Written and Directed by James Gunn
Cast: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell, Elizabeth Debicki, Chris Sullivan, Sean Gunn, Tommy Flanagan
Soundtrack: Tyler Bates
On a personal note, I suppose I should have titled this ‘The People Talking 200th Review 3-Year Anniversary Special’, because it’s been three years since I started this blog, and this is the 200th movie I’m discussing and giving a rating to, but that would be a bit long-winded.
It’s also fitting that Guardians of the Galaxy was my favorite movie of 2014, and still my favorite movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It was a surprise hit (certainly a surprise to the studio, who, based on the marketing, clearly had no idea what they had or what to do with it) that benefited from strong word of mouth (similar to another 2014 movie which just had a sequel). In all honesty, it wasn’t until The Force Awakens that any other movie gave me the same vibes as watching the original Star Wars trilogy when I was a kid; Guardians was that magical.
Enter Vol. 2. This one can’t sneak up on people. They know what it is, the studio knows what it is, and with proper hype comes the weight of expectations, unfair or not.
Basically, what I’m saying is that if you’re going into this one expecting it to be “as good” as the first one, you shouldn’t do that, as you’ll likely not have your expectations fulfilled, though all of this is not to say that Vol. 2 isn’t a very good movie in its own right, because it is. I’d say just don’t expect it to be the exact same movie, because it isn’t.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is eminently entertaining; filled with humor, action (though seemingly less so than other films of its ilk, which I’m okay with), emotional depth, and humor. Did I say humor twice? You bet I did. It’s the funniest movie I’ve seen in a while (so funny that I have to see it again because we were laughing so much), though, again, that’s not to say everything is a joke; it tugs at your heartstrings plenty.
If I have one legitimate criticism in comparing it to the first movie, it’s that the pacing and structure feels a bit clunky at times, but there’s not much else I can complain about. It still has tunes, the performances are still on point, the story is fine, it’s different and weird (which we know to be a good thing for Marvel), and it’s FUN (and it’s well-written enough that you can still understand it even if you’ve never seen a Marvel movie before, unlike another recent Disney product). AND, it takes a page out of the Fast & Furious playbook with the whole #FAMILY thing (which is fine by me).
Vol. 2 is not a perfect film, and it doesn’t necessarily improve on anything, but it is very well crafted; top notch as far as sequels go. It’s not likely to be my favorite movie of the year, given what’s come out already and what’s yet to be released, but it’s more than good enough to get a full theatrical recommendation.
Kudos to James Gunn for keeping the magic going.
Rating: ★★★★☆
P.S.
You won’t be leaving at all during the credits.
And thanks to Alamo and Mondo for the sweet glasses.
