Guardians of the Galaxy/Rated PG-13/Marvel Studios/Dir. by James Gunn/121 min.
Watch out Tony Stark. Your title as King of the Cool in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has just been seriously challenged by a gruff talking raccoon and a barely talking houseplant. With Guardians of the Galaxy, Marvel once again shows that there's no risk too big as long as the right people are on the job and the creators of this movie have delivered on the studios' faith big time. Guardians is riotously funny, action packed, and heart-tugging in equal measure and it's the best movie the studio has produced that doesn't have the word "Avengers" in the title.
With a pre-credit sequence taking place on Earth in 1988, the movie feels different from the others in the MCU. Rather than starting with an explosion, it begins with a heart-breaking scene that feels similar to the openings of Pixar's Up and Abrams' Star Trek. However, the events in that scene set up every motivation for our hero, Peter Quill (fantastically played by Chris Pratt), a.k.a. Star-Lord, and once the action moves off planet, Pratt let's us know we're moving in quirkier Marvel terrain as he boogies through the opening credits across an alien terrain whilst using a small rodent alien as a microphone to the strains of 70's classic rock.
Peter has been hired to recover "The Orb", the movie's McGuffin that is really interchangeable with The Avengers' Tesseract and Thor's Aether. We just need to know that this small object contains a power that could destroy an entire planet and then, ya know, the universe. Take that Emperor Palpatine's piddling Death Star!
However, he's not the only one looking for it. Ronan (Lee Pace), a particularly nasty Kree, is searching for it on behalf of Thanos (Josh Brolin), the big bad we saw in the credit stinger during The Avengers. Thanos lends him the use of his two daughters: Gamora (the always great Zoe Saldana), his adopted daughter who is also his favorite, and Nebula (Doctor Who's Karen Gillan), his biological daughter who is clearly jealous of her adopted sister. Factor into the mix a pair of unusual bounty hunters, the biologically engineered Rocket Raccoon (voiced vibrantly by Bradley Cooper) and a large walking tree named Groot (warmly voiced by Vin Diesel) and things are obviously going to get complicated.
The plot eventually forces the five "Guardians" (in addition to Quill, Gamora, Rocket and Groot is Drax, winningly played by Dave Bautista) to begrudgingly work together and form their own ragged group of heroes. Imagine Han Solo battling the Empire with a few outlaws he found in the Mos Eisley cantina and you have a little idea of what's going on here.
The action sequences are stellar, bringing all the visual audacity of similar scenes in the Star Wars films, but none of the leaden dialogue and plotting found in the prequels. Instead, the humor, drama, and action is all focused on the characters. In fact, if the film has a fault it's that the plot really isn't the point. The characters are and they're an instantly awesome group.
Director James Gunn is known for gritty and quirky genre comedies, including the oozy sci-fi/horror film Slither and the low-budget, darkly humorous superhero film Super, but here he shows not only his trademark humor, but a Pixar-ian level of heart. With this movie, he's not only made his most mainstream film, but also his most rich, with characters filled with emotional layers that will be a delight to peal as the already announced Guardians' franchise continues.
The cast is clearly having a blast throughout the film and their joy permeates every scene. Each actor is perfectly cast and each gets moments to shine both as action heroes and as individuals. In fact, each character gets a moment to steal the show, with each getting moments that challenge the Hulk scenes in The Avengers for pure awesome.
For those of you wondering about 3D, it's worth it. While not integral to the plot, the film uses 3D very effectively and the humor, action, and, in one scene in particular, the poignance, are very much enhanced by the way Gunn uses the 3D technology.
If you can't tell, I loved this movie. For me, it was one of those "I could have turned around and immediately watched it again" movies. It's exactly what a great summer popcorn movie should be and brings back the feeling of fun and discovery that Steven Spielberg mastered in the early 80's. I can't wait to see how Marvel introduces these characters to the other heroes populating the MCU, but even if that doesn't happen for years, I'm just looking forward to following the Guardians on their adventures. A great franchise is born.
Grade: A
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