remains to be seen if Marvel Studios will alter the film after its streaming arrival, which has been known to happen.