By Nadia Ranaputri
Director: James Gunn
Cast: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Michael Rooker, Pom Klementieff, and Kurt Russell.
Writer and director James Gunn was once asked how the hell he’d top the first film. In reply, James stated, "I'm not even gonna try. I'm just going to make it different." After their successful debut in 2014, Marvel’s galaxy team return to the silver screen as Marvel’s fifteenth entry in their Cinematic Universe.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 takes place months after the events of the first film, where the Guardians are now heroes for hire (no relation to the Defenders). After cutting ties with the Sovereign, the people who hired the Guardians earlier to defeat a certain creature, by committing treason against them; the Guardians find themselves on the run. During the bitter encounter, the Guardians must also face issues within their own internal territory as they discover what it means to be a real team.
Chris Pratt once again reprises his role as the swash-buckling Guardians leader Peter Quill, aka Star-Lord. Evidently, he still brings that same charm that audiences fell in love with in the first film, whilst also bringing more depth to his character as many have known that in this installment, Peter finally gets to meet his real father, Kurt Russell’s Ego.
Zoe Saldana’s Gamora is also given more this time around, as she tries to set things right with Nebula (Karen Gillan). Their relationship as sisters may be broken, but it isn’t too late to try and mend that broken relationship. This gives the two sisters more depth to work with, which was very interesting to see. Michael Rooker’s Yondu isn’t excluded from the party either. In fact, the film gives time for his character to grow by pairing him up with Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper), giving the pair plenty of fun dynamic duo moments. The film’s new addition Mantis (played by Pom Kelemtieff) not only had some of the funniest moments, but also some of the heart of the film, especially in a heart-to-heart scene with Dave Bautista’s Drax that expands Drax to be more than just a humorous figure, but to remind us that he was once a man with a family.
One would argue that Vol 2 focuses more on the characters and their arcs than the story. However, I felt that this was exactly the route that James Gunn was going for. Vol 2 is more about character than story, and the danger doesn't lie within the bigger part of the galaxy, it lies within the internal aspects. The galaxy may not seem in bigger danger as they were in the first film, but Vol 2 explores the danger within the Guardians themselves. This installment deals with family, the inner core of the Guardians. They can't save the galaxy if they won't save themselves, and personally, I felt that this was the route that James Gunn was trying to convey. Vol 2 felt as if it wasn’t trying to be bigger than the first, rather it tries to dig deeper than the first. Yes, they’re fun wise-cracking A-Holes, but they also happen to have a heart.
However, this could also lead to a case of something more than they could chew. When you've got a lot to juggle in your ensemble, it can lead to something that's either smooth or muddled. For Guardians vol 2, it's more smooth than muddled, but the muddled aspect is still there. Not everyone gets a chance to shine, and even more so, to give many spotlights to them isn't going to do much of a favor either, considering that the bigger story is overshadowed by character moments. The film does slightly fall victim on overstuffing the duration that makes the film feel slower than it should, especially during the second act; which was the opposite of what the first film had done to bring a cohesive story into their mix. They're interesting, to say the least, but the story as a whole didn't feel as solid or cohesive as what the first film had brought to the table, though it's not an overall mess.
In addition, if there's anything that the two Guardians films have managed to do, is that they bring the most fun out of the bunch. Whimsical colors brush over the gritiness like a colorful candy wrap, making yet another exquisite range of those aesthetically immersive visual aspects. The same familiar humor that one would expect from the Guardians is most definitely still there, though some of them don’t land well as much as it wants to. But beneath all the humor, there’s that heart and soul that make the Guardians films an experience. Heart and soul behind humor is the essence of the Guardians, and Vol 2 isn't short of them. There's more to these characters that meets the eye, and Vol 2 manages to flesh out just a little more from these little misfits that had captured our attention (and also our hearts) from the get-go. Simply put, they're the same lovable a-holes that we've grown to adore. Even then, when the story falters, it is ultimately the characters that bring it back up to a solid peak.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 isn't much of an underwhelming result as it is overwhelming under a colorful candy wrap that the film blankets over. For a sequel to a film that once managed to bring in originality and authenticity into the MCU, Guardians Vol 2 has plenty of those to look out for, despite its troubles. Vol 2 was really all about character, because it's the characters that grip the film altogether and make the film more enjoyable than it should. It's not going to top the first one, for sure, but it is still a wickedly solid film. It is at its worst case, possibly something more than they could chew over at times. But at its best, it is still a solidly entertaining film that proves the Guardians still has just the right beats to groove to.
Stars: 4.2/5
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| Source: Empire |
Director: James Gunn
Cast: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Michael Rooker, Pom Klementieff, and Kurt Russell.
Writer and director James Gunn was once asked how the hell he’d top the first film. In reply, James stated, "I'm not even gonna try. I'm just going to make it different." After their successful debut in 2014, Marvel’s galaxy team return to the silver screen as Marvel’s fifteenth entry in their Cinematic Universe.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 takes place months after the events of the first film, where the Guardians are now heroes for hire (no relation to the Defenders). After cutting ties with the Sovereign, the people who hired the Guardians earlier to defeat a certain creature, by committing treason against them; the Guardians find themselves on the run. During the bitter encounter, the Guardians must also face issues within their own internal territory as they discover what it means to be a real team.
Chris Pratt once again reprises his role as the swash-buckling Guardians leader Peter Quill, aka Star-Lord. Evidently, he still brings that same charm that audiences fell in love with in the first film, whilst also bringing more depth to his character as many have known that in this installment, Peter finally gets to meet his real father, Kurt Russell’s Ego.
Zoe Saldana’s Gamora is also given more this time around, as she tries to set things right with Nebula (Karen Gillan). Their relationship as sisters may be broken, but it isn’t too late to try and mend that broken relationship. This gives the two sisters more depth to work with, which was very interesting to see. Michael Rooker’s Yondu isn’t excluded from the party either. In fact, the film gives time for his character to grow by pairing him up with Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper), giving the pair plenty of fun dynamic duo moments. The film’s new addition Mantis (played by Pom Kelemtieff) not only had some of the funniest moments, but also some of the heart of the film, especially in a heart-to-heart scene with Dave Bautista’s Drax that expands Drax to be more than just a humorous figure, but to remind us that he was once a man with a family.
 |
| Source: latestnewsexplorer.com |
One would argue that Vol 2 focuses more on the characters and their arcs than the story. However, I felt that this was exactly the route that James Gunn was going for. Vol 2 is more about character than story, and the danger doesn't lie within the bigger part of the galaxy, it lies within the internal aspects. The galaxy may not seem in bigger danger as they were in the first film, but Vol 2 explores the danger within the Guardians themselves. This installment deals with family, the inner core of the Guardians. They can't save the galaxy if they won't save themselves, and personally, I felt that this was the route that James Gunn was trying to convey. Vol 2 felt as if it wasn’t trying to be bigger than the first, rather it tries to dig deeper than the first. Yes, they’re fun wise-cracking A-Holes, but they also happen to have a heart.
However, this could also lead to a case of something more than they could chew. When you've got a lot to juggle in your ensemble, it can lead to something that's either smooth or muddled. For Guardians vol 2, it's more smooth than muddled, but the muddled aspect is still there. Not everyone gets a chance to shine, and even more so, to give many spotlights to them isn't going to do much of a favor either, considering that the bigger story is overshadowed by character moments. The film does slightly fall victim on overstuffing the duration that makes the film feel slower than it should, especially during the second act; which was the opposite of what the first film had done to bring a cohesive story into their mix. They're interesting, to say the least, but the story as a whole didn't feel as solid or cohesive as what the first film had brought to the table, though it's not an overall mess.
In addition, if there's anything that the two Guardians films have managed to do, is that they bring the most fun out of the bunch. Whimsical colors brush over the gritiness like a colorful candy wrap, making yet another exquisite range of those aesthetically immersive visual aspects. The same familiar humor that one would expect from the Guardians is most definitely still there, though some of them don’t land well as much as it wants to. But beneath all the humor, there’s that heart and soul that make the Guardians films an experience. Heart and soul behind humor is the essence of the Guardians, and Vol 2 isn't short of them. There's more to these characters that meets the eye, and Vol 2 manages to flesh out just a little more from these little misfits that had captured our attention (and also our hearts) from the get-go. Simply put, they're the same lovable a-holes that we've grown to adore. Even then, when the story falters, it is ultimately the characters that bring it back up to a solid peak.
 |
| Source: Variety |
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 isn't much of an underwhelming result as it is overwhelming under a colorful candy wrap that the film blankets over. For a sequel to a film that once managed to bring in originality and authenticity into the MCU, Guardians Vol 2 has plenty of those to look out for, despite its troubles. Vol 2 was really all about character, because it's the characters that grip the film altogether and make the film more enjoyable than it should. It's not going to top the first one, for sure, but it is still a wickedly solid film. It is at its worst case, possibly something more than they could chew over at times. But at its best, it is still a solidly entertaining film that proves the Guardians still has just the right beats to groove to.
Stars: 4.2/5
