Guardians of the Galaxy Review: A Bold Marvel Gamble

Introduction (Warning Contains Spoilers)

With an extended version of Avengers: Endgame arriving in cinemas this September, Marvel is attracting renewed attention.

Avengers: Doomsday is also scheduled for December.

That makes this the perfect time for another journey through the Marvel Cinematic Universe. We have decided to revisit the Marvel films in chronological order.

Our journey now takes us to 2014 and Guardians of the Galaxy.

Arguably one of the most ambitious movies for Marvel at that time. Unlike Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America, many audiences were not familiar with these characters.

Marvel was essentially asking people to root for a talking raccoon and a talking tree.

It was also bringing to light a new aspect of the Marvel universe.

There were no Avengers running about on Earth.

There were no S.H.I.E.L.D. storylines moving the plot forward. Instead, Marvel took its audiences into outer space.

The movie was directed and written by James Gunn.

Chris Pratt portrays the role of Peter Quill or Star-Lord. Zoe Saldana portrays the role of Gamora.

Dave Bautista acts as Drax the Destroyer. Bradley Cooper gives voice to Rocket. Vin Diesel gives voice to Groot.

Other members of the cast include Lee Pace, Karen Gillan, Michael Rooker and John C. Reilly.

The plot begins in 1988. Young Peter Quill is abducted from Earth after the death of his mother.

He eventually becomes an outlaw in the galaxy. Quill ends up with the strange orb in his possession.

However, several other villainous organizations want that object as well. This puts Quill in opposition with Ronan the Accuser.

Eventually, Quill ends up in prison with other criminals. These include Rocket, Groot, Gamora and Drax.

At first, they do not have any reasons to trust each other. Moreover, their personalities collide continuously.

Nevertheless, the circumstances dictate that they should cooperate. The unusual team will have to save an entire planet.

Here comes the part of the movie which sets it apart from other superhero films. These characters cannot be considered traditional heroes.

On the contrary, they are broken, self-centered and sometimes irresponsible. They have also suffered great personal tragedies.

So, the essence of their adventure is becoming a family. All this is underlined by that particular emotion.

It is one of the factors that make this movie great.
In addition to that, James Gunn provides the film with its unique identity that stands out against other films from Marvel.

The soundtrack is filled with music typical for Peter’s childhood. The production design is very colorful sci-fi. The humor in this movie is more irreverent.

The characters are deliberately strange. The film feels like a space adventure that happens to exist inside the MCU.

That was a major gamble for Marvel. In my opinion, it paid off.

Direction

James Gunn would have been one of the most interesting directors Marvel could pick.

Unlike the earlier Marvel blockbusters, Gunn had a reputation for directing more unique and smaller films.

He came from a different place than those other directors. The difference is clearly evident from the first scene.

Gunn does not try to make Guardians of the Galaxy resemble The Avengers. Rather, he makes it its own unique film.

This is perhaps the greatest directorial feat of the film.

Gunn knows that the characters are strange. He does not try to cover up their strangeness.

He embraces it. The talking raccoon is allowed to be a talking raccoon. The walking tree is allowed to be totally honest.

Drax is a very literal person. Peter Quill acts like a juvenile space criminal. Gamora is the only sane person on board.

This difference makes up for the humor in the movie.

However, Gunn understands that comedy cannot carry the entire movie. The characters must have emotional layers.

And that’s where the film turns out to be really good. Rocket doesn’t exist only to make jokes. His aggression stems from years of torture.

The naivety of Groot conceals immense emotional warmth. Drax’s craving for revenge results from the loss of his family.

Gamora tries to get away from Thanos’ influence. Quill is still struggling with his mother’s death.

Gunn gives every character a vulnerability. Then the gang becomes a group of hurt individuals.

Friendship slowly becomes the center of the narrative. It is especially significant because the plot of the movie is quite simple.

There is a strong item. A villain needs it. The heroes need to stop him. Such a plot was already presented in many movies.

What makes Gunn’s movie special is his characters. His visual style is equally significant.

The movie is vibrant, eccentric, and purposely over-the-top. Gunn is all for the classic sci-fi aesthetic.

The surroundings are bizarre. The creatures appear bizarre. The costumes are often outrageous.

It feels like a comic strip come alive. Gunn uses music well too. The music is not just decoration.

They are a part of Peter’s emotion towards Earth. Music also becomes a part of storytelling in the film.

This is illustrated well in the opening sequence of the film. In it, Peter is seen dancing through an alien world while listening to music from his childhood.

It introduces the character instantly. It is humorous. It is visually appealing.

It also tells us something about Peter. He is still linked to the lost world.

Another notable aspect of Gunn’s humor. The characters break the dramatic moments with their humor.

It might get annoying. But in most cases, humor stems from the characters’ personalities.

Drax misinterprets metaphors. Rocket humiliates everyone. Peter makes inappropriate comments.

Groot hardly ever says anything. Thus, the humor is character-based.

Sometimes there are occasions when the humor becomes too much. Some of the scenes would have needed some degree of restraint.

The movie sometimes seems to be unwilling to give some time to a dramatic scene. This may be one of the valid criticisms against Gunn’s style.

But on most occasions, the emotional scenes work. It’s surprising how good the balance between humor and seriousness is.

Also, Gunn manages the ensemble very well. Five quite distinct personalities have to coexist on screen

Nobody completely dominates. Each member contributes something important.

This is particularly impressive considering how much of the cast is digitally created.

Gunn had to direct performers around characters that would later be replaced by CGI. The direction thus demanded a lot of imagination.

Gunn had to know how the final scenes would look like. He also had to make the actors believe in their characters.

The effect is amazingly realistic. However, there are some flaws.

The villain is much less interesting compared to the protagonists. Ronan is dangerous yet very flat.

The plot also takes an unusually conventional turn in the last act. The final battle relies heavily on spectacle.

However, these issues do not undermine Gunn’s biggest achievement.

He turned obscure Marvel characters into genuine personalities. That was the film’s greatest challenge.

Cinematography

Ben Davis was the cinematographer for the film. His contribution is important in building a distinct visual style of the film.

The film looks quite different compared to the current MCU films. The Avengers films were mostly shot in a more grounded style.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier even went more realistic. The Guardians of the Galaxy films have a very opposite look to that. They use lots of bright colors and stylized settings.

The movie seems to be like a living sci-fi comic book. The movie was shot using Arri Alexa XT cameras.

Davis used different types of lenses for the beginning of the Earth sequence and the rest of the movie.

Anamorphic lenses were used to shoot the 1980s footage, which included more visual flaws.

This creates a distinction between Peter’s childhood and his space adventures. The cinematography also does a great job with colour.

Planets have unique visuals in the movie. Xandar is visually futuristic. Morag appears to be isolated and unwelcoming.

Knowhere is darker and unusual. Finally, the prison looks industrial. Such differences create the impression of the vastness of the galaxy.

This is a feature that has been incorporated into the movie.

It is very crucial for a narrative that covers several worlds. Production design collaborates with cinematography in this regard.

The outcome is a universe which is colorful yet has meaning. Gunn and Davis are good at placing these weird characters.

Rocket is very small. Groot is incredibly big. Drax is a physically huge character. Gamora is relatively smaller but very flexible.

Peter falls somewhere in the middle of all of them. As a result, it has to keep track of five totally different characters.

Wide shots work well here. It allows all the members of the group to fit into one frame.

And it works especially well during the moment when the group is reunited. Moreover, the cinematography makes the movie funny.

Sometimes characters are put into the same frame despite the fact that their bodies look different.

So, no need for words to make a visual joke. The space battles in the movie are also great.

The environment is huge. The ships fly very fast within the frame.

The camera gives the viewer enough info about what is happening.nBut the end battle scene can be too busy visually.

There are lots of ships and characters moving around. Some action loses it’s clarity. That criticism is fair.

The film is strongest when its visual style supports the characters.

It becomes slightly weaker when spectacle becomes the priority.

Overall, Davis creates an excellent visual identity. The cinematography feels bold and appropriate for Gunn’s vision.

It also separates Guardians from the rest of the MCU.

Visual Effects

The visual effects are a very important part of the movie “Guardians of the Galaxy.”

There are two characters in the movie which were completely digitally created.

Both Rocket and Groot needed a great amount of visual effects work. Firstly, Rocket was created as a digital character.

And secondly, Groot also needed digital animation. Several visual effects companies were involved in creating the movie.

This scale proves how ambitious the movie was. Rocket could be considered the biggest technical breakthrough.

The character has to appear as a realistic raccoon. But on the other hand, he also has to act like a person.

His facial expressions have to reveal his emotions. His body language has to correspond to Bradley Cooper’s voice acting.

Thus, the visual effects artists needed to make Rocket an actor. This was an important decision.

Not only does Rocket look good. It felt like a character.

Groot is equally impressive. The voice performance by Vin Diesel becomes an entirely computer-generated tree.

Groot’s movements communicate emotions. Groot’s face is relatively simple. As a result, his body language is very important.

The visual effects create an image of Groot as being huge and strong.

At the same time, visual effects make him gentle. That is why Groot is a memorable character.

Also, the environments of the film rely heavily on CGI

First of all, Space is digital. Secondly, many planets and spaceships are digital.

Milano, the spaceship, is one of the visual elements. It becomes a part of Peter’s personality.

Thus, effects should create a feeling of physicality. The visual-effects teams usually do this well.

The spacecrafts have weight. The spacecrafts move through space realistically.

Moreover, the environments contain details. The galaxy is populated..There are exotic creatures everywhere.

There are exotic ships and cities. That helps to create an alien feeling. But is there too much CGI?

In this case, there is not too much CGI..The story requires enormous amounts of digital elements.
Otherwise, it would be impossible to create the universe of the film.

What is more important, the CGI fits into the film’s design. CGI does not hide the fact that it is fantasy and that makes a difference.

The effects are obviously vibrant and over-the-top. They are part of the world Gunn has built.

Some effects are obviously dated. Digital worlds do not seem as credible as they did in 2014.

However, Rocket and Groot still look spectacular. The visual effects in the film were amazing.

They were instrumental in persuading viewers to identify with completely new characters. This may well be the biggest accomplishment.

Themes and Storyline

The central theme is family. The Guardians do not begin as a family. They can hardly stand each other.

All the characters have their individual motives. But then they come together. This makes the movie meaningful.

For example, Peter Quill’s mother died when he was very young. Gamora is out of Thanos’ control. Drax lost his wife and daughter.

Rocket has certainly been experimented on and suffered. Groot is maybe the least scarred. But even he develops an emotional attachment to the pack.

These are all outsiders. This is crucial. They don’t fit into heroic molds. They are criminals, outcasts and survivors.

The movie therefore shows that family need not be defined by blood. It can be built through loyalty. It may also be formed through common experiences.

This theme is most effective in the final act. The characters come to a decision that they will stick together.

They may flee from this situation. However, they choose to defend others.

And that is when they become heroes. The plot of the movie is rather basic. The Infinity Stone serves as the key plot element.

Ronan wants the Orb.

The Guardians must keep him from using it. Thanos is also influencing the events from behind the scenes.

Hence, the storyline can be easily comprehended. This helps a great deal.

There are many characters and places in the movie. An overly complicated storyline would have made things difficult.

But there are also many terms introduced in the film. Xandar is introduced. The Nova Corps is introduced. The Kree are introduced.

The Ravagers are introduced. Knowhere is introduced. Ronan is introduced. Thanos is introduced.

The movie presents a lot of information. However, the relationship between characters keeps things comprehensible.

The plot is more essential than the myth. This is a very sensible choice.

The film also addresses grief. Peter is still dealing with the loss of his mother. He masks this pain through humour.

Drax masks his grief with anger. Rocket masks his with aggression. Gamora masks her grief with emotional detachment.

Everyone deals with it in their own way. This gives the characters more depth. The main weakness of the film is Ronan.

He is powerful. He is threatening. But he lacks the emotional depth that the Guardians have.

The audience is more familiar with the protagonists than with the antagonist.

This decreases the drama. There are times when the movie’s duration seems a bit exaggerated.

There are multiple storylines in the film. They are all interesting. But some of them could have been shortened.

Despite this, the storyline holds together well. It has a clear emotional journey.

The characters begin as individuals. They end as a team. That is enough to carry the story.

Performances

Chris Pratt gives the performance that turned Peter Quill into a major Marvel character.

He brings enormous personality to the role. Quill is arrogant. He is immature. He is also charming.

Chris Pratt knows how to make the character amusing without making him unlikable.

He also knows how to handle the emotional scenes. Peter’s relationship with his mother gives the performance additional depth.

Pratt’s physical comedy is another major strength. He is particularly good at making Quill look ridiculous.

This prevents the character from becoming another perfect superhero.

Zoe Saldaña adds presence to the character of Gamora.

Gamora is one who could have been the deadpan character among a bunch of comedians.

But Saldaña gives Gamora presence. She is smart and competent. She even shows love for the other Guardians.

Their relationship is believable since Gamora does not immediately fall for Peter. She has real conflict with Peter.

The character of Dave Bautista was the biggest gamble. Drax could have been difficult to make work.

Bautista proves surprisingly effective. His physical presence makes Drax intimidating.

His inability to understand metaphors makes him hilarious. However, Bautista also handles the character’s grief.

That gives Drax greater emotional depth.

Bradley Cooper gives his voice to Rocket. He portrays an energetic character with aggression.

Rocket always insults anyone who surrounds him. But Cooper also shows Rocket’s vulnerability.

And that becomes more significant.

Vin Diesel voices Groot. He has very little dialogue. The character’s limited vocabulary becomes part of the humour.

Michael Rooker is excellent as Yondu.

Rooker brings charisma and unpredictabilityYondu feels dangerous. He also has a strange affection for Peter.

Karen Gillan plays Nebula. Her role is smaller. However, Gillan establishes the character’s bitterness. The relationship between Nebula and Gamora becomes increasingly interesting.

Lee Pace plays Ronan. He gives the villain an imposing presence. Unfortunately, the character itself is underwritten.

Pace therefore has limited opportunity to make Ronan emotionally complex.

The performances are nevertheless excellent overall.

The chemistry between the Guardians is the film’s greatest casting success.

They feel like a genuine group.

What Worked and What Did Not

There is much that succeeds in Guardians of the Galaxy. First of all, it is the unique voice of James Gunn.

It is not yet another ordinary Marvel movie. It has its own sense of humor. It has its own visual style.

It has its own music. Above all, it has its own emotional essence.

Another important element that makes the movie great are its characters. They are far from ordinary heroes. These are broken characters who gradually evolve into a family.

It makes the process of their evolution enjoyable.

The soundtrack is brilliant too.

The 1970s tracks give the movie an individual identity.

The songs also carry a lot of emotional weight.

They make Peter remember his mother and his childhood.

The visual effects are also amazing. Rocket and Groot are especially successful.

The galaxy in the movie is also colorful and imaginative. The production design of the film is worthy of praise.

It looks like a comic book brought to life. The humor is yet another strong point.

Most of the jokes are delivered naturally by the characters.

Drax’s literal understanding of language is especially successful. Rocket and Peter have great comedic chemistry.

The emotional scenes in the movie are surprisingly good. The last scenes featuring Groot are very touching.

Nonetheless, the movie is not flawless. The antagonist is the least compelling character in the movie.

Ronan seems to be more functional than fascinating. The plot can sometimes be overloaded.

There are many characters and places that need to be recalled. Sometimes action scenes may turn out to be visually chaotic.

Humour may be used in places where it would be better to remain silent.

As such, Gunn’s style becomes somewhat excessive at times. Another element that illustrates this is the use of soundtrack.

It is really good. But the movie tends to rely on it now and then.

There are scenes when the music looks deliberately composed to remind the viewers about the awesomeness of the soundtrack.

This point must not be overlooked.

The movie also takes inspiration from common science fiction notions.

The traces of Star Wars and similar adventures are obvious.

But the uniqueness of Gunn’s style prevents the movie from becoming a carbon copy.

It looks both familiar and unique. This is a hard thing to do. But sometimes the film overly depends on it.

Sometimes there appear scenes where you feel that the song has been created specifically for showing the quality of the soundtrack.

This point needs attention. The film makes use of typical science-fiction themes There are clear echoes of Star Wars and other space adventures.

However, Gunn’s personality prevents the film from feeling like a simple copy.

The result is familiar but distinctive. That is a difficult balance to achieve.

Overall Verdict

Guardians of the Galaxy was perhaps one of the most ambitious projects by Marvel.

Audiences were introduced to characters they had never heard of before.

And James Gunn had quite a bit of latitude in defining them. And he made quite good use of it.

His direction defines the unique character of the movie.

Its humor is unconventional. Its look is colorful. Its music is iconic. Its characters are complex.

First and foremost, the film is unique within the rest of the Marvel Universe films.

The cinematography by Ben Davis helps make it unique.

Visual effects also contribute to building the universe. Rocket and Groot are especially notable accomplishments.

The CGI is extensive. However, it generally fits the plot. The effects are not just meant to be spectacular. They help bring the characters alive.

Another thing that works well in the movie are the performances. Chris Pratt manages to make Star-Lord a new Marvel favorite.

Zoe Saldaña gives Gamora character and depth. It is a surprise how funny Dave Bautista makes Drax.

Bradley Cooper brings real emotions into Rocket. The most disappointing element is the villain.

Ronan is visually stunning but lacking emotionally. The plot becomes overcrowded as well.

Some action scenes are confusing. Gunn’s humor may sometimes be too much.

The emotional foundation is still solid.

The Guardians start as a group of self-centred people.

In the end, they decide to unite.

This is what makes the movie so interesting.

This is also what prevents it from being a mere space action movie.

James Gunn managed to make a film that could turn into a mess.

On the contrary, he made obscure figures into one of the favourite Marvel superheroes.

This movie also proved the point that the MCU can be a part of an absolutely new genre.
It does not have to stay on our planet.

It can go further to distant galaxies. It can have strange creatures. It can have a completely new visual world.

This is one of the main pluses of the movie. As for me, Guardians of the Galaxy is one of the best movies from the MCU at its early stage.

This movie is fun, colourful and rather emotional.

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