Guardians of the GalaxySo, let's see...we've got an anthropomorphic raccoon with a name inspired by a Beatles song, a tree-man with a speech impediment, a couple of green space brawlers, led by a misfit interstellar treasure hunter who finds solace in '70s pop songs--need I say more? Guardians of the Galaxy is adapted from a comic book series by Marvel Comics, an entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe--"MCU" for short--and (comparatively speaking) a somewhat unusual entry at that. While the film is consistent with the cutting edge special effects and blend of comedy, drama, and action found in the other entries, it deals with a ragtag band of misfits rarely associated with the comic publisher, except by some of the most devoted fans.
|
|
Growing up as a comic book fan, I can say that I was not really exposed to the "cosmic" stories of Marvel--I've usually found myself drawn to the more "street level" superhero stories--but that changed after my exposure to the "Annihilation" crossover storyline published by Marvel in 2006. This storyline reinvented many characters in this oft-neglected corner of Marvel comics, smartly by taking exciting risks with characters that carried little--if no--baggage, meaning the storytellers could focus on the plot, and not try to figure out how to shoehorn characters that had little room for marketable change into it. The result was bringing a group together of unlikely misfits and rogues, going by the moniker of the "Guardians of the Galaxy", and the burgeoning popularity made it a prime new realm and equally exciting setting for the MCU. Guardians of the Galaxy tells the story of a young boy named Peter Quill (played as an adult by Chris Pratt) who, after his mother dies from cancer, is abducted by aliens, and grows up into a rakish adventurer, raiding tombs, seducing pink ladies, and letting his heroics get the better of him. Peter--like the movie as a whole--wears its inspiration proudly on its sleeve, if not as an entire uniform. The soundtrack--a Guinness world record holder for the best-selling soundtrack comprised of entirely previously released material--is no mere random stylistic choice, either. Director James Gunn's space opera is a send-up to a plentiful bounty of classic sci-fi flicks from young Peter's days on Earth, as well as some more recent sci-fi tv shows. Watching Guardians of the Galaxy might even make for a fun "drinking game"--for those inclined at that sort of thing--by keeping a running tally of all those references and nods. To quote Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista) amid his reverie on Knowhere: "Let us put more of this liquid into our bodies." (Just sayin', if this becomes a thing, I called it first.)
A lot of space operas have characters in strange outfits using fancy technologies to get into blaster shoot-outs and spaceship dogfights, and Guardians of the Galaxy is no different in this. But what the film does is root itself ("Groot" itself?) in developing real relationships between a cast of characters that starts out at each others' throats. After a deal goes sideways between Peter and his "mentor"/kidnapper with a penchant for dashboard figurines, Yondu (Michael Rooker), Peter (who calls himself "Starlord") gets a bounty on his head, and is caught in a three-way scuffle between the lithe, living weapon Gamora (Zoe Saldana) and the wise-cracking Rocket and verdant giant Groot (voiced by Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel, respectively), only to be arrested and shipped off to a space prison. Allied by necessity to escape (along with Drax) and sell the mysterious orb Starlord retrieves early on, the quintet bickers and squabbles, each motivated by their own selfish desires first. Over time, they understand one another and their inner goodness and sympathy for each other's hardships draws them closer together as more than just comrades, but as friends. At one point, when all hope of standing against the tyrannical zealot Ronan the Accuser (Lee Pace) seems lost, Quill makes his attempt at a stirring speech, but inadvertently addresses the group as "losers"...he corrects this by pointing out that they have each indeed lost something, but in a way, he is also right that these are not the grand figureheads and important icons of any universe, but they are important in their own ways, too. Unlike other comic book characters which have little to no flexibility with regards to how they are portrayed on the big screen, the beauty of Guardians of the Galaxy is that there are no overwhelming expectations, no forced origin stories that are set in stone. And while the film portrays the characters from the comics in a way that is in large part authentic to their "Earth-616" counterparts (Marvel Comics fans know what I'm talking about), they are also human...at least in as much as they are conveyed with real character and are a lot of fun to watch and listen to their banter. While the ending tips its hand at justifying Starlord's ability to resolve the main conflict, I'd still like to think that somehow he and his friends succeed through the power of their friendship, all of them learning a little more about themselves in the process. And now for these new heroes, to quote the song, "ooh, child things are gonna get easier...things'll get brighter."
Recommended for: Fans of sci-fi space battles and alien worlds, where "no man has gone before" and all that, positively marinating in nostalgia. Also, for fans of good, old-fashioned '60s and '70s pop classics, because who wouldn't love an "Awesome Mix Vol. 1"?
A lot of space operas have characters in strange outfits using fancy technologies to get into blaster shoot-outs and spaceship dogfights, and Guardians of the Galaxy is no different in this. But what the film does is root itself ("Groot" itself?) in developing real relationships between a cast of characters that starts out at each others' throats. After a deal goes sideways between Peter and his "mentor"/kidnapper with a penchant for dashboard figurines, Yondu (Michael Rooker), Peter (who calls himself "Starlord") gets a bounty on his head, and is caught in a three-way scuffle between the lithe, living weapon Gamora (Zoe Saldana) and the wise-cracking Rocket and verdant giant Groot (voiced by Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel, respectively), only to be arrested and shipped off to a space prison. Allied by necessity to escape (along with Drax) and sell the mysterious orb Starlord retrieves early on, the quintet bickers and squabbles, each motivated by their own selfish desires first. Over time, they understand one another and their inner goodness and sympathy for each other's hardships draws them closer together as more than just comrades, but as friends. At one point, when all hope of standing against the tyrannical zealot Ronan the Accuser (Lee Pace) seems lost, Quill makes his attempt at a stirring speech, but inadvertently addresses the group as "losers"...he corrects this by pointing out that they have each indeed lost something, but in a way, he is also right that these are not the grand figureheads and important icons of any universe, but they are important in their own ways, too. Unlike other comic book characters which have little to no flexibility with regards to how they are portrayed on the big screen, the beauty of Guardians of the Galaxy is that there are no overwhelming expectations, no forced origin stories that are set in stone. And while the film portrays the characters from the comics in a way that is in large part authentic to their "Earth-616" counterparts (Marvel Comics fans know what I'm talking about), they are also human...at least in as much as they are conveyed with real character and are a lot of fun to watch and listen to their banter. While the ending tips its hand at justifying Starlord's ability to resolve the main conflict, I'd still like to think that somehow he and his friends succeed through the power of their friendship, all of them learning a little more about themselves in the process. And now for these new heroes, to quote the song, "ooh, child things are gonna get easier...things'll get brighter."
Recommended for: Fans of sci-fi space battles and alien worlds, where "no man has gone before" and all that, positively marinating in nostalgia. Also, for fans of good, old-fashioned '60s and '70s pop classics, because who wouldn't love an "Awesome Mix Vol. 1"?