Guardians of the Galaxy

What Marvel is doing here is absolutely unprecedented in the history of cinema and I think it would be really wise for us all to take a step back and...ahem..."marvel" in...well just how much they have their s**t together.

And I'm not talking specifically about Guardians of the Galaxy here. Oh don't you worry. I'll be getting to that soon.

No. I'm speaking more to just how exquisitely planned out all of this is starting to become. Sure they don't have the X-men (belongs to 20th Century Fox). Sure they don't have Spider-man (belongs to Sony). But they have pretty much every other super hero that matters but they've just proven that that's not even the point anymore. There is a much larger plot line going on here and Marvel knows it will take years to get there. "Phases" are what they are calling them. It's an entirely new concept in the cinematic world, one that concluded under "Phase 1" mightily successfully with The Avengers. These are not trilogies nor prequel trilogies. They are not anthologies. They are compartmentalized groupings of films that all play into a bigger piece of the puzzle, granted, some more than others. It's cinematic pioneering and at this point Marvel just can't be stopped.

I would like a show of hands (rhetorically of course) of those persons who are reading this review who had even heard of the "Guardians of the Galaxy" before the film was announced. A couple of you? Maybe? I know that I hadn't in the slightest. But here we are, about a year and a half later and Marvel has successfully crafted another hit out of a band of misfits of which there is a talking raccoon named Rocket.

And DC comics continue to complain that bringing Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern, and Green Arrow to the big screen is proving "challenging".

I wonder how hard the execs at Marvel are laughing after this weekend?

Probably about as hard as I was laughing my tail off at the theater tonight.

Visually this is Marvel's most stunning movie to date, even
more than The Avengers

Marvel's best team yet?

Guardians of the Galaxy is essentially an adventure tale in space. It constantly reminded me of Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and The Avengers. It starts out with Peter Quill, played perfectly by now-mega-movie-star Chris Pratt getting abducted from Earth. Along the way it introduces us to Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Groot (Vin Diesel), Drax (Dave Bautista), and Rocket (Bradley Cooper). The hardest thing that Guardians had going against it was that not a single one of these characters has been established previously in the universe. For Marvel, this was a big time first and probably the riskiest movie they've made to date. But as we all know, Marvel goes big and big risk equals big reward. To say the casting was perfect would be a discredit to whomever was responsible. Pratt leads a movie better than I ever thought he would be able to, Saldana is lovely as always but this time she can kick anyone's ass, Bautista is nearly the hidden gem of the film with some of its best deadpan one-liners, and Diesel makes the absolute most out of the three words that he speaks: "I am Groot!", essentially making Groot the Chewbacca of this series. While the team as a whole is really the star of the show here, I found Rocket (the foul-mouthed, gun wielding raccoon for those of you whom are unfamiliar) to be my favorite. He is the glue that holds the group together, even if we aren't always aware of it. Bradley Cooper voices him with energetic attitude and really brings the character to life. You may notice that I often don't start with the cast of a film, but when it's this central to the core success of the whole thing, I could think of no other way to do so. This team that Marvel has assembled is fun, funny, dangerous, and charming.

Guardians' plot is truly nothing special. Pretty much your standard quest-for-an-artifact space drama that leads to an ultimate showdown. But what separates Guardians from the rest of the Marvel universe is its attitude. Much more raw, unfiltered, and non-kosher than the likes of their previous movies; it's a bit shocking just how much of a comedy it really ends up being. It certainly plays into the large cinematic universe's plot as it deals with an Infinity Stone and Thanos (seen at the end of the first Avengers) but the film is largely about this group of "losers" coming together to do something great and become something great. Think of it like The Avengers had we never met Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, or the Hulk before. Some have complained that it was overstuffed, but I would disagree. Each character has a suitable amount of backstory that attaches you to their character at some point along the way and at a high level, the plot is simple as could be. There are some space names that get a bit tiresome and plentiful, I'll admit, but most of them are attached to memorable secondary characters. Lee Pace plays, what is in my opinion, the best villain other than Loki (in the Marvel universe that is), Ronan. He is a brutal, crazed man with an even more menacing look about him. His sidekick Nebula is also fun to watch although she was the most forgettable out of the rest. Michael Rooker, John C. Reilly, and Glenn Close are present and do well out of their comfort zone.

Pink and purple have never been so frightening!

But even moving forward past the fun plot and the amazing characters, Guardians is just a really well made film. The script is witty with a dry sense of humor and even a touch of heart. This is accented by a superbly selected soundtrack straight from the 70s (which the movie gives reasoning for) that goes along with a decent enough original score. The cinematography is gorgeous...I would say some of Marvel's best yet, and the special effects are ones that continue to make me believe in other worlds, further enhanced in spectacular IMAX 3D.

Really, my only gripes with Guardians are these: it takes some time to get into the groove of things. The first 15 minutes are really well done, but it falters for the next 10-15 after that. But, and unfortunately this is something the creators can't control, I afraid it's just not for everyone. I'm a fan boy through and through. Even though I haven't read the comics for any of these films, I love the genre and I most likely always will. But I imagine that there are those who will see this and leave befuddled. The humor will go over their heads, the story too silly for them to appreciate, and the characters too unpronounced for them to follow. It's the beauty of cinema: our differences in opinion. It just makes me sad to realize that many non-fans probably won't get the sheer amount of pleasure that I got from Guardians.

"Oh. Yeaaahhhh."

I had extraordinarily high expectation for Guardians of the Galaxy going into it. After Godzilla from earlier this year, this film quickly became my most anticipated. And other than a few shaky minutes in the first third it is one of the few films to ever blow past my expectations. Whatever you think you're getting into with Guardians, you're most likely in for a treat.

Tonight I had a smile on my face for nearly two whole hours. As I walked out of the theater just...happy, I remembered a tagline that was used on one of the first posters for Guardians of the Galaxy that read "You're Welcome", almost as if Marvel knew what sort of gem it had on its hands half a year ago.

And the one thing that came to my mind?

I uttered a quiet "Thank You" to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

CONS:

• There is a point in time near the beginning of the film where you can tell it's setting up the story and struggling at finding it's groove
• Keeping track of all the space names can get a bit tiresome
• The original score is surpassed by the soundtrack. But, to be honest, original score's have never really been Marvel's strong suit
• Not taking off points here but I feel as if the success of Guardians might drive DC comics into desperation mode and result in catastrophe
• Sad that others might not enjoy it as much as I did

PROS:

• A cast that left many somewhat confused months ago. Turns out we're the idiots and Marvel is full of casting geniuses because each actor plays their part and owns it
• Bradley Cooper really brings Rocket to life and I appreciate his dedication to the character. He could have just phoned it in, but instead he gives us one of Marvel's best yet
• The secondary cast is well utilized and does well with the scenes they are given
• I thought Ronan was a fantastic and menacing villain
• That soundtrack though!
• The plot is simple and tells a complete story within the film while playing a large role in the overarching storylines of Marvel's grand plan
• Once the script gets into full swing it is hilarious. One of the funniest movies of the year
• Beautiful cinematography, special effects, and color pallet. This is one of the more pleasing films to the eye in recent memory
• Speaking of special effects, the effects for Groot and Rocket are top notch. Maybe not Dawn of the Planet of the Apes good, but close
• One of the best Marvel finale battles out of all their movies. I would say only second to The Avengers
• Post credits scenes are great
• James Gunn pulled off what many thought couldn't be done with solid direction of a project that he was clearly passionate about. So glad to hear that he's back for Guardians of the Galaxy 2. This film gets bonus points just for the sheer fact that they pulled it off
• I see a lot of movies and I can't remember having this much pure fun for quite sometime. What a treat

Rath's Review Score:

10/10 -- Instant Classic