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Guardians of the Galaxy – Film Review

Cast: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Batista, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Lee Pace, Karen Gillan, Djomon Hounsou, Glenn Close

Directors: James Gunn

Synopsis: When a team of space criminals come into possession of a valuable space orb, they must band together to prevent the villainous Ronan from seizing it and wreaking havoc and mass destruction.

Review: If someone says to you: “name a Marvel superhero character,” the names of Iron Man, Thor, Captain America or Spider-Man might come to mind. However, the names of the likes of Groot , Gamora, Star Lord and Rocket Raccoon might not sound as familiar. Yet with this latest instalment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, that will most certainly change. This film when it was announced had a lot of people scratching their heads in bemusement and uncertainty. Fans wondered if it could be pulled off, and Marvel had pulled it off and the gamble has paid off immeasurably.

Director James Gunn has put together one of, if not the funniest Marvel films to date, with a very entertaining script as well as some intense and enthralling action sequences. Being the title characters, a lot is expectedly riding on the Guardians, and they deliver. With previous Marvel films that lead to the Avengers, we had several movies detailing their stories and their struggles. Guardians does not have this luxury, as we are introduced to our protagonists immediately, but James Gunn did an exceptional job in making the audience care about each of the main ensemble.

Star Lord (Chris Pratt) is the leader of the team. He is like the love child of Luke Skywalker and Indiana Jones , and his scenes are wonderful to behold. Witty lines and real heart and charisma go into his performance. Likewise with the Green skinned assassin Gamora (Zoe Saldana) who’s again a really interesting character to watch with a very intriguing back-story. The main comedy relief comes from the likes of Drax (Dave Batista) who has some of the most hilarious dialogue we have seen all year, including a difficulty to understand metaphors. Groot (Vin Diesel) is a sentient tree, he doesn’t say much, all of three words, but he adds a great comical presence in the film. Yet, the star of the show is the gun wielding raccoon, Rocket. Brilliantly voiced by Bradley Cooper and terrifically brought to life on the big screen, he is a character that will have tears rolling down your face due to laughter.

Together, the ensemble have some brilliant moments together. Yet the film does have its problems, namely the villains. The three main baddies Ronan (Lee Pace) Nebula (Karen Gillan) and Korath (Djimon Hounsou) are not as fleshed out as much as the Guardians. Their make up is all very well done with Gillan looking very menacing as the blue skinned Nebula and there is more to her character development than her villainous counterparts. With Thanos lurking in the shadows, it is almost a desire to cut to the chase and have the Guardians fight Thanos, as we know of his presence in this universe. Although chances are that could certainly happen in a coming movie (Avengers 3 perhaps?). Despite this one mishap, the film stands as one of the best we have seen this year. The visuals are all superb, with brilliant make up on each of the characters, and some top drawer action scenes that will fill the audience with immense satisfaction. The penultimate movie of Marvel’s Phase 2 has left its mark on the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and we will definitely be seeing more of Groot and Star Lord in the future.