Film The Bizarro Episode of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (and awesome because of it)
Every troper is familiar with the Bizarro Episode, where it's not about following the show's Story Arc or amassing Character Development. It's about - rather than Jumping the Shark - punching it in its goddamn face. In Fringe it was "Brown Betty". In The X-Files it was "Jose Chung's From Outer Space". For the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it's Guardians of the Galaxy. And if you'll excuse my Precision F-Strike, it is fucking amazing for being it.
In Guardians, Peter Quill (AKA "Star Lord") is sent to retrieve an orb that contains an immense power (which I won't spoil here). However, he's not the only one who wants it. Ronan, a Kree warlord who seeks revenge for the Xandarian war against his people, wants the orb to destroy their planet. Also, The Collector (played by Benicio del Toro} wants it. And so does Yandu. Sound like a MacGuffin to get the plot rolling? It is, and Quill delivers a truly great Lampshade about this.
The real story of Guardians is its characters. In order to stop Ronan and retrieve the orb, Peter joins up with a motley crew of misfits. I only have 300 words left in this review so I can't oogle about each character too much (as much as I want to). All you need to know is the chemistry between these characters is up there with Firefly in terms of perfect-ness. Combine this great team with some truly thrilling action and visual splendor and you have a truly awesome adventure movie.
Oh yeah, you bet your ass the visuals in this movie are great. This is the best big budget Space Opera since The Empire Strikes Back and twice as deliciously pulpy. You know those cheap Space Opera books you see across from Philip K. Dick and Robert Heinlein in the sci-fi section of Barnes and Noble? This movie is the adaptation of the covers of those books, and retains the genre's wondrous disregard for hard sci-fi.
This movie is also unapologetically hilarious. As I said, this is the Bizarro Episode of the MCU. This movie is as much a comedy as a Space Opera (making it true to the comics) but it works. Like, "Bad-Blood-from-The-X-Files" level of works.
My final word: see this movie. You will love it, and you'll probably spend five long hours editing the page for it just because it deserves it.
Film 12% of a review
You have seen the films of Earth Mightiest Super Heroes. Thor. Hulk. Iron Man. Captain America. Phil Coulson. Now, it is time to leave Earth, go to space, the realm of every science fiction that counts, and meet… a bunch of losers. The Guardians of the Galaxy! Because, you know, the galaxy is such a small place, that even just five guys in a ship can protect it.
Prepare for a fight for the possession of the Infinity Stone, a stone so powerful that it can destroy planets, and which was initially stolen from an abandoned temple. Suit up for a fight between rival thieves... I mean, heroes... which ends with the lot of them jailed for theft. Watch them work toguether to escape from prison, even when half the team wants to kill or capture themselves someone else from the team. Behold the team as they get rid of the Infinity Stone by giving it to the all-powerful Collector, but things end in disaster when the Collector’s maid commits suicide, and Drax calls in the bad guy. Huh? Enjoy the final battle against Ronan, who wants to destroy a whole planet with the Stone, and stands his ground against everything, from lasers and ships to an awful fashion designer, and finally gets defeated by... a bufoon dancing? No, you can’t be serious, right? Please, stop. Stop! Stoooooooooop! Oh, the humanity!
The Guardians –“you said it yourself, bitch!” - are led by Space Lord (or whatever), who reacted to the death of his mother the only possible way: becoming a space pirate that hears 1970s music in a walkman. Hey, I had one of those! Gamora, an alien who fights like the Black Widow and looks like Hulk’s cousin. Rocket and Groot, a pair of extras from Lord of the Rings, and Drax... a guy with knives. They will team up against Thanos, the most dangerous villain, who just stays in his chair and does not do anything the whole movie. And Ronan, who betrayed the Kree empire for Thanos, and then betrayed Thanos to work alone.
- Tony Stark: Not a great plan
Starring: Philip J. Fry as Star Lord. Turanga Leela as Gamora. Marv as Drax. Treebeard as Groot. Mojo Jojo as Rocket. Waylon Smithers as Ronan. Daria Morguendorffer as Nebula. The fat comic book guy as The Collector.
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Film A bit overhyped
I admit, this was the movie i was looking forward to the most(next to Gareth Edwards Godzilla), since i'm a space opera buff and i loved the various Marvel's space events made by the likes of Keith Giffen, Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning before they got screwed by the lackluster run written by Bendis(who decided to work on the Guardians just to promote the movie and little else). And i ended up having mixed feelings about this new movie of the MCU.
T He problems i have with the flick are the following:
1)The Star Wars comparisons are BS:It doesn't have the same larger than life feel of the SW movies(or the cosmic stories by Keith Giffen, Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning for that matter), the Tyler Bates score as nothing on Jonh Willians and Darth Vader has much more depth and charisma than Ronan.
2)The aliens are just cheap human aliens and Rubber Forehead Aliens.
3)The Collector appears only in one scene to give some exposition about the Infinity Stones, despite all the hype the character got.
4)Gamora was kinda dull and doesn't give the impression of being the deadliest woman in the galaxy.
5)The CG on Thanos face looked a bit off and Josh Brolin's voice wasn't really intimidating.
6)The villains:Why they gave to a great actor like Hounsou the role of a cookie-cutter henchman? Nebula does barely anything and her fight with Gamora was too short. And Ronan...hoooly ssshit why they pulled the Feige-Ray on us again so soon? Ronan here was just a one dimensional religious fanatic(because every villain must be compared to islamic terrorist nowadays 'MURICA!) with no redeeming qualities. What makes it cringeworthy is that he's a more fleshed out character in stories like Annihilation and War of Kings.
7)The post credits scene:They could have introduced Adam Warlock or Richard Rider but no, we get the duck from that 1986 movie reviewed by the Nostalgia Critic.
8) The Novas are powerless red shirts and why they gave them the Infinity Gem if they sucked so bad at defending their homeplanet from a single spaceship before the arrival of the Ravagers?
But for the most part, i really liked this movie, Pratt could be the new Robert Downey Jr. Groot is heartwarming, Rocket is crazy awesome and Batista really showed he can act as Drax.
I give the movie a 3,5/5.
Film Not Galaxy Quest but not bad.
There was only one standout quality of the movie for me; the dogfights. Not only does the movie come up with some creative ways of getting spaceships to attack each other, but the special effects make it look absolutely stunning. That is perhaps the one thing this movie sets a benchmark for.
Other than that the movie is mediocre. The comedy resorts to either pushing the 12A certificate as far as possible with foul language and aliens either taking Earth references literally or with confusion. So it loses out to Galaxy Quest which aimed shots across sci-fi with great candour. Guardians of the Galaxy gets plenty of dumb jokes for quick giggles but nothing insightful enough to be effective, which is the hallmark of great comedies.
The fight scenes thankfully aren't overridden with shaky-cam and fast editing but they are often short and without any proper payoff. That is a bit of a let-down in a team led by bounty hunters, assassins, warriors and pirates.
Acting wise the movie does okay, but the main characters themselves can't really shake off their generic attributes. Peter Quill is the age-old space rogue Kirk/Solo, Drax is space-Kratos and Groot is eco-friendly wooden giant. Then again they do try to bring some drama to Peter Quill's story which works well until he completely brushes off his mysterious heritage.
The film doesn't always get the right mix of elements right like Galaxy Quest did. Ronan the Accuser is possibly the darkest villain in a Marvel film to date; in his first five minutes he bludgeons someone to death. Bearing in mind this is a film, that has rapid-fire jokes. Perhaps a less dark villain would have better suited, since the way he is beaten is quite idiotic as well as anti-climatic.
Otherwise the film does everything, competently and quite energetically. The pace is good, the music is fine and the visuals are all top notch. It could be better but it isn't bad.
Film A fun ride from start to finish
And it certainly doesn't want to be anything more...and I mean that as a compliment. The best thing about the movie is that it is very self-aware. The makers knew exactly that there is nothing really new about a story of outlaws who end up saving the Galaxy somehow. So they decided to do it with a little wink in the eye, subverting overdone tropes left and right.
This is a blink and you'll miss it movie...there is so much stuff getting thrown at you that it's easy to miss an important detail. But everything fits well together. You get the characters and you get why they are acting the way they do. The only thing I would have liked to be built up a little better is the relationship between Gamora and Nebula.
My favourite parts (and I never thought that I would ever say that about any movie) are the battle scenes. This is far away from "we fire at the ship and hope to hit the one vulnerable spot"...there is a lot of tactic, and a lot of creativity involved, which makes the battle scenes a joy to watch!
Also, despite the story being not really much to write home about in its basics, the movie nevertheless kept me guessing how they would get there, and surprised me again and again with unexpected twists. There isn't really a lot to criticise about this movie, but a lot to love.
Some people will say that it is overrated. I don't think that it is. Personally I still like "The Winter Soldier" better, others will always give "The Avengers" the top spot, but I think in the end it is a matter of taste and which genre speaks more to you. This movie is certainly up there with the best of the Marvel series, and not watching it in theatres would be a loss.
Film Hooked on a feeling....
This movie was just..amazing.I thoroughly enjoyed 97% of it. It was just so entertaining to watch that I can't seem to really find anything I disliked about it. The scope and visuals are just wonderful to behold.It certainly was a lot more colorful than other marvel movies,in every sense of the word. Even if you're not a marvel fan,this movie has a lot of references to many different Science fiction films and video games if you pay attention. The acting was just amazing,you can tell they had a lot of fun making this,makes you kinda wish you were in the movie with them. I know a lot of people thought Rocket Raccoon was the best part,but for me personally I really liked Yondu,he was awesome. So yeah,if you haven't seen this movie...go see it.Theres something in it for everybody.I guarantee you will walk out of this movie feeling satisfied,money very well spent I must say.
Film Some problems, but still a great watch
The oddest thing about Guardians of the Galaxy is that it's perhaps the most discreet origin story for the Marvel Cinematic Universe so far. The fact of the matter was that none of the guardians ever got together wanting to be a hero. (well, Gamora had somewhat more noble intentions trying to screw over her evil overlords, but that was more about vengeance than justice) True, neither did Iron Man, but he was forced into a situation where heroism was the only way out of his problems. These 5 Ragtag Band of Misfits could easily have given themselves a way out several times in the film, but fear, pragmatism, hope and nobility keeps drawing them back.
In a way, these individuals are bound together by their pain. Starlord has been running all his life from the pain of losing his mother without knowing his father. Gamora was forced to be a weapon for the man who killed her family. Drax's anger masks the pain he has from losing the ones he loved. And rocket suffers from an inferiority complex due to how he came to be. (groot gets a free pass as their Token Good Teammate) And its only when they finally had a common enemy and a greater goal to work towards that they manage to come together as Fire-Forged Friends.
The climax of the film is spectacular. And what makes it even better is that it doesn't give the heroes a free pass to stop everyone like in The Avengers. Rather, they do need some serious help in order to stop ronan, making the whole thing feel like a team effort in a good way. And the fight scenes, while sometimes a bit shaky, are a real treat to watch.
That being said, I was rather disappointed with some parts of the film. For example: the villains, while menacing, don't carry the same kind of weight Captain America: The Winter Soldier did with their motivations and plans. They just needed a little more oomph in some different ways. (Nebula especially, who got a bit confusing after a while) Also, I was a bit baffled by what happened to The Collector at this point in the story. Also, the ending scene; SUCH a disappointment, especially since there were several plot points from the movie which could have been mentioned going into the sequel.
However, that still doesn't fully detract from film, and I still give it a recommendation to watch. It's heartwarming, fun, awesome and a worthy addition to the universe. Go Guardians!
Film Formulaic but refined
What's this movie about? In troper speak, I would say it's about a Five-Man Band who must prevent a MacGuffin from falling into the hands of the Big Bad, all while learning the Power of Friendship. That's pretty generic, but remember that's not bad.
I remember a quote that was something like this: "If you want a refined experience, stick with a formulaic tale. If you want freshness and originality, don't expect perfection." Call Hollywood what you want, but Got G shows they have perfected the formula.
Got G has pristine special effects (two of the five main protagonists are CGI), and the action sequences are exciting if not distinct. The characters are forgettable but hold you attention and play off each other nicely. The humor is good, and the plot doesn't have too many holes in it.
Of course, there are still flaws: the standard sci-fi clichés (aliens all inexplicably looking like humans and speaking perfect English), a generic bad guy, the nature of the interplay comedy and violence that may put off some people, Unfortunate Implications and Fridge Horror surrounding the backstories of certain characters, among others.
But these problems don't distract from the fun. Certain films may be loaded with problems, but make up for them. Got G is such a film. However, there is a very big problem with this movie (and to an extent Marvel movies in general): dead characters don't stay dead. In fact, I'm just going to let Batman say it: "I'm sensing a pattern here: Coulson, Stark, Loki; you thought they were gone, and then they weren't.". You can't have your dramatic death and cop out of it.
Overall, it's a good movie. I wouldn't see it twice, but I would recommend it to someone.
Read my full review at Mr. Movie's Cinematic Survey.