The galaxy stands on the brink when the fanatical warlord Ronan the Accuser (Lee Pace, The Hobbit Trilogy) attains a powerful artifact capable of annihilating entire planets. Therefore, who better to stop him than the outlaw Star-Lord (Chris Pratt, The LEGO Movie), the assassin Gamora (Zoe Saldana, Star Trek), the warrior Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista, WWE), the genetic experiment Rocket (Bradley Cooper, The Hangover Trilogy), and the tree alien Groot (Vin Diesel)? Because this group of a-holes known as the Guardians of the Galaxy are certainly the first heroes you turn to, right?
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To say that Guardians of the Galaxy is one of the riskiest comic book properties to adapt is an understatement. By Marvel standards this group of alien heroes is still relatively new, having been released in 2008, whereas past properties relating to The Avengers came out during the 60's-70's. As such, when it was announced that the Marvel Cinematic Universe would make a movie based around the group, casual audiences were confused and hardcore audiences were baffled. Many from both sides agreed that, while superheroes by their very definition are silly, there's a certain line to be drawn. The heroes from Marvel that we have seen these past few years have had their silliness but they were able to work. Or, at the very least, they were able to star a predominantly human cast set on Earth and in a reality were are familiar with.
Guardians of the Galaxy had MANY things going against it. For starters, it is not set on Earth and takes place on alien planets. None of the immediate recognizable Marvel characters are present in the movie in any shape or form, and it has so many fantastical, weird creatures, none the least being two of our headliners: a giant talking tree thing and a raccoon with a machine gun.
Despite these hurdles though, I believe Guardians of the Galaxy succeeded. I wouldn't go as far to say to say it's the best Marvel movie so far, but it is still good. It is also not a piece that is meant to make you reflect, examine and question the greater meaning of life or anything like that. Guardians of the Galaxy is pure, enjoyable, fun. It can also get stupid at times. REALLY stupid. But again, it is the fun kind of stupid, the kind that makes you laugh and not the kind that personally offends you. There are some flaws in it to be sure, but they can be overlooked if you're willing to have an open mind. After all, an open mind is what you will need if you really want to enjoy or even go into this movie, as this is the most bizarre and different Marvel movie to date.
And because it's been eight years since the start of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and people STILL haven't taken a hint:
STAY UNTIL THE END OF THE CREDITS
And now, the spoiler reviews. I'll be going through important parts of the movie and talking about each of the characters of the titular group, as, unlike the Avengers, all the members of this group are introduced in one single movie.
The story takes place primarily in space and on alien worlds. We follow the mercenary Peter Quill/Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), as he steals a seemingly unimportant sphere from a devastated planet. Right off the bat we acclimate to Star-Lord. At the beginning of the movie we see him as a child on Earth, losing his mother to cancer, and being abducted by aliens. We're interested in him emotionally, and it is contrasted with seeing him as an adult: Star-Lord is a Han Solo-esque type character who's in the job for the money, sleeps with alien women, frequently turns his back on his boss Yondu (Michael Rooker, The Walking Dead) and is a cocky bastard. And like many characters of his type, we see levels of depth with Star-Lord: he's kind at the core and serves as the emotional center of the ragtag band of misfits that he will eventually become a part of. All in all a good character with a good performance with little complaints. A lot of the humor in the movie also comes from him as he's the only really human character in the movie; frequently listening to music on his cassette player when he's pulling heists.
We then meet our villain of this movie, Ronan the Accuser (Lee Pace), a member of the Kree alien species who wants to destroy the planet of the Nova Corp space police because of a botched treaty or something like that. Working with Ronan are the assassins Gamora (Zoe Saldana) and Nebula (Karen Gillan, Doctor Who). Gamora is later ordered by Ronan to retrieve the orb from Star-Lord, but we later discover that she planned to double cross him. Gamora in my opinion is probably the member of the group that has the least going for her. She does have a tragic backstory and a relationship with Star-Lord that leads her to be less abrasive, but that's about it. Not a bad role, nor is it badly acted, it's just OK.
When then get into the mystery of what the orb is, because Star-Lord is facing problems selling upon buyers discovering Ronan desires it. We then meet the two characters that stole the entire movie: Rocket (Bradley Cooper) and Groot (Vin Diesel). Yondu and his group are pissed off at Star-Lord's betrayal and have sent out a bounty on him. Rocket is the best character in the movie for me because, for a CGI raccoon creature thing, he has a surprising amount of depth to him. He's a greedy creature, even more than Star-Lord, and he has absolutely no cares in the world except for Groot and money. But as we progress in the movie we discover there is more to Rocket than we were led to think. He has serious issues about being a genetic experiment and really takes offense at getting involved in things that don't concern him, but he eventually sees the errors of his ways and becomes a hero.
Groot is also a character that has a whole lot. Despite having only six words in the entire movie, his silence, mannerisms and expressions really sell us on the character. He's the gentle giant, much similar to the titular character of The Iron Giant, also voiced by Vin Diesel. Groot and Rocket stole the show and it is not unwarranted. They effects done on them were incredibly top-notch, their voices gave them emotional depth, and their character evolution is easy to follow and natural. They easily could've been silly cartoon characters for the little kiddies to eat up, but when even the adults like the pair, you know Marvel did something right.
Through a series of events, Star-Lord, Gamora, Rocket and Groot get arrested and sent to space prison where we meet Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista). If Rocket is my favorite character, Drax is my second. We learn that Drax is out for Ronan's head because of the death of his family at Ronan's hands, and doesn't get along with Gamora because of her association with Ronan. Star-Lord is the one to talk them out of this and work together, and we learn more about Drax. He is, at heart, a simple man who takes words or phrases literally. Sometimes he doesn't think straight or considers the consequences of his actions because he is caught up in hatred. He is however fiercely loyal to those around him and towards the climax of the movie he becomes more than dumb muscle. Drax becomes a true compatriot to Star-Lord and sometimes humors at the inopportune time. Some felt that Dave Bautista's acting was the weak link among the others (Which seems to be a pattern for wrestlers that go into anything besides wrestling), but I think he did alright here. If Bautista was in any other role in this movie he would've bombed it, but he suited Drax's character perfectly.
After the group escapes from prison here is where we start to see the greater connection to the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Gamora takes the group to a colony where another potential buyer who can keep the orb safe resides: Taneleer Tivan/The Collector (Benico Del Toro, Fear and Loathing in Los Vegas). You may remember Tivan from the post-credits scene in Thor: The Dark World. Tivan is not in this movie for very long but is important for providing why the orb is sought after. Inside the orb is an Infinity Stone, a jewel of immeasurable power. Each stone has different properties and on their own are powerful. Together however one can have the universe at his/her fingertips. Building up on said scene in Thor: The Dark World, the Tesseract and Aether that have appeared in the past movies are two such stones, and here we have another.
We thus know why Ronan desires it so, so that he can destroy whatever planet he wants. He and Nebula turn their backs on the space titan Thanos (Josh Brolin, Men in Black 3) after they ambush our heroes and he steals the stone. For a huge Marvel fan like me it is wonderful to finally see Thanos, the sinister grinning man at the end of The Avengers. Again he wasn't in it for long, but his presence carries so much weight that you don't mind.
The climax has our heroes teaming up with Yondu and the Nova Corp to stop Ronan. Through an exciting climax reminiscent of Star Wars, Nebula is defeated and retreats, Groot sacrifices himself to save the group from disaster, Star-Lord destroys Ronan by channeling the power of the Infinity Stone, and the galaxy is saved. In the end, our heroes now call themselves the Guardians of the Galaxy, Groot is reveled to be alive again, and our heroes blast off to new space adventures.
There are two problems I have with the movie. First is the pacing. Throughout the movie we're told and shown that the Guardians are not the best heroes out there, always bickering, fighting, shouting, and yelling at each other. At first it's OK, but it starts to get tiresome when they keep doing it and it hammers in that this group will eventually see our heroes become true friends and whatnot. In theory the idea is fine, but I just wish the execution was better.
The second problem is the same one that plagues other Marvel movies: The villains. Ronan in the grand scheme didn't do a whole lot. We see him talk, we see him fight briefly, but that's it. I wish Nebula was the main villain because she had more depth, more action, etc. But the fact that she lives to fight another day makes me hopeful for the future. And admittedly, Ronan is not as bad as some of the villains we've seen in the past.
The production design of the movie is good too. Set in space, we are given a wide variety of locations, aliens and sets. You really do feel like you are in space. Secondary characters like Nova Prime (Glenn Close) and Dey (John C Riley, Wreck-It Ralph) also give life to this world that we see. It goes to show that, beyond Earth, there is much more to the Marvel Universe. The design continues to build upon what Thor started, and makes you yearn for more. The soundtrack is mostly real songs and we frequently hear them play throughout the movie. In any other Marvel movie it would be out of place, but because of the silly nature of the movie, it works.
The final thing to talk about for the movie is the post-credits scene, of which there are two, but only one is of any major significance. The first has a growing twig-like Groot dancing to the movie's credits song. The second however...
Oh boy...
We see Tivan in the ruins of his collection, which destroyed by the Infinity Stone. As he is having a space Martini, he is chatting it up with what appears to be an alien duck creature. And just to hammer it in who we thought it was, it shows "HOWARD THE DUCK created by...". It implies that Howard may be getting a movie down the line, which I'm torn on. On one hand, the last time we got a Howard the Duck movie it was a freaking horrible piece of junk. On the other, because of Marvel's track record lately, it may actually be good. I'm looking forward to a possible Howard movie, but it's more a morbid curiosity than actual hype or excitement.
Final Thoughts:
All in all, Guardians of the Galaxy is a fun ride from start to finish. A few dull or disappointing parts on the roller coaster don't detract from two hours of high octane action, humor, stupid, and just pure fun. Don't go into this movie expecting a gigantic and grand adventure, or a movie that delves into the psyche or personal struggle. Just expect fun, pure unadulterated fun for all ages, and you'll have a wonderful time.
My score: 3.9/5
Trailer thoughts:
The Equalizer: A movie with Denzel Washington saving a girl from the Russian Mafia. Looks action-packed. Won't watch.
Planes: Fire & Rescue: I think I've said my piece in my past entries on why I'm not looking forward to this money-grubbing waste.
Big Hero 6: REALLY looking forward to this one. Disney and Marvel together can only be a good recipe. Looks like it'll have adventure, humor, drama, etc.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: May or may not watch this, admittedly just to see how much of a trainwreck it'll be. But it might be good, who knows.
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