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| Courtesy of Marvel Studios |
At
this point, anyone who underestimates Marvel Studios does so at the risk of
looking like a fool. A decade of unparalleled success on the big screen proves
the execs have a winning creative process and a lucrative business model. The
studio has never been afraid of taking ridiculously large chances, which
usually pay off big time.
How
else do you explain Marvel greenlighting a sequel to their latest – a crazy space
opera in which two of the main characters are a talking, machine gun-wielding
raccoon and a sentient tree – one week before it even opens in theaters? That
is, aside from the fact that Guardians of the Galaxy is one of the funniest, most
entertaining flicks I’ve seen all summer. The studio has been doing this long
enough to know when it has a winner on its hands.
The
film should also make Chris Pratt (NBC’s Parks and Recreation) a giant movie
star. He plays Peter Quill, a Han Solo-esque rogue jetting around the universe
to nab various treasures that could make him a lot of money. However, when he
finds a mysterious orb, he attracts more attention than he cares for.
A
murderous villain known as Ronan the Accuser (Lee Pace) wants the object, and
he doesn’t care how many planets he has to destroy to get it. Along the way,
Quill assembles an eccentric team – including the green-skinned Gamora (Zoe
Saldana), dangerous criminal Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), ill-tempered
Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper) and living tree Groot (Vin Diesel) – to help
him escape Ronan’s clutches and perhaps save the universe too.
Writer-director
James Gunn handles the material with an expert touch, seamlessly integrating
mind-blowing visual effects and transforming C-list (at best) comic book characters
into some of the most compelling elements of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Pratt is terrific, masterfully juggling Quill’s humor, his selfish motives and
his secret good heart. Saldana is strong as always, making Gamora much nobler than
she initially seems.
This
is my first brush with Bautista, but he’s got a terrific sense of humor. His
dry delivery elicited a ton of laughs from the screening I attended. But the
film’s big standouts are Rocket and Groot, thanks to enthusiastic vocal
performances from Cooper and Diesel. Cooper makes the raccoon anything but cute
and cuddly, instilling him with rage and distrust after being a lab experiment
for years. And the less I say about the noble, adorable Groot the better. I’d
much rather let you discover that joyous surprise on your own.
So
add Guardians of the Galaxy to your list of movies to see on the big screen.
It’s fun, vibrant and reminiscent of the great cheesy sci-fi flicks of the ’70s
– as the terrific soundtrack will attest. Marvel has tightened its grip on pop
culture for the foreseeable future.
Guardians of the Galaxy is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, and for some language.
Grade:
A-
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