Is Guardians Of The Galaxy vol. 2 worth your time and money?...Let's find out!
Guardians of The Galaxy, when released in 2014, took everyone by surprise with its humour and execution. The space outlaws were instantly loved by everyone and the film earned big money at the worldwide box office. It was everything that Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is known for yet it was a like a breath of fresh air in the superhero genre. The second installment stars Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper as Rocket, Vin Diesel as Baby Groot, Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff and Kurt Russell as Ego, among others. The film is directed by James Gunn.
What’s It About
After saving the galaxy first time around, they are now famous as Guardians Of The Galaxy. Things go downhill for the space outlaws when a job goes wrong and the Sovereign are after their life. That’s when they come across Ego, the living planet (Kurt Russell), who claims to be Peter Quill’s father. What happens when Star-Lord learns more about his roots, his ‘unspoken’ connection with Gamora, Gamora’s relationship with her sister Nebula, Quill’s relationship with Yondu, Rocket finding his true self, Baby Groot learning a thing or two about the world and between all of them Drax, just having a fun. So is the movie worth you time and money? Let’s find out…
What’s Hot
The starcast of the film…be it Chris Pratt as lovable goofball Peter Quill, Dave Bautista as Drax, Bradley Cooper as Rocket, Vin Diesel as Baby Groot, Michael Rooker as Yondu or Kurt Russell as Ego – all are delightful. This film is more about character development. Chris Pratt, since his breakout role in the first part, has turned out to be one of the most lovable movie stars on the big screen. He has got a great screen presence and that works well in the film’s favour. Even in the most dramatic of the scenes, he manages to tickle you with his humour and charm. Zoe Saldana, as Gamora, has a more milder character than her previous stint. She is shown as the most caring member of the lot. Her chemistry with Chris is just amazing. And the running joke about the ‘unspoken’ thing is both funny and romantic.
While Michael Rooker’s Yondu was more of a side character in the first film, he gets an ample amount in this one and has quite a few heroic moments. In fact his character is the surprise package and there is a possibility that you might end up being a Yondu fan by the end of the film. Legendary Kurt Russell as Ego-The Living Planet is charismatic and majestic. I don’t think anyone else apart from him could’ve played Ego and owned the screen like he did. After ages I saw Kurt Russell in a role as strong as this. And it was a welcome change.
Having said that, a revelation for me and often the scene stealer, was Dave Bautista as Drax. Turning from Drax The Destroyer to Drax The Gentle Giant, he is having the ball of his life in this one. In fact he is the reason the film is high on humour, even if sometimes it looks forced. I loved the way how, with so much ease, he spews insults and gets away with it. He is there to entertain you to the fullest and Bautista makes sure he delivers and how. His camaraderie with Pom Klementieff’s awkward Mantis is the highlight.
Bradley Cooper as Rocket and Vin Diesel as Baby Groot are first rate as far as their voiceover is concerned. Same, however, can’t be said about their characters. More on that later.
I remember watching Doctor Strange last year and loving the fact that how beautiful it looked. GOTG 2 scores high on that and even surpasses it. It’s a visual masterpiece and IMAX 3D viewing is highly recommended. In fact it is the best I’ve seen in any film so far. The film is shot beautifully.
P.S. Watch out for various surprise cameos in the film. And yes there are as many as FIVE end credit scenes. So sit through till the end.
What’s Not
The reason why everyone loved the first part as much was because there was a novelty factor that worked in its favour. Here it lacked that. James Gunn succeeded in the first part with a good balance of everything, be it humour, emotions and action. Here the film is more about humour and grandeur. In fact the film is high on humour, so much so, that sometimes it becomes forced. So when the pre-climax suddenly becomes too preachy it acts as a buzz kill.
The plot lacked soul. This time it was more of repeating all that had worked in favour of the first one.
Having said all that, the biggest downside for me were two of the my most favourite characters from the franchise, Rocket and Baby Groot. They provide you with enough amount of fun on screen, be it Rocket’s crude humour (though sadly lesser than the first part) and aww-worthy Baby Groot, but their characters, on the whole, don’t serve any purpose whatsoever. Now that was a turnoff for me, as a fan.
As far as music is concerned, while I totally liked “The Awesome Mixtape #1”, toplined by Hooked On A Feeling, “The Awesome Mixtape #2” was not that great and I was happy when *SPOILER-ALERT* it was squished by the one of the characters towards the climax.
What To Do
Make no mistake, the film delivers as far as entertainment is concerned. Is it funnier than the first part? Yes. Is it better than the first? NO. The film double downs on everything, which sometimes works and sometimes doesn’t, in its favour. Watch the film for its charismatic cast, for the visual master piece that it is and for the non-stop humour it provides. The film is one down from its predecessor but still provides with loads of fun and entertainment.
Rating: out of 5
Reviewed by Gaurang Chauhan
* Poor
** Average
*** Good
**** Very good
Rating: out of 5
Reviewed by Gaurang Chauhan
* Poor
** Average
*** Good
**** Very good
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